Lateraling From Firm A to Firm B, or just starting in Firm B? Forum

[Anonymous User]

Hey all, I assume many have this issue, so I was hoping those that have gone through it and have firsthand experience could weigh in:

If I am choosing between firm A with more prestige, vs firm B with (significantly) less, but I would ultimately like to practice at firm B (culture, people, etc), does it make more sense to start at A, where you have the prestige name on your resume and have more leverage when lateraling, as opposed to just spending those 2 years at firm B to begin with? If you went in-house after, would having firm A on your resume initially help?

Or is it all a wash? Or are there any disadvantages to not going directly to firm B if that's where you want to end up?

(Correct me if I'm wrong but I just assumed laterals went "lower down the prestige ladder" so-to-speak.

Thanks!!

[kcdc1]

Also curious about this topic. I'm going straight to the less nationally known firm on the theory that I might as well start at the sort of place where I'd like to build a career. There seem to be benefits to this approach -- you get to build a professional reputation and friendships with your longterm colleagues, and you learn the ins and outs of the firm from the get go. Not sure what benefits I'll be sacrificing by skipping the big name firm on my resume.

[rpupkin]

Hey all, I assume many have this issue, so I was hoping those that have gone through it and have firsthand experience could weigh in:

If I am choosing between firm A with more prestige, vs firm B with (significantly) less, but I would ultimately like to practice at firm B (culture, people, etc), does it make more sense to start at A, where you have the prestige name on your resume and have more leverage when lateraling, as opposed to just spending those 2 years at firm B to begin with? If you went in-house after, would having firm A on your resume initially help?

Or is it all a wash? Or are there any disadvantages to not going directly to firm B if that's where you want to end up?

The potential disadvantage is that firm B is more like firm A than you now realize.

But if you have a solid basis for thinking that firm B really is a better fit for you--if you actually have enough information to know that firm B is where you want to work long term--then you probably should go directly to firm B.

[JusticeJackson]

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[annieT]

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[Anonymous User]

OP here, so is common consensus that I should go to firm A and lateral? Because firm B may kind of suck as well?

[rpupkin]

OP here, so is common consensus that I should go to firm A and lateral? Because firm B may kind of suck as well?

I don't think there's a consensus, exactly. I just think you need to be careful. Be honest with yourself: do you really have enough information to know that firm B is where you want to end up? If so, go there. There definitely are advantages to starting out at the firm you want to work at long term.

[Anonymous User]

I'm not sure I agree with that. Isn't there more risk for OP than payoff? If you go to A knowing you don't want to stay, you (OP) may be presently surprised, and if not, can than go to B with A on his resume.

If you go straight to B your options are a little more limited in my opinion.

[rpupkin]

I'm not sure I agree with that. Isn't there more risk for OP than payoff? If you go to A knowing you don't want to stay, you (OP) may be presently surprised, and if not, can than go to B with A on his resume.

If you go straight to B your options are a little more limited in my opinion.

First, having a prestigious firm on your resume doesn't do you much good if all you've done is junior associate drone work for a year or two. It's not like having a prestigious law school on your resume.

Second, there's no guarantee that firm B will actually want the OP in a couple of years. Going to a less prestigious law firm is not like transferring from HLS to Cardozo: if firm B doesn't need a third-year associate (or whatever) when the OP is done with firm A, the OP could be out of luck.

Finally, there's a lot to be said for starting out at the firm you want to work at long term. It allows you to start forming relationships with partners, clients, and local organizations.

As I keep saying, the OP should go to firm B only if he or she is reasonably confident that firm B is the right place long-term. But let's not pretend going with firm A is all upside here: there are risks in choosing firm A over firm B in these circumstances.