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2L doing Biglaw summer in NYC with a strong interest in tax. Unfortunately, didn't perform too well on the final and got a B+ in Fed Tax.

I have two concerns. (1) Will the tax group at my summer firm not take me on because of this? I don't know if they even ask for updated transcripts. (2) Would it be a problem when trying to lateral?

There a number of other tax classes at my school, most with more lenient curves, so I may be able to boost my GPA in tax classes. Sorry if I am being a neurotic and ignant law student. Thanks in advance!

Chill, bro. Just do your best over the summer and they really won't care about your grades.

M

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Ditto, but A-. Is an A required?

They might not ever see you grades, and even if the firm does the partners might not care to look. Just show interest and do your best.

[Current 3L]

Was in a similar situation last summer and no one looked or cared. To the extent we had more interested in tax than spots it was completely about putting in face time with the group by doing assignments, going to lunches, etc.

Junior tax associate here - no one cared about my grade in Federal Income Tax, which was the equivalent of a B. I didn't take any other tax classes, and basically just selected tax as my preferred group because I liked the one assignment I did as a summer associate. So then I got assigned to tax, and the partners I was assigned to asked me if I took tax courses (to gage my current knowledge), and that was it. No one cared that my federal income tax grade wasn't very good.

If you're trying to break into the tax group, it's more important to show a lot of interest in tax, ask for tax assignments, and then do an outstanding job on the assignments you get. The partners and whoever makes practice group assignments will probably only care about a B+ if they are looking for a reason not to put you in their group.

Good luck! Tax is the best

Incoming tax associate, no one has indicated interest in any of my tax grades. All that matters is that you do well on tax assignments and demonstrate an interest. The FIT class at my school was not even remotely relevant to tax assignments.

No one cares about your grades, they care about your work product and do they like working with you.

for the tax associates, since youre here, do you mind telling us more about your day-to-day and your current experience?

I've encountered plenty of tax people who took 0 or 1 tax class during law school. But, if you're really trying to get into the practice group and it might be competitive, try and take at least corporate tax before your SA (or a transactional-oriented FIT class if your school has that). It will give you a huge leg up in terms of actual discrete assignments but also in terms of just talking to the attorneys about what they're doing and showing your interest.

Just adding to the chorus saying that this is a non-issue. The most important things for getting into the tax group are:
1) Seeking out multiple assignments and doing good work for the group.
2) Forming strong relationships with the attorneys in the group.
3) Demonstrating that tax is your top choice.