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1. I realize that I should be relying on my own "gut feelings" about the firms rather than what random people say on the Internet. But that doesn't mean I'm not interested in hearing people's advice.

2. DPW and CGSH are all about lockstep. And yes, I have heard the lockstep spiel. But is it really worth all the hype? I absolutely loved the feeling I got from Weil, and they don't have lockstep, so it's obviously not a prerequisite to having a great culture...

3. Vault rankings aside, is there any significant difference in prestige between any of these 3 firms? I realize that DPW is ranked highest, but they're all "up there" right?

4. In terms of practice area, I'm completely undecided. Factors I consider most important are culture, hours, exit options, having a life outside the firm. (And don't call me naive -- I know exactly what I'm signing up for.)

Thanks, everyone!

What practice area are you looking at? For anything transactional, going to Weil over the other two would be very ill-advised, as Weil's practices are significantly weaker across the board based upon reputation and pretty much any third party ranking, meaning less certain deal flow (worse training, higher risk of being terminated due to lack of work) and worse exit options.

I'm not sure what you mean by rankings, but this depends on what you aim to practice. This definitely comes down to Cleary versus DPW, and Davis Polk has broad recognition in elite chambers bands in the city. So, given your total uncertainty about what kind of law you want to practice, I'd say DPW has a mild advantage in that regard -- Cleary and Davis Polk are peers in many areas, and Cleary is probably stronger in some (e.g. antitrust, European theater), but DPW has more strengths across all areas (especially in litigation).

Overall, I feel like those two are close enough that you can go with culture and work assignment preferences. So, consider whether you want to work downtown or midtown; whether, if you're in corporate, you want to do two rotations and then select a group; ect. You can't go wrong between them. I think you'd be ill advised with these options to go with Weil NY given the trajectory of the firm.

Anonymous User wrote:What practice area are you looking at? For anything transactional, going to Weil over the other two would be very ill-advised, as Weil's practices are significantly weaker across the board based upon reputation and pretty much any third party ranking, meaning less certain deal flow (worse training, higher risk of being terminated due to lack of work) and worse exit options.

To be fair, Weil was fifth in M&A deal value in 2014 and fourth in M&A in 2013.

http://dmi.thomsonreuters.com/Content/F ... Review.pdf

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/ ... ess-of-law

I don't work at Weil, or have any vested interest in this debate, but certainly Weil's M&A isn't any worse than DPW and Cleary, and in some respects might be better.