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I am a 3L currently emailing practice group partners of law firms. I am wondering if I should put down my intent "I am writing to apply for a first year associate position with [law firm and practice group]" in the beginning of my email like a normal cover letter or if I should leave it til the end (since the law firm website doesn't indicate there are actually any open positions at all). Thanks for any response.

Why email practice group partners instead of, say, the hiring partner (or chair of recruiting committee, or whatever title the firm gives its primary recruiting attorney)? Practice group partners seem to be more for informational interviewing than sending in applications. But that's just me.

Keep it near the beginning. And +1 to the previous comment.

OP here, the reason why I was thinking of emailing practice group partners is because 3Ls go straight into certain practice groups and perhaps those partners would be more clear on what their departments need?
I do also see the reasoning behind emailing the hiring partner, is that what you guys would recommend me to do? Thanks a lot for all the replies!

op here, just wondering if anyone else has any inputs?

Anonymous User wrote:op here, just wondering if anyone else has any inputs?

Your style is not common, but we all know so little about 3L mass mailing that we cannot come with conclusive answers as to whether it is the wrong or right strategy. The 3L mass mail success is so low that most advice you will receive would be uncertain at best.

Even laterals apply through the hiring partner. The hiring partner will be well aware of which groups are looking to hire.

Also, be leery of locking yourself into a practice group. I wouldn't put anything more specific than corporate/litigation unless you are willing to take no job versus a job doing something else. Even then you are leaving regulatory, etc on the table which may interest you as its a cross-over.

I suggested e-mailing the hiring partner because they'll know just as much about what the firm's current needs are. I'm almost certain, without any evidence to back it up, that it's part of their job as hiring partner. In any case, if someone likes you enough and there's an opening somewhere, you'll probably end up going through the hiring partner anyway. And applying to the hiring partner gives you more opportunities across groups since any given practice group partner will probably only really know about his/her group's needs while the hiring partner will know every group's needs.

I would only really go through practice group partners if: (a) you're really, really interested in that particular practice; (b) there's some connection between you and the partner, e.g., alum from your school, and (c) if you style your inquiry as a request for informational interview rather than as a job application.

Again, that's just me. As for your original question, the sentence of what you're applying for typically goes at the beginning. I begin my cover letters with variations of "I am writing to apply for . . . ." right after the "Dear X" line.

OP here, thank you all very much. I will contact the hiring partners instead.

OP here, on a related question if the firm I'm emailing has a recruiting contact along with the hiring partner who should I be emailing?

Anonymous User wrote:OP here, on a related question if the firm I'm emailing has a recruiting contact along with the hiring partner who should I be emailing?

I think the standard answer is to email the recruiting contact but to address the cover letter to the hiring partner. A minority also address the letter to the recruiting contact.