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I have a good idea how the NY firms break down in terms of prestige. But could someone give my an idea of how the DC firms rank in terms of prestige. Would I be wrong in assuming that its:

Tier One
Williams & Connolly

Tier Two
Covington & Burling, WilmerHale, Arnold & Porter

Tier Three
everyone else

depends on the kind of work you're talking about

Anonymous User wrote:I have a good idea how the NY firms break down in terms of prestige. But could someone give my an idea of how the DC firms rank in terms of prestige. Would I be wrong in assuming that its:

Tier One
Williams & Connolly

Tier Two
Covington & Burling, WilmerHale, Arnold & Porter

Tier Three
everyone else

This is right. Although it assumes that you aren't talking about corporate work and are only considering litigation. But that's fair considering people rank NYC firms with the reverse logic. And it makes sense because NYC's strength is corporate while DC's is lit.

Anonymous User wrote:

Anonymous User wrote:I have a good idea how the NY firms break down in terms of prestige. But could someone give my an idea of how the DC firms rank in terms of prestige. Would I be wrong in assuming that its:

Tier One
Williams & Connolly

Tier Two
Covington & Burling, WilmerHale, Arnold & Porter

Tier Three
everyone else

This is right. Although it assumes that you aren't talking about corporate work and are only considering litigation. But that's fair considering people rank NYC firms with the reverse logic. And it makes sense because NYC's strength is corporate while DC's is lit.

I might put Gibson Dunn in Tier Two.

I would put Boies Schiller in tier 1 or 2.

Anonymous User wrote:I have a good idea how the NY firms break down in terms of prestige. But could someone give my an idea of how the DC firms rank in terms of prestige. Would I be wrong in assuming that its:

Tier One
Williams & Connolly

Tier Two
Covington & Burling, WilmerHale, Arnold & Porter

Tier Three
everyone else

Unsupportable A&P trolling.

DC is a market where there isn't a clear hierarchy that encompasses all the practice areas that might be relevant to you. Covington is great at lit/regulatory work, Kirkland and Latham are great for private equity corporate work, Cleary is great for anti-trust, Hogan and Wiley are great for telecom. It's not like NYC where the top firms dominate all the major practice areas.

Why no love for AP? Their vault regional ranking is basically identical to Wilmer, they have a lot of work and they are doing the att deal.

IMO, this post embodies the very worst of TLS-style prestige whoring. All rankings, tiers and vault references with no consideration for what the firms are actually good for.

Anonymous User wrote:Why no love for AP? Their vault regional ranking is basically identical to Wilmer, they have a lot of work and they are doing the att deal.

Curious about this, and also the lack of love for Skadden DC. Weighing both right now, leaning Skadden for full-serviceness, but both seem really legit.

The funny thing is that the 1) best salary and 2) best lifestyle both come from working at a DC tax boutique like Ivins. However, you are all fighting to get into a position where you will likely be chewed up and spit out after 3 or 4 years and have to bill 1.5 times the number of hours for 2/3 the pay.

I don't get the culture on TLS at all.

What? Boies is amazing... How can you even say that?

rayiner wrote:

Anonymous User wrote:I have a good idea how the NY firms break down in terms of prestige. But could someone give my an idea of how the DC firms rank in terms of prestige. Would I be wrong in assuming that its:

Tier One
Williams & Connolly

Tier Two
Covington & Burling, WilmerHale, Arnold & Porter

Tier Three
everyone else

Unsupportable A&P trolling.

OP here: assume I'm talking general lit....do the rankings stay the same?

I am not exactly sure what you are basing your "prestige" rankings on, but here are the Chambers & Partners rankings: http://www.chambersandpartners.com/uk/Editorial/42873

Litigation: District of Columbia

Band 1
Williams & Connolly LLP

Band 2
hogan lovells US LLP
Kirkland & Ellis LLP
WilmerHale

Band 3
Arnold & Porter LLP
Baker Botts LLP
Covington & Burling LLP
Jones Day
O'Melveny & Myers LLP
sidley austin llp
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP & Affiliates

Band 4
Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP
Crowell & Moring LLP
Dickstein Shapiro LLP
Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP
goodwin procter llp
mayer brown llp
Miller & Chevalier
Steptoe & Johnson LLP

Anonymous User wrote:What? Boies is amazing... How can you even say that?

Curious about this as well.

Anonymous User wrote:
What? Boies is amazing... How can you even say that?


Curious about this as well.

Boies is great, sure; but there is nothing about the DC office that makes it stand out among the DC powerhouses. They don't do anything specific to DC. They do almost zero government work in that office. It is all general commercial lit.

Also, they are in friendship heights, which might as well be Maryland. Kill me.

Anonymous User wrote:Also, they are in friendship heights, which might as well be Maryland. Kill me.

Yeah they are literally 1 block from the Maryland line. No good

And Chambers corporate DC:

Band 1
Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP
hogan lovells US LLP
Kirkland & Ellis LLP
Latham & Watkins LLP
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP & Affiliates

Band 2
Arnold & Porter LLP
Covington & Burling LLP

Band 3
Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP
Baker Botts LLP
Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP
cooley llp
Crowell & Moring LLP
dla piper LLP (US)
Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP
goodwin procter llp
Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP
proskauer rose llp
WilmerHale