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I have to make a decision in a week to choose between an in-house insurance defense internship and a spot at a small firm doing corporate trans stuff. I had an extremely tough time finding a summer gig, so I'm really thankful to even be in a position to choose between these positions.

Well, the insurance defense position is attractive because it actually pays well and will give me some good litigation experience. However, I heard people look down upon insurance defense. Is this really true? Is it enough to give me a poor reputation? Does it help if the position is at a major insurance company rather than a small 2 attorney defense firm? I'm located in a small state, if that matters.

On the other hand, corporate law is something that I pictured myself doing when i decided to go to law school. However, the position is not paid and is at a small firm that serves small to mid-sized business clients. I'm considering this one because I have a good relationship with the attorneys there and the commute is a lot shorter.

Thanks!

Anonymous User wrote:I have to make a decision in a week to choose between an in-house insurance defense internship and a spot at a small firm doing corporate trans stuff. I had an extremely tough time finding a summer gig, so I'm really thankful to even be in a position to choose between these positions.

Well, the insurance defense position is attractive because it actually pays well and will give me some good litigation experience. However, I heard people look down upon insurance defense. Is this really true? Is it enough to give me a poor reputation? Does it help if the position is at a major insurance company rather than a small 2 attorney defense firm? I'm located in a small state, if that matters.

On the other hand, corporate law is something that I pictured myself doing when i decided to go to law school. However, the position is not paid and is at a small firm that serves small to mid-sized business clients. I'm considering this one because I have a good relationship with the attorneys there and the commute is a lot shorter.

Thanks!

1L? If so, it does not matter which one you take on.

On a side note, I remember it is unlawful for a for-profit firm to use unpaid intern who receives no course credit.

Take the ID gig, you will learn a ton and it will pay you in real money, which is the most important thing. The reputation of the firm doesn't matter at all while you are still in school, because experience is experience. Neither job will help or hurt with biglaw hiring, if that's your goal, and if not, insurance defense is good, steady-paying, respectable work. It's looked down on by fancy-firm lawyers because it will never make you rich, but it's the job every TTT grad temp attorney would rape their own mother to get.

OP here. I'm a 2L.

I'm glad that neither job will effect my future employment elsewhere. Although I'm not set on biglaw, I would love to have opportunities at mid-law, at least. So, will doing insurance work give me good transferable skills that I can take with me to other practice areas? Will I be shut out of other practice areas if I do pure insurance work this summer?

Thanks!

If you're a 2L, you've missed the Biglaw onramp. Without at doubt take the ID job, and do your damnedest to try to make it turn into a full-time offer.

Never leave $$$ on the table! but seriously though, I don't think insurance defense is such a bad area of law that you should forgo a paid internship for an unpaid one. not all of us dream of doing personal injury or products liability cases as lawyers, but there's still a demand for it. Also, I doubt what you do your 2L summer will lock your career path. You can walk away with a good amount of litigation experience. But damn, I hope you find a way to be happy with yourself after crushing the poor old lady's claim : )

Norwood wrote: But damn, I hope you find a way to be happy with yourself after crushing the poor old lady's claim : )

I worked for an ID firm as a 2L, and it's actually pretty painless. The claims people at the insurer do all the old lady crushing, you just have to show up in court.