Top Law Schools

List em

Kirkland & Ellis
Fenwick & West

Gibson, Cahill, Kirkland off the top of my head.

Mayer Brown

What about Sidley? Do they?

Cooley has "hybrid" free market (?, source: http://www.chambers-associate.com/true-picture/3562/1). Can anyone confirm?

Latham has an unassigned system

To above anon, unassigned systems have nothing to do with free market that's being discussed here. Associates at many firms are unassigned for their first two years.

Desert Fox wrote:Every firm eventually becomes free market after a year or two. It's always your job to manage you hours and your professional development.

Pretty much this. Accordingly the assignments that get doled out via the staffing system at firms that have one tend to suck more (it's whatever's left over that the partners/senior associates couldn't staff by asking people directly).

Desert Fox wrote:Every firm eventually becomes free market after a year or two. It's always your job to manage you hours and your professional development.

Agree. You are equally likely to be "adopted" by a group of associates/partners you DON'T like in a free market system as being assigned to a similar [bad] group at a non-free market system firm. The free market system really just means you have to hustle until you fall in with a group of folks that do the type of deals/cases you like to do. Also, when times are tough, you do whatever it takes to bill...doesn't matter if you like that kind of work.