Gibson Dunn (DC) v. Covington v. O'Melveny (DC) Forum

[Anonymous User]

Deciding between these three firms. Interest is primarily in white-collar defense and internal/government investigations but appreciate the ability to explore other areas of litigation.

Thoughts?

[Anonymous User]

I would do Gibson Dunn. Covington close second, although I think people might be less happy there. Probably equal quality work.

Don't know as much about O'Melveny but I think it's probably the weakest link here.

[Anonymous User]

OMM is clearly the weak link here. Covington v. Gibson is going to come down to how you feel you fit in at each office I think.

[Anonymous User]

OMM is clearly the weak link here. Covington v. Gibson is going to come down to how you feel you fit in at each office I think.

Second this. My professors and career services office say people are often split on whether cov or gdc is better. GDC does care about 2L/3L grades fyi.

[Anonymous User]

OMM is clearly the weak link here. Covington v. Gibson is going to come down to how you feel you fit in at each office I think.

Second this. My professors and career services office say people are often split on whether cov or gdc is better. GDC does care about 2L/3L grades fyi.

I was a summer at GDC (offered and accepted), I can say the bolded is tenuously true, at best. Maybe as a decision rule if you did sketchy work or were a questionable fit, but, overall this is not the case.

[Anonymous User]

Second this. My professors and career services office say people are often split on whether cov or gdc is better. GDC does care about 2L/3L grades fyi.

I was a summer at GDC (offered and accepted), I can say the bolded is tenuously true, at best. Maybe as a decision rule if you did sketchy work or were a questionable fit, but, overall this is not the case.

first anon poster. i know someone who got an offer but was told flat out that his/her 2L grades were too low and he/she needed to step it up 3L year.

[Anonymous User]

Both Covington and GDC are good at what you are looking for. Outside of your specific interests, GDC is stronger in appellate, but Covington is stronger across the board. And Covington is a DC based firm, which shouldn't be overlooked. Both allow for a lot of flexibility in the type of work you do.

You can't really go wrong here, which is the good thing. But seriously, the culture at these places is pretty different, so go do a second look.

If all else is equal, go with the location/office you prefer (GDC is conveniently right on top of the Farragut metro; Covington will have a shiny new office in CityCenter).

[Anonymous User]

Bump. Facing a similar decision myself.

[Anonymous User]

Bump. Facing a similar decision myself.

I'm going to one of these firms. Just go to the one you got the best vibes from, there is nothin else to it. Probably drop omm, but between GDC and cov you can't go wrong. Both very different cultures though, so whatever one you felt best at just go there. It's simple really.

[Anonymous User]

Same practice group (white collar / fcpa) -- thoughts on differences between GDC and WilmerHale? Are they meaningful or should I just focus solely on which 5 people I liked better?

[Anonymous User]

Same practice group (white collar / fcpa) -- thoughts on differences between GDC and WilmerHale? Are they meaningful or should I just focus solely on which 5 people I liked better?

Curious too as to how Kirkland fares in this comparison.

[Anonymous User]

Same practice group (white collar / fcpa) -- thoughts on differences between GDC and WilmerHale? Are they meaningful or should I just focus solely on which 5 people I liked better?

If you're concerned about partnership prospects, WilmerHale is looking especially chancy these days. They only made 5 partners worldwide last year, and continue to bring in large summer classes. That's not to say the firm isn't doing well financially, they're just changing their business model to higher leverage/PPP. Not a bad deal for the current partnership, but definitely something to consider as you make your decision.

[Anonymous User]

can some elaborate on the purportedly different cultures between GDC and Covington? i did cb at each and found them largely similar... poor sample size, or is the difference exaggerated?

and to the point immediately above, does moving to a more leveraged model put WH behind GDC/Covington in terms of partnership potential, or does it just put WH on more equal footing?

[Anonymous User]

can some elaborate on the purportedly different cultures between GDC and Covington? i did cb at each and found them largely similar... poor sample size, or is the difference exaggerated?

and to the point immediately above, does moving to a more leveraged model put WH behind GDC/Covington in terms of partnership potential, or does it just put WH on more equal footing?

Can't speak to the partnership chances, but from what I gather, Gibson is more social, Covington more reserved. That's the reputation, but you're going to be able to find individuals at either place that buck that trend.