Exit Options from v5 to Long Island Forum

[Anonymous User]

Any idea what sort of lawyer jobs there are on Long Island where you can make a good living? I recognize it's a small market but for top candidates (CCN + v5) (compared to the market dominated by Touro, Cardozo, St. John's) are there some jobs that big law people can exit into? What sort of salaries could be expected? If it's midlaw or shitlaw, any idea how hard it is to be partner of some of the bigger LI firms? What do they make? Similarly, how much can small lawyers doing real estate/wt&e expect to make? Are there any big companies on LI that take in-house counsel?


Thanks.

[Desert Fox]

I'd exit at the Queens-Midtown bridge.

[patogordo]

fucking scooped

[Anonymous User]

I'd exit at the Queens-Midtown bridge.

If only there was a bridge there. You probably mean the QMTunnel. Save the money and take the 59th street bridge.

Any real info DF?

[patogordo]

V4 minimum sorry

[Anonymous User]

V4 minimum sorry

Not a "Let's talk MoFo SF" thread and still gets trolled. Did a TLS search and this hasn't been discussed in depth at all. Mods, the lounge is leaking.

[FSK]

V4 minimum sorry

Not a "Let's talk MoFo SF" thread and still gets trolled. Did a TLS search and this hasn't been discussed in depth at all. Mods, the lounge is leaking.

Yeah, because this question is obviously so hyper specific that theres such a small chance that anyone here will have any relevant in put. OP should just call some dudes at these firms & ask.

[jbagelboy]

commute.

[Danger Zone]

I'd exit at the Queens-Midtown bridge.

If only there was a bridge there. You probably mean the QMTunnel. Save the money and take the 59th street bridge.

You mean the Queensboro? I'm always afraid that thing is gonna collapse when I drive on it.

[Anonymous User]

commute.

(california)

I'd exit at the Queens-Midtown bridge.

If only there was a bridge there. You probably mean the QMTunnel. Save the money and take the 59th street bridge.

You mean the Queensboro? I'm always afraid that thing is gonna collapse when I drive on it.

QB, 59th, or Ed Koch. All the same. It's fine, just busy. And free!

[Anonymous User]

V4 minimum sorry

Not a "Let's talk MoFo SF" thread and still gets trolled. Did a TLS search and this hasn't been discussed in depth at all. Mods, the lounge is leaking.

Yeah, because this question is obviously so hyper specific that theres such a small chance that anyone here will have any relevant in put. OP should just call some dudes at these firms & ask.

Is it actually ok to cold call people at firms/jobs and ask them about their career and shit? That seems a bit invasive unless there a connection (alma mater, etc).

[Anonymous User]

Oh this thread is hilarious. I grew up on Long Island, I cannot imagine anyone who would want to lateral therr. You think you want to go there to raise a family but your kids will want to leave as soon as they can to a city where there are actual jobs and things to do that it wasn't even worth it to bring them up there. Don't do it. Take them to private nyc hs or something.

[Anonymous User]

Oh this thread is hilarious. I grew up on Long Island, I cannot imagine anyone who would want to lateral therr. You think you want to go there to raise a family but your kids will want to leave as soon as they can to a city where there are actual jobs and things to do that it wasn't even worth it to bring them up there. Don't do it. Take them to private nyc hs or something.

OP here.

I appreciate your insight! I too grew up on LI and would like to go back to work and live. I'm sorry you felt that way about wanting to leave - but I assure you your experience is not universal.

Also, "take them to private nyc hs"?? lol, just lol

[Anonymous User]

I know two guys who were doing BigLaw in NYC and wanted to move back to LI, so they started a firm together and specialize in trusts and estates and Elder Law. From what I can tell, they are making a killing. Definitely more than they'd make at this point in their careers at most BigLaw firms.

There may be some big firms you can go to out there, but I don't know anything about that.

[Anonymous User]

I'm sure there may be a couple of others, but the only biglaw office I'm aware of on the island is Nixon Peabody's.

My grandfather was a very successful transactional small firm lawyer out there. His offices were still in the city because that's where his clients were during working hours - who do you think is buying and selling high-end residential real estate et al? Living out there helped with the hustle/networking but business was still done, as it always is, in the city. So I'm not sure how much advantage there is to working at a "long island" firm rather than just working in the city and commuting with the rest of 'em.

The reason the island doesn't have more of a dedicated legal scene, unlike jersey, is b/c jersey is a different state, different bar. all the fun long island work can get cannibalized by nyc firms. All the fun jersey work stays in jersey.

if you want to live and work in the nyc burbs, it seems like the obvious answer is to become a jersey lawyer. i cant imagine what sort of special attaction long island has that jersey doesn't, and I say this as someone with lots and lots of family out there.

[Anonymous User]

I know two guys who were doing BigLaw in NYC and wanted to move back to LI, so they started a firm together and specialize in trusts and estates and elder law. From what I can tell, they are making a killing. Definitely more than they'd make at this point in their careers at most BigLaw firms.

There may be some big firms you can go to out there, but I don't know anything about that.

OP here!

This is the sort of anecdote I was hoping to hear... Any idea how much of a struggle it is to get off the ground doing that kind of work? How much capital do you need to open a shop? Can you give an idea of how long they put in big law?

I'm sure there may be a couple of others, but the only biglaw office I'm aware of on the island is Nixon Peabody's.

My grandfather was a very successful transactional small firm lawyer out there. His offices were still in the city because that's where his clients were during working hours - who do you think is buying and selling high-end residential real estate et al? Living out there helped with the hustle/networking but business was still done, as it always is, in the city. So I'm not sure how much advantage there is to working at a "long island" firm rather than just working in the city and commuting with the rest of 'em.

The reason the island doesn't have more of a dedicated legal scene, unlike jersey, is b/c jersey is a different state, different bar. all the fun long island work can get cannibalized by nyc firms. All the fun jersey work stays in jersey.

if you want to live and work in the nyc burbs, it seems like the obvious answer is to become a jersey lawyer. i cant imagine what sort of special attaction long island has that jersey doesn't, and I say this as someone with lots and lots of family out there.

Yeah, I think I agree with everything you said about the market. Although I'm not really pretending that there is high profile (or any) corporate work. However, there is a ton of real estate/trusts and estates work - which may be quite lucrative. I've also heard of some people doing what your grandfather did - that's a neat practice, too.

Finally, I guess it's something I'm grappling with - but I'm pretty sure I'd like to be on LI and provide my kids with the same QOL/upbringing that I had (which I value and thought was great). Also, I have a large family (and so does my SO) who would like to stay close.

[Anonymous User]

Yeah, I think I agree with everything you said about the market. Although I'm not really pretending that there is high profile (or any) corporate work. However, there is a ton of real estate/trusts and estates work - which may be quite lucrative. I've also heard of some people doing what your grandfather did - that's a neat practice, too.

Be careful there. There are a ton of real estate transactions on long island and there are tons of folks on the island who need T&E counsel. That does not equal tons of RE and T&E work out on the island because there's no reason why those people can't use NYC lawyers to do that work. A successful guy who works in the city is still going to have a lot of his personal legal work done by NYC firms, particularly in the T&E space. RE may be more decentralized, but the broader point still stands.

[Anonymous User]

Yeah, I think I agree with everything you said about the market. Although I'm not really pretending that there is high profile (or any) corporate work. However, there is a ton of real estate/trusts and estates work - which may be quite lucrative. I've also heard of some people doing what your grandfather did - that's a neat practice, too.

Be careful there. There are a ton of real estate transactions on long island and there are tons of folks on the island who need T&E counsel. That does not equal tons of RE and T&E work out on the island because there's no reason why those people can't use NYC lawyers to do that work. A successful guy who works in the city is still going to have a lot of his personal legal work done by NYC firms, particularly in the T&E space. RE may be more decentralized, but the broader point still stands.

I think that's true. I guess the factor that may favor in LI successful people using LI attorney's for T&E is that T&E actually requires some face time throughout the years whereas other legal work may not. Also, I would imagine a T&E attorney in NYC can bill 100 more/hour than a LI attorney. So even when I said "quite lucrative" I just meant that there is enough of it out there for people willing to shell out market - not that LI T&E attorneys are capable of charging obscene amounts..

Do you think successful LI people who have NYC lawyers doing their work would choose to use a former v5 big lawyer who now specializes in T&E/RE? I guess that's a question...

[thebobs1987]

There is Davidoff Hutcher Citron, which is like an 80 person firm and they have an office in Long Island. I know they have some former big law people. No idea about pay or anything

[Anonymous User]

I know two guys who were doing BigLaw in NYC and wanted to move back to LI, so they started a firm together and specialize in trusts and estates and elder law. From what I can tell, they are making a killing. Definitely more than they'd make at this point in their careers at most BigLaw firms.

There may be some big firms you can go to out there, but I don't know anything about that.

OP here!

This is the sort of anecdote I was hoping to hear... Any idea how much of a struggle it is to get off the ground doing that kind of work? How much capital do you need to open a shop? Can you give an idea of how long they put in big law?

I don't know what it took them to start up, but I do know they had a couple of institutional clients that they used to pull in some individual clients (if I remember correctly, one of their clients before they started their own firm was a really swanky old-age community/home/facility/I-don't-know-what-these-are-called-anymore, and they cut some kind of deal to get the company to funnel their wealthy old people to the new firm).

I imagine if you can pull off something like that, all you really need is the overhead (rent, filing cabinets, really good-looking receptionists, art that looks like it was stolen from a motel, etc.). They were both close to making partner, so probably about 7 or 8 years in.

[Anonymous User]

There's a few mid-law firms that typically have laterals from biglaw. The most prominent that I can think of is Lazer Aptheker in Melville.

[Anonymous User]

There's a few mid-law firms that typically have laterals from biglaw. The most prominent that I can think of is Lazer Aptheker in Melville.

Thanks so much. I see some of the associates here are from t14 with some big law experience.

Does anyone know what a mid law firm in a tertiary (I guess?) market like LI would pay associates with 2-3 years experience? 80K? Is QOL much better?