Patent Litigation Firms (NY): Help me decide! Forum

[Anonymous User]

If you received offers from these three firms, which one would you choose for patent litigation? Why?

[Anonymous User]

I'd be tempted to take Desmarais because of the higher pay.

[Anonymous User]

What about options to lateral elsewhere/ go in house in the future?

[Anonymous User]

What about options to lateral elsewhere/ go in house in the future?

One step at a time?

[Anonymous User]

What about options to lateral elsewhere/ go in house in the future?

One step at a time?

You're right. I just keep going in circles about which one is the best fit, and I would like to make a decision soon.

[Anonymous User]

when did you get an offer from fitz/when was your cb?

[Anonymous User]

Got the offer earlier this week. Callback was just under 2 wks before that.

[Anonymous User]

when did you get an offer from fitz/when was your cb?

Got the offer earlier this week. Callback was just under 2 wks before that.

Did you have a really early oci? They told us last week to wait two weeks for callbacks...

[fatduck]

when did you get an offer from fitz/when was your cb?

Got the offer earlier this week. Callback was just under 2 wks before that.

Did you have a really early oci? They told us last week to wait two weeks for callbacks...

PLIP, probably

[fatduck]

fwiw, i think Desmarais is awesome, and i would probably work there if it wasn't in shitty ass NYC. but if you want a safer, more traditional biglaw option, i'd probably go PW

[Old Gregg]

fwiw, i think Desmarais is awesome, and i would probably work there if it wasn't in shitty ass NYC. but if you want a safer, more traditional biglaw option, i'd probably go PW

Why is it awesome? Because it pays more? Have you heard anything about the actual experience?

[Bosque]

Can you dodge bullets?

[fatduck]

fwiw, i think Desmarais is awesome, and i would probably work there if it wasn't in shitty ass NYC. but if you want a safer, more traditional biglaw option, i'd probably go PW

Why is it awesome? Because it pays more? Have you heard anything about the actual experience?

not beyond a CB. just seems like they have good work, no billable hours, and i really liked the people i met. i also prefer working in a small group, but i dunno about OP's preferences in that regard.

[Old Gregg]

fwiw, i think Desmarais is awesome, and i would probably work there if it wasn't in shitty ass NYC. but if you want a safer, more traditional biglaw option, i'd probably go PW

Why is it awesome? Because it pays more? Have you heard anything about the actual experience?

not beyond a CB. just seems like they have good work, no billable hours, and i really liked the people i met. i also prefer working in a small group, but i dunno about OP's preferences in that regard.

Not trying to be demeaning, and I could very well be wrong about this. But how can a firm whose business model is built on patent trolling be a good place for associates to gain experience? The very idea of going to trial is the antithesis of this firm.

Again, correct me if I'm wrong. Just seems like a place where you learn how to troll with patents, not litigate them.

[gyarados]

I don't like the poll title because you're missing Ropes, Kirkland, and Quinn out of the "best" NYC patent firms.

I feel like Paul Weiss is a no-brainer, but I honestly don't know if their patent practice is even close to the strength of their general lit practice. I would probably still take Paul Weiss regardless. Fitzpatrick is a terrible place to work, and Desmarais is a place to end a career, not start one. You can lateral just about anywhere from Paul Weiss. Don't think that's true of the other two.

[Old Gregg]

, but I honestly don't know if their patent practice is even close to the strength of their general lit practice

100% right.

[fatduck]

fwiw, i think Desmarais is awesome, and i would probably work there if it wasn't in shitty ass NYC. but if you want a safer, more traditional biglaw option, i'd probably go PW

Why is it awesome? Because it pays more? Have you heard anything about the actual experience?

not beyond a CB. just seems like they have good work, no billable hours, and i really liked the people i met. i also prefer working in a small group, but i dunno about OP's preferences in that regard.

Not trying to be demeaning, and I could very well be wrong about this. But how can a firm whose business model is built on patent trolling be a good place for associates to gain experience? The very idea of going to trial is the antithesis of this firm.

Again, correct me if I'm wrong. Just seems like a place where you learn how to troll with patents, not litigate them.

well, given how much patent litigation period is troll-related, that seems to cut both ways, right? the vast majority of patent suits are settling, period, whether you're plaintiff or defendant. doesn't seem to make much of a difference, especially for a junior associate. Desmarais also does a fair amount of defense work, fwiw.

that being said, i don't have a neutral source within the firm so i can't say what the day to day is actually like.

[IAFG]

I wonder how patent litigators regard Desmarais laterals. I personally find the whole patent troll thing distasteful, so I would want to find out if it might negatively impact your exit options.

[fatduck]

I wonder how patent litigators regard Desmarais laterals. I personally find the whole patent troll thing distasteful, so I would want to find out if it might negatively impact your exit options.

it's only been 2 years so probably hard to say. i got the impression they were trying to shed the "patent troll" image - round rock was downplayed heavily and they emphasized all the other work they do (with clients that came over from kirkland, i guess). they were also selling kind of a "come in on the ground floor, get actual input in the direction of the firm" spiel, which may be code for "lol no exit options".

[IAFG]

I wonder how patent litigators regard Desmarais laterals. I personally find the whole patent troll thing distasteful, so I would want to find out if it might negatively impact your exit options.

it's only been 2 years so probably hard to say. i got the impression they were trying to shed the "patent troll" image - round rock was downplayed heavily and they emphasized all the other work they do (with clients that came over from kirkland, i guess). they were also selling kind of a "come in on the ground floor, get actual input in the direction of the firm" spiel, which may be code for "lol no exit options".

I've heard all that too. Time will tell. In the meantime, I do think they're a risk. A risk with a high reward potential? Possibly.

[wiseowl]

I don't like the poll title because you're missing Ropes, Kirkland, and Quinn out of the "best" NYC patent firms.

I feel like Paul Weiss is a no-brainer, but I honestly don't know if their patent practice is even close to the strength of their general lit practice. I would probably still take Paul Weiss regardless. Fitzpatrick is a terrible place to work, and Desmarais is a place to end a career, not start one. You can lateral just about anywhere from Paul Weiss. Don't think that's true of the other two.

I suspect the absence of them in the poll is because OP doesn't have offers there.

Anyway, despite the risk of gunplay I voted Fitzpatrick, but it's close with PW. Desmarais has red flags involved.

[Anonymous User]

when did you get an offer from fitz/when was your cb?

Got the offer earlier this week. Callback was just under 2 wks before that.

Did you have a really early oci? They told us last week to wait two weeks for callbacks...

PLIP, probably

PLIP

[Anonymous User]

I don't like the poll title because you're missing Ropes, Kirkland, and Quinn out of the "best" NYC patent firms.

I feel like Paul Weiss is a no-brainer, but I honestly don't know if their patent practice is even close to the strength of their general lit practice. I would probably still take Paul Weiss regardless. Fitzpatrick is a terrible place to work, and Desmarais is a place to end a career, not start one. You can lateral just about anywhere from Paul Weiss. Don't think that's true of the other two.

Didn't apply to Quinn (not at PLIP) and didn't get offers from the others. Why do you say Fitzpatrick is a terrible place to work?

[Anonymous User]

I don't like the poll title because you're missing Ropes, Kirkland, and Quinn out of the "best" NYC patent firms.

I feel like Paul Weiss is a no-brainer, but I honestly don't know if their patent practice is even close to the strength of their general lit practice. I would probably still take Paul Weiss regardless. Fitzpatrick is a terrible place to work, and Desmarais is a place to end a career, not start one. You can lateral just about anywhere from Paul Weiss. Don't think that's true of the other two.

Didn't apply to Quinn (not at PLIP) and didn't get offers from the others. Why do you say Fitzpatrick is a terrible place to work?

Also interested to hear your reasoning.

I worked there recently as an SA and had a f*cking blast. Also, associates got lateral offer calls from headhunters daily. That summer, a handful of associates lateralled to biglaw firms. Dunno where you're getting your info from, lil breh.

[Anonymous User]

I wonder how patent litigators regard Desmarais laterals. I personally find the whole patent troll thing distasteful, so I would want to find out if it might negatively impact your exit options.

it's only been 2 years so probably hard to say. i got the impression they were trying to shed the "patent troll" image - round rock was downplayed heavily and they emphasized all the other work they do (with clients that came over from kirkland, i guess). they were also selling kind of a "come in on the ground floor, get actual input in the direction of the firm" spiel, which may be code for "lol no exit options".

They seem to be more of a plaintiff firm than a true troll (but they also do defense, just not on hourly billing). From what I've read, Round Rock is getting licensing fees without litigation for the most part and the actual lit seems to be on behalf of the likes of Boston Scientific, IBM, Lucent, GSK etc. With all the IP lit going on these days someone needs to be on the plaintiff side...

I think they said their expecting a summer class of 7-8 with only 25 lawyers on the staff currently, so definitely seems to be a growing business.

I think the troll part is purely for John Desmarais's benefit and not something the firm is being built on.