Top Law Schools

As I consider taking on debt to attend a top 10 law school, I want to take a closer look at the biglaw positions, for which I'm supposed to aim. Are the majority of biglaw positions in one or two particular areas of law? Is it all corporate transactions? Are there some biglaw positions that are more desirable than others? Can someone give a range of possibilities of placement in biglaw? I welcome the most subjective of responses, as well as those that may attempt at objectivity. If you have a goal in mind, please share it. I came into law interested in judicial clerkships, gov't service, and pi, but I've heard repeatedly on these forums that if I'm not interested in biglaw, I should not take out debt in order to attend law school. I want to get a sense if there is a reasonable selection of biglaw jobs, which I would be willing to take out debt to pursue. Thanks so much for sharing your perspectives, all! I hope it's fun.

whereskyle wrote:As I consider taking on debt to attend a top 10 law school, I want to take a closer look at the biglaw positions, for which I'm supposed to aim. Are the majority of biglaw positions in one or two particular areas of law? Is it all corporate transactions? Are there some biglaw positions that are more desirable than others? Can someone give a range of possibilities of placement in biglaw? I welcome the most subjective of responses, as well as those that may attempt at objectivity. If you have a goal in mind, please share it. I came into law interested in judicial clerkships, gov't service, and pi, but I've heard repeatedly on these forums that if I'm not interested in biglaw, I should not take out debt in order to attend law school. I want to get a sense if there is a reasonable selection of biglaw jobs, which I would be willing to take out debt to pursue. Thanks so much for sharing your perspectives, all! I hope it's fun.

If you are absolutely committed to PI or government work the debt is even less of an issue. Every T-14 has strong LRAP on top of the government's 10 year forgiveness program. You probably wouldn't end up paying a dime of your debt graduating from a T-14 if you went into PI. Whether that is moral or not is another story but that's the way the system is set up now.

1.Why not look at some websites of the top firms and see all the practice areas, there is a huge variety. I copied the V25 for you.

http://www.vault.com/wps/portal/usa/ran ... gYear=2013

Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz 9.022 New York, NY
2 2 Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP 8.786 New York, NY
3 4 Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP and Affiliates 8.422 New York, NY
4 3 Sullivan & Cromwell LLP 8.420 New York, NY
5 5 Davis Polk & Wardwell 8.095 New York, NY
6 7 Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP 7.832 New York, NY
7 6 Simpson Thacher & bartlett llp 7.804 New York, NY
8 8 Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP 7.691 New York, NY
9 9 Kirkland & Ellis LLP 7.509 Chicago, IL
10 11 Latham & Watkins LLP 7.402 New York, NY
11 10 Covington & Burling LLP 7.374 Washington, DC
12 14 Gibson Dunn & Crutcher LLP 7.281 Los Angeles, CA
13 12 Debevoise & Plimpton LLP 7.199 New York, NY
14 13 Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP 7.134 New York, NY
15 15 sidley austin llp 7.034 Chicago, IL
16 13 Williams & Connolly LLP 6.997 Washington, DC
17 18 White & Case LLP 6.881 New York, NY
18 16 Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP 6.869 Los Angeles, CA
19 19 Jones Day 6.837 Washington, DC
20 17 Boies, Schiller & Flexner LLP 6.818 New York, NY
21 21 WilmerHale 6.627 Washington, DC
22 20 Arnold & Porter LLP 6.495 Washington, DC
23 24 Shearman & Sterling LLP 6.467 New York, NY
24 23 Morrison & Foerster LLP 6.464 San Francisco, CA
24 22 O'Melveny & Myers LLP 6.464 Los Angeles, CA
25 25 Ropes & Gray LLP 6.428 Boston, MA

2. All desirable govt and PI jobs are highly competitive. Do not assume you will get one of these jobs so you don't have to worry about debt. Know too that each T14 LRAP is different and some are much better than others. I know Northwestern requires you to have the job when you graduate, so if you get one a year or so down the line, you don't qualify for LRAP. This can be tough because some PI won't hire until after you pass the bar. Make sure you know the program for your individual school.

3. Research the biglaw lifestyle in addition to the jobs. The hours are extremely demanding and unpredictable and the pressure is high. It is very different work environment than government or PI. If you wanted government, you may be completely miserable in biglaw.

whereskyle wrote:As I consider taking on debt to attend a top 10 law school, I want to take a closer look at the biglaw positions, for which I'm supposed to aim. Are the majority of biglaw positions in one or two particular areas of law? Is it all corporate transactions? Are there some biglaw positions that are more desirable than others? Can someone give a range of possibilities of placement in biglaw? I welcome the most subjective of responses, as well as those that may attempt at objectivity. If you have a goal in mind, please share it. I came into law interested in judicial clerkships, gov't service, and pi, but I've heard repeatedly on these forums that if I'm not interested in biglaw, I should not take out debt in order to attend law school. I want to get a sense if there is a reasonable selection of biglaw jobs, which I would be willing to take out debt to pursue. Thanks so much for sharing your perspectives, all! I hope it's fun.

My best advice would be to be your own person, and not do what other people are telling you you're supposed to do.

Big law, for many, is a means to pay off debt and GTFO with decent exit opps. If you don't go into debt in the first place, you don't need big law.

Big law hours suck, the work -- at least for awhile, at most firms -- is low level, acknowledgement and appreciation are lacking, you're not doing the most "righteous" work, and their model is built on burning out most associates by the 4th or 5th year.

I have trouble believing that anyone actually wants to do big law, at least on the litigation side (I can understand it more on the transactional side). Most of it seems to be post-hoc rationalization.

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