Awkward Timing -- What to do? Forum

[Anonymous User]

I received some pretty disappointing news from my SA firm today, that they would not allow me to start work with my graduating class given that I will be leaving to clerk in early 2014. While I somewhat expected this answer and understand why this would be the case, I nevertheless am having a difficult time figuring out what I will do about student loans, bills, and generally supporting myself for 8 or 9 months post-graduation. I'm wondering if anyone else has dealt with or knows anyone that has dealt with a timeline like this, and what they did. I don't know if I can go work somewhere else in a legal job without jeopardizing my offer when I go back, or whether or not it is even appropriate to ask in a situation like this. Otherwise, I'll probably end up tending bar or waiting tables to pay the bills in the interim. Does anyone have any leads or advice on how to deal with this situation? I'm still extremely excited to clerk but these circumstances are really not ideal, and a small part of me regrets accepting this clerkship. Any thoughts?

[Anonymous User]

I am a 2L and just talked with a fellow SA from last summer (I was a 1L she was a 2L) about this very thing.

Don't think about it like you've probably thought about each summer--an opportunity to get another credential that will advance some future goal. Rather, think of it as your LAST opportunity to be totally flexible before "the rest of your life" starts. Do something you've always wanted to. Travel. Relax. Etc etc. You'll have to find a way to support yourself while you're doing this but I would try to think outside the box. If you love to read and haven't gotten to read for pleasure in a decade, get a job at a library or something.

I'm sure people who have already experienced it will chime in but I thought I would toss in my two cents.

[Anonymous User]

I am a 2L and just talked with a fellow SA from last summer (I was a 1L she was a 2L) about this very thing.

Don't think about it like you've probably thought about each summer--an opportunity to get another credential that will advance some future goal. Rather, think of it as your LAST opportunity to be totally flexible before "the rest of your life" starts. Do something you've always wanted to. Travel. Relax. Etc etc. You'll have to find a way to support yourself while you're doing this but I would try to think outside the box. If you love to read and haven't gotten to read for pleasure in a decade, get a job at a library or something.

I'm sure people who have already experienced it will chime in but I thought I would toss in my two cents.

100% disagree. My situation is different from, but sort of aligns with, OP's. I didn't have an SA, but I managed to land a District Court clerkship beginning after graduation. Now I have to decide if I'm still going to give a shit about my grades now that I'm a 3L (similar to your claim that he now faces a decision about whether he should give a shit about being employed for 9 months after graduation). My thought is that I have to continue to grind out good grades because, in spite of the boost that a clerkship provides, I am still unemployed from a long-term perspective and need to secure long-term employment at some point soon. In the same way, OP is in a good position to find employment after his clerkship. But he still has to go out there and search for a job in ~2 years. Do you really want to explain a 9-month gap in your résumé during that job search?

[Anonymous User]

I was under the impression that he could go back to his firm after the clerkship.

Also, I would argue that letting grades slip is very different from spending some months of leisure between graduation and clerkship. No one will notice a gap after the bar and, if they do, using the time in between for something fun would probably make a good story anyway. Whereas your grades will come up again and again over the course of your career any time you want to switch jobs (at least for the foreseeable future). Again just my two cents.

[09042014]

Can you do Doc review after you get bar results?

[Anonymous User]

I was in a similar situation to the OP. I finished an LL.M. in May and had a clerkship starting in September. In order to cover my bills for that summer, I applied to and obtained employment at a midlaw firm. That firm was very impressed with the clerkship and needed somebody to help with the work flow (so much so that they were willing to hire someone on a temporary basis). The pay can be good enough that if the OP were to do something similar, s/he could work for a few months and then take the rest of the time off. I have no idea how the firm would feel about the OP working at a different law firm for those 9 months, but it's their loss. Also, I did not apply to Biglaw firms so I have no idea how those firms would react to the temporary employment inquiry.

[Anonymous User]

I was under the impression that he could go back to his firm after the clerkship.

Ah, you're probably right. I read "they would not allow me to start work with my graduating class" to mean that he had his offer rescinded. In that case, your advice might be best as long as OP is entirely certain that the firm won't rescind his offer and that he won't want to switch firms after his clerkship.