Question about changing practice area Forum

[Anonymous User]

2L at T-14, strong IP background, accepted a 2L SA offer from a top firm. The firm don't assign SA to a specific group but I am sure they hired me for IP works. All my CB interviewers are from their IP group.
But I am not that interested in IP, I hope could do something corporate related.
I am planning to switch practice area after next summer. What should I do in order to get into a top firm's corporate practice group? I understand grades are the most important thing for 3L job search. Should I get a joint MBA degree too? By getting a MBA I can redo the 2L OCI, but does this degree have any extra benefits for my job search? And our school don't have a top MBA program

[JusticeJackson]

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[Anonymous User]

2L at T-14, strong IP background, accepted a 2L SA offer from a top firm. The firm don't assign SA to a specific group but I am sure they hired me for IP works. All my CB interviewers are from their IP group.
But I am not that interested in IP, I hope could do something corporate related.
I am planning to switch practice area after next summer. What should I do in order to get into a top firm's corporate practice group? I understand grades are the most important thing for 3L job search. Should I get a joint MBA degree too? By getting a MBA I can redo the 2L OCI, but does this degree have any extra benefits for my job search? And our school don't have a top MBA program

I don't think there's any reason to sink money into an MBA if you plan to work as a lawyer. It sounds like you'll have a good shot to experience corp work during your SA. Actively seek that work out, do a good job, and (if they seem to like you) let it be known that that's what you find most interesting. Hopefully, you get an offer in corp. If you really want, you could probably join some transactional lawyer law school group or write some corp. transaction and try to get it published so you can demonstrate experience.

Thanks for this!
The firm I am gonna work for next summer does not have a strong corporate practice. So if I really want to get into that area, most likely I have to reinterview as a 3L. I have no academic or work experience in corporate or anything finance related, that is why I think getting a MBA may boost my resume a bit.

[oblig.lawl.ref]

2L at T-14, strong IP background, accepted a 2L SA offer from a top firm. The firm don't assign SA to a specific group but I am sure they hired me for IP works. All my CB interviewers are from their IP group.
But I am not that interested in IP, I hope could do something corporate related.
I am planning to switch practice area after next summer. What should I do in order to get into a top firm's corporate practice group? I understand grades are the most important thing for 3L job search. Should I get a joint MBA degree too? By getting a MBA I can redo the 2L OCI, but does this degree have any extra benefits for my job search? And our school don't have a top MBA program

I don't think there's any reason to sink money into an MBA if you plan to work as a lawyer. It sounds like you'll have a good shot to experience corp work during your SA. Actively seek that work out, do a good job, and (if they seem to like you) let it be known that that's what you find most interesting. Hopefully, you get an offer in corp. If you really want, you could probably join some transactional lawyer law school group or write some corp. transaction and try to get it published so you can demonstrate experience.

Thanks for this!
The firm I am gonna work for next summer does not have a strong corporate practice. So if I really want to get into that area, most likely I have to reinterview as a 3L. I have no academic or work experience in corporate or anything finance related, that is why I think getting a MBA may boost my resume a bit.

Just take a lot of corporate related classes. If your school has any transaction-based clinics try to do that. If your firm has ANY corporate work try to do that. All those things can be ammo for why you want to do corp 3L. That being said 3L recruiting is never a sure thing, don't bank on it.

[Anonymous User]

2L at T-14, strong IP background, accepted a 2L SA offer from a top firm. The firm don't assign SA to a specific group but I am sure they hired me for IP works. All my CB interviewers are from their IP group.
But I am not that interested in IP, I hope could do something corporate related.
I am planning to switch practice area after next summer. What should I do in order to get into a top firm's corporate practice group? I understand grades are the most important thing for 3L job search. Should I get a joint MBA degree too? By getting a MBA I can redo the 2L OCI, but does this degree have any extra benefits for my job search? And our school don't have a top MBA program

I don't think there's any reason to sink money into an MBA if you plan to work as a lawyer. It sounds like you'll have a good shot to experience corp work during your SA. Actively seek that work out, do a good job, and (if they seem to like you) let it be known that that's what you find most interesting. Hopefully, you get an offer in corp. If you really want, you could probably join some transactional lawyer law school group or write some corp. transaction and try to get it published so you can demonstrate experience.

Thanks for this!
The firm I am gonna work for next summer does not have a strong corporate practice. So if I really want to get into that area, most likely I have to reinterview as a 3L. I have no academic or work experience in corporate or anything finance related, that is why I think getting a MBA may boost my resume a bit.

Just take a lot of corporate related classes. If your school has any transaction-based clinics try to do that. If your firm has ANY corporate work try to do that. All those things can be ammo for why you want to do corp 3L. That being said 3L recruiting is never a sure thing, don't bank on it.

That is another reason I want to get this MBA joint degree, I got to redo 2L OCI next summer.

[Anonymous User]

Good fuckin luck bro

I spent 1L SA in IP, and tried hard af to get away from it. Interviewed with like 30 OCI firms that were not IP, ended up with like 6 IP offers (either IP only, or for IP department of large firm), and only 2 CBs with non-IP places, and missed out on both. On of those CBs even, I interviewed with like the only IP partner in the office of like 150 people, like wtf mayne...

Sry I guess I dont have any advice, but it's a frustration I experienced as well as I heard from the couple other people at my t14 that were patent agents/had other ip background

Maybe try to lateral somewhere that has both IP and general lit, work in both IP lit and as much in the general lit group as you can, and then try to parlay that experience to switch to their general lit practice, or highlight that general lit exp to lateral somewhere that doesn't do ip?

[Anonymous User]

The above anon's experience is similar to mine. I end up staying in IP, which actually turned out to be a good choice so far.

At the end of the day, it is not what you want that matters to a firm, it is what role the firm wants you to fill. So even if you could, as the previous anon said, go to a lit group, and hope to get general lit work, it is up to the partners at the firm trying to put you where the need is, and you are not privy to that information.

If you look to be a good fit for IP, be prepared to end up in IP if the firm you are going to have that need even if you don't ask for it. The safest bet is to go to a firm with no IP practice.

It is also possible that you can move to non-IP after getting hired to do IP. Most of the time, I think, people end up not wanting to do lit so they move to transactional groups. But you will have to do the right things, talk to the right people, luck that your firm has the need, and perhaps give up something (like a class year). Doable, but generally not easy.

[checkers]

To the two posters above who were trying to get away from IP: why? Is there something about IP-lit that makes it so much more unpleasant than general-lit?

[Anonymous User]

To the two posters above who were trying to get away from IP: why? Is there something about IP-lit that makes it so much more unpleasant than general-lit?

I am the second anon you asked above.

I came to law school because I developed an interest in law, not IP law. So to be typecasted into doing IP was not really something I anticipated. I wanted to make sure I get a job, and other people were saying how good IP law students had it, so I decided to give it a try 1L summer. But my interest in the law turned out to be much broader than just working around patents.

There is nothing wrong with IP lit. As a matter of fact even I would admit it is probably more pleasant than general lit. But I think many people with IP backgrounds came to law school to have options, and to have your legal career chosen for you is not what they anticipated. I know several people who feel similarly. Some are trying to move away, some have embraced it.

At the end of the day, we do possess valuable skills that can probably enhance our career outlooks. I for one will try to use it to my advantage. But just in case I end up want to practice in a non-IP area, I am also putting myself in the best position now.

[checkers]

To the two posters above who were trying to get away from IP: why? Is there something about IP-lit that makes it so much more unpleasant than general-lit?

I am the second anon you asked above.

I came to law school because I developed an interest in law, not IP law. So to be typecasted into doing IP was not really something I anticipated. I wanted to make sure I get a job, and other people were saying how good IP law students had it, so I decided to give it a try 1L summer. But my interest in the law turned out to be much broader than just working around patents.

There is nothing wrong with IP lit. As a matter of fact even I would admit it is probably more pleasant than general lit. But I think many people with IP backgrounds came to law school to have options, and to have your legal career chosen for you is not what they anticipated. I know several people who feel similarly. Some are trying to move away, some have embraced it.

At the end of the day, we do possess valuable skills that can probably enhance our career outlooks. I for one will try to use it to my advantage. But just in case I end up want to practice in a non-IP area, I am also putting myself in the best position now.

I appreciate the response. Thank you for your perspective. As a 1L with an IP background, I haven't yet encountered the pressure of being pigeon-holed, and I'm not even sure if that would be unwelcome if that were to happen. Either way, it's helpful to hear from those who have been there.

[Anonymous User]

To the two posters above who were trying to get away from IP: why? Is there something about IP-lit that makes it so much more unpleasant than general-lit?

I am the second anon you asked above.

I came to law school because I developed an interest in law, not IP law. So to be typecasted into doing IP was not really something I anticipated. I wanted to make sure I get a job, and other people were saying how good IP law students had it, so I decided to give it a try 1L summer. But my interest in the law turned out to be much broader than just working around patents.

There is nothing wrong with IP lit. As a matter of fact even I would admit it is probably more pleasant than general lit. But I think many people with IP backgrounds came to law school to have options, and to have your legal career chosen for you is not what they anticipated. I know several people who feel similarly. Some are trying to move away, some have embraced it.

At the end of the day, we do possess valuable skills that can probably enhance our career outlooks. I for one will try to use it to my advantage. But just in case I end up want to practice in a non-IP area, I am also putting myself in the best position now.

I appreciate the response. Thank you for your perspective. As a 1L with an IP background, I haven't yet encountered the pressure of being pigeon-holed, and I'm not even sure if that would be unwelcome if that were to happen. Either way, it's helpful to hear from those who have been there.

1st anon above

The only "pressure" will be come OCI when you are trying to convince X transactional firm or Y financial litigation firm that NO, REALLY, I REALLY DON'T want to do IP!

And for your question, well, presumably you came to law school because you weren't happy in engineering. To then be some kind of of engineer/lawyer cyborg may or may not appeal to you

[Anonymous User]

Second anon.

The pressure for me existed beyond OCI as my firm does not assign groups until after we start. So there is pressure after the summer. I think pressure isn't exactly "forcing you to do something you don't want" but you feel it. More like a heavy persuasion lol

One thing to consider is exit options. So let's say you work 3-5 years doing IP stuff the. You want to leave firm work, are you happy going to a company working with engineers and whatever technology? As he other anon said, you presumably were not willing to go work as an engineer, so would you be okay with that?

[Anonymous User]

Second anon.

The pressure for me existed beyond OCI as my firm does not assign groups until after we start. So there is pressure after the summer. I think pressure isn't exactly "forcing you to do something you don't want" but you feel it. More like a heavy persuasion lol

I was responding specifically to how he said he has not experienced any pressure as a 1L. As a 1L (and anywhere actually at school itself) there certainly was no pressure. In fact, CSO and upperclassman and everyone told me ad nauseum it wouldn't matter what I did 1L summer and that it would not be an issue to switch out of IP.

Obvs agree with your point above