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People always talk about exit options.

What are the differences in exit options for a transactional lawyer working for a V10 vs. a V25 firm? Or a V25 vs. a V50 firm? Is it just a more prestigious in-house gig? Higher salary?

All businesses looking to hire in-house attorneys have a dog-eared copy of the latest vault rankings, and they immediately rank their preferences for candidates according to those rankings. Some companies don't limit their hiring to certain vault rankings, but all in-house salary positions are determined by a complex formula that includes a vault rank as a variable.

Bildungsroman wrote:All businesses looking to hire in-house attorneys have a dog-eared copy of the latest vault rankings, and they immediately rank their preferences for candidates according to those rankings. Some companies don't limit their hiring to certain vault rankings, but all in-house salary positions are determined by a complex formula that includes a vault rank as a variable.

Sarcasm FTW. However, genuinely curious because people fret over getting as high a vault ranked NYC firm as possible in many instances. I just want to know if there is actually any tangible advantage to working for these firms in terms of exit options because I have yet to see any evidence that there is.

Anonymous User wrote:

Bildungsroman wrote:All businesses looking to hire in-house attorneys have a dog-eared copy of the latest vault rankings, and they immediately rank their preferences for candidates according to those rankings. Some companies don't limit their hiring to certain vault rankings, but all in-house salary positions are determined by a complex formula that includes a vault rank as a variable.

Not looking for sarcasm. Genuinely curious because people fret over getting as high a vault ranked NYC firm as possible in many instances. I just want to know if there is actually any tangible advantage to working for these firms in terms of exit options because I have yet to see any evidence that there is.

Not sure if this is true, but I've been told that vault rankings are somewhat correlated with the caliber of clients the firm has, and in turn, the caliber of in house job. The companies aren't looking at the vault rankings when they're hiring, but are hiring the attorneys from the firm that represents them, which is likely a good vault firm if its a big/prestigious company.

Holy shit this question is sensitive and poasters should tread lightly. A discussion of exit options too in depth could implicate the OP. Good thing he used anon.

nonprofit-prophet wrote:

Anonymous User wrote:

Bildungsroman wrote:All businesses looking to hire in-house attorneys have a dog-eared copy of the latest vault rankings, and they immediately rank their preferences for candidates according to those rankings. Some companies don't limit their hiring to certain vault rankings, but all in-house salary positions are determined by a complex formula that includes a vault rank as a variable.

Not looking for sarcasm. Genuinely curious because people fret over getting as high a vault ranked NYC firm as possible in many instances. I just want to know if there is actually any tangible advantage to working for these firms in terms of exit options because I have yet to see any evidence that there is.

Not sure if this is true, but I've been told that vault rankings are somewhat correlated with the caliber of clients the firm has, and in turn, the caliber of in house job. The companies aren't looking at the vault rankings when they're hiring, but are hiring the attorneys from the firm that represents them, which is likely a good vault firm if its a big/prestigious company.

Is there any difference in salary between these in-house positions?

nonprofit-prophet wrote:

Anonymous User wrote:

Bildungsroman wrote:All businesses looking to hire in-house attorneys have a dog-eared copy of the latest vault rankings, and they immediately rank their preferences for candidates according to those rankings. Some companies don't limit their hiring to certain vault rankings, but all in-house salary positions are determined by a complex formula that includes a vault rank as a variable.

Not looking for sarcasm. Genuinely curious because people fret over getting as high a vault ranked NYC firm as possible in many instances. I just want to know if there is actually any tangible advantage to working for these firms in terms of exit options because I have yet to see any evidence that there is.

Not sure if this is true, but I've been told that vault rankings are somewhat correlated with the caliber of clients the firm has, and in turn, the caliber of in house job. The companies aren't looking at the vault rankings when they're hiring, but are hiring the attorneys from the firm that represents them, which is likely a good vault firm if its a big/prestigious company.

That still largely depends on your status at the firm. Do you get staffed on the best deals, do you work with the best deals, and the responsibility you get. I guess top ranked firms get better opportunities, but it doesn't guarantee that opportunities materialize into realities.

r6_philly wrote:

nonprofit-prophet wrote:

Anonymous User wrote:

Bildungsroman wrote:All businesses looking to hire in-house attorneys have a dog-eared copy of the latest vault rankings, and they immediately rank their preferences for candidates according to those rankings. Some companies don't limit their hiring to certain vault rankings, but all in-house salary positions are determined by a complex formula that includes a vault rank as a variable.

Not looking for sarcasm. Genuinely curious because people fret over getting as high a vault ranked NYC firm as possible in many instances. I just want to know if there is actually any tangible advantage to working for these firms in terms of exit options because I have yet to see any evidence that there is.

Not sure if this is true, but I've been told that vault rankings are somewhat correlated with the caliber of clients the firm has, and in turn, the caliber of in house job. The companies aren't looking at the vault rankings when they're hiring, but are hiring the attorneys from the firm that represents them, which is likely a good vault firm if its a big/prestigious company.

That still largely depends on your status at the firm. Do you get staffed on the best deals, do you work with the best deals, and the responsibility you get. I guess top ranked firms get better opportunities, but it doesn't guarantee that opportunities materialize into realities.

Yea I never side anything about likelihood. Just provided one explanation for why good vault firms seem to have good exit options. The companies are clients.

lawyerwannabe wrote:Is there any difference in salary between these in-house positions?

There is a big difference between being VP Legal at Goldman Sachs and assistant counsel at Magnolia Bakery, if that's what you're asking.

Also, you have to talk about exit options into what. If you're at a firm that does a lot of govt type shit then your exit options to govt will be better than if you didn't do any of that stuff. If your firm is known for say hedge find shit your exit options will be better with hedge funds. Etc.

At the very least, you'll be able to feel pretty confident that if your firm has a high rank it will be more likely to be around for the next three to eight years so you can stay there to get experience before you move on to other opportunities, whatever they might be. Although obviously vault rank isn't everything (Dewey was pretty highly ranked) its still much less surprising that a firm like Dewey, Howrey, or Brobeck could fail compared to the chances of a V10 going down.