Top Law Schools

If one is lucky enough to attain a 2L SA position with a firm that has multiple offices, does the subsequent offer (if made) usually only apply for that specific office? Is it possible to transfer to a different office within a firm in case you don't like the city? I ask because, for example, a city like NY just depends on your personal lifestyle.. and if you have never lived there before, it would be difficult to know whether or not you would like it there. Accepting a 2L SA there.. and then getting an offer after you discover you hate NY would definitely suck.

Anyone?? Also, is wanting to transfer to another office of the same firm considered a lateral move? Or is it different because it's internal?

When a lot of people post on here about the difficulty of even landing interviews for jobs, your whole "poor me if I hate NY and that is where they place me" question does not garner sympathy.

Firm offices hire based on need. If they assign you to NY, and you work as a summer associate there, that is probably where your offer will be, because the partners in that office have a need for associates. If you want to work in a different office, there may not be work for you in that office, not to mention you won't know anyone there like you would following working as a summer associate in NY. If you don't like NY, don't take the offer, or don't apply to firms there. And if you get a post-SA offer in NY and don't like NY, just suck it up, because you're lucky to have a job at all.

NotMyRealName09 wrote:When a lot of people post on here about the difficulty of even landing interviews for jobs, your whole "poor me if I hate NY and that is where they place me" question does not garner sympathy.

Firm offices hire based on need. If they assign you to NY, and you work as a summer associate there, that is probably where your offer will be, because the partners in that office have a need for associates. If you want to work in a different office, there may not be work for you in that office, not to mention you won't know anyone there like you would following working as a summer associate in NY. If you don't like NY, don't take the offer, or don't apply to firms there. And if you get a post-SA offer in NY and don't like NY, just suck it up, because you're lucky to have a job at all.

I wasn't on here looking for your sympathy. You can keep that to yourself. I was just asking a question and hoping for insight.

I never said I had an offer from anywhere. I was just thinking about where to bid in the fall and was wondering if I could start at an office that takes more associates and move to a more desirable office in case I didn't like where I was. But please, do continue to make baseless assumptions. It's really helpful.

G. T. L. Rev. wrote:The offer generally comes from that specific office. You might be able to xfer within the firm, but should never plan on it, as some firms won't let you do it.

Thanks for the response. i figured it would be difficult or not possible, but I had read of people not liking the location where they work and TLS'ers advised them to try for another office within the firm.

I guess it would be best to bid on offices you definitely know you'll like.

At the NYC biglaw firm I worked in, people did transfer to different offices occasionally, but it almost only happened after they had worked there for more than 3 years and if they had a compelling reason to move (ie ailing older relatives near other office need care; spouse got an amazing job with a substantial raise near another office) and never just a general distaste for NYC.

1. It depends on the firm.
2. Generally you interview for a specific office, and your offer comes from that office.
3. Most people I know (only two or three, so YMMV) who have tried this have had to re-interview at the new office they wanted. I know of the request being accommodated at least once, and denied at least once.

paratactical wrote:At the NYC biglaw firm I worked in, people did transfer to different offices occasionally, but it almost only happened after they had worked there for more than 3 years and if they had a compelling reason to move (ie ailing older relatives near other office need care; spouse got an amazing job with a substantial raise near another office) and never just a general distaste for NYC.

I don't know when you were there, or where you were, but I don't think this paints an accurate picture. Once you're in, the main factor is not how compelling your needs are, but rather the firm's needs. If you're trying to go to certain Asian offices, you'll have a good shot. If you're trying to go to your firm's SF office, maybe not so much.

I was only using NYC as an example. I wasn't specifically talking about NYC, though. Thanks for all the responses guys. Definitely very helpful!

Rule11 wrote:

paratactical wrote:At the NYC biglaw firm I worked in, people did transfer to different offices occasionally, but it almost only happened after they had worked there for more than 3 years and if they had a compelling reason to move (ie ailing older relatives near other office need care; spouse got an amazing job with a substantial raise near another office) and never just a general distaste for NYC.

I don't know when you were there, or where you were, but I don't think this paints an accurate picture. Once you're in, the main factor is not how compelling your needs are, but rather the firm's needs. If you're trying to go to certain Asian offices, you'll have a good shot. If you're trying to go to your firm's SF office, maybe not so much.

I was there from 2006-2010. I didn't mean to imply that having personal compelling needs was sufficient to get you a transfer to a SF office or the like, but merely that they seemed to be very necessary. IME, the people who went to places like Asia or Europe or American offices that needed assistance in establishing a presence were picked by the firm, not requested by the individual attorneys.