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I may be moving to the Ann Arbor / Detroit area next year for personal reasons and was wondering what are the best firms in the area for litigation. I'm looking either defense side or plaintiffs side litigation. I'm a T6 graduate with two desirable federal clerkships (also LR), but no connections to the region. I have an offer to return to a well-respected lit firm in a major market, but that does me no good if I end up having to move.

My preference is for a litigation boutique, but I understand that my best bet for a medium-sized market like this might be a bigger firm (because a lot of mid-sized markets don't have elite boutiques). I care more about the quality of the work I'd get and the quality of the colleagues I'd have than the pay.

Please help, thanks!

Probably Honigman or Dykema, but even with great credentials like you have I'm thinking Ann Arbor is impossible [and Detroit an uphill battle] without a UM degree (if you did Michigan as an undergrad, it greatly increases your chances at least). I'd go after Hongiman first because they hire the most and are generally the best in the state. But really sell whatever your personal story is to get a leg up on Michigan/MSU kids.

I'm the OP.

Thanks! That's somewhat disheartening to hear about connections, but I appreciate the info. Are there any smaller boutiques? I imagine there must be some groups of UMich grads, for example, who set up shop in Ann Arbor doing high quality work. Re practice areas, I'm most interested in appellate lit, white collar lit, and class action work (products liability, consumer protection, etc).

Re Honigman or Dykema, when would one apply? Do they follow the general biglaw clerk hiring timeline (in which case I should get an application in soon), or are they more similar to other smaller and mid-sized firm (in which case I shouldn't apply until May or June or so)?

Honigman, Dykema, Dickinson, Bodman, Clark Hill, butzel long, Miller Canfield, even Jaffe and Plunkett Cooney, all big and all do significant litigation. They are all going to view you with suspicion, however. Young attorneys are money losers and don't really start justifying their existence until 4-5 years in. Your clerking experience is nice but that isn't law firm practice. So if you slap down your T6 degree and say "hire me," they'll be thinking, "this guy (or girl) is going to skip town in two years after gaining experience on our dime." I've seen it. Foley has an office here and maybe is more willing to overlook lack of geographic ties, but NOBODY just moves to Detroit without a compelling reason. And no one stays here without a compelling reason either.

I saw your other mirror-image thread on Toledo and I was going to say there, "move to Detroit, not Toledo" but I see you're feeling things out here. Just know that when the larger firms (with larger salaries) hire a young attorney, its an investment of time and money, and they want to see a return. You could try working for Kitch, but you'll get paid half as much as anywhere else and work just as hard. But they might not care about lack of ties because they turn over a lot of young attorneys as part of their business model.

Good luck.

Anonymous User wrote:I'm the OP.

Thanks! That's somewhat disheartening to hear about connections, but I appreciate the info. Are there any smaller boutiques? I imagine there must be some groups of UMich grads, for example, who set up shop in Ann Arbor doing high quality work. Re practice areas, I'm most interested in appellate lit, white collar lit, and class action work (products liability, consumer protection, etc).

Re Honigman or Dykema, when would one apply? Do they follow the general biglaw clerk hiring timeline (in which case I should get an application in soon), or are they more similar to other smaller and mid-sized firm (in which case I shouldn't apply until May or June or so)?

You setup shop where the clients are. You're more likely to find a litigation boutique in Birmingham or Oakland county than in Ann Arbor. Though I have to tell you, I can't name a lit boutique off the top of my head that operates in Michigan. Sure there might be some, but I don't know about them. Not saying they don't exist though.

Anonymous User wrote:I may be moving to the Ann Arbor / Detroit area next year for personal reasons and was wondering what are the best firms in the area for litigation. I'm looking either defense side or plaintiffs side litigation. I'm a T6 graduate with two desirable federal clerkships (also LR), but no connections to the region. I have an offer to return to a well-respected lit firm in a major market, but that does me no good if I end up having to move.

My preference is for a litigation boutique, but I understand that my best bet for a medium-sized market like this might be a bigger firm (because a lot of mid-sized markets don't have elite boutiques). I care more about the quality of the work I'd get and the quality of the colleagues I'd have than the pay.

Please help, thanks!

Without any ties it'll be an uphill battle. UMich and Notre Dame are probably the top schools feeding into Detroit in large amounts - but most Michigan grads go Chi and NYC, etc. Otherwise you're up against University of Detroit, Wayne State, Michigan State, Cooley - the first two (maybe MSU as well) are very well regarded in the area. (UoD used to, may still be, the school most partners for Detroit firms).

If you have any ND/UMich ties, use them - those people bend over backwards to help out Alum, etc. If not, make sure you have a good story for the city and why you'll stay there. The city is often overlooked as a legal market, so when firms see someone who is willing to stay, they'll jump on it.

Some thoughts here that may be useful to you:

http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... lit=Bodman