First year bankruptcy associate wanting to move - advice needed Forum

[Anonymous User]

I summered at my firm (NYC mid-big law practice) and pretty immediately jointed the bankruptcy department. Been there about a year and four months and am currently having some strong feelings about wanting to leave. Can't tell if I'm just having typical first-year issues, or if my department sucks.

My department is relatively small (10-15 attorneys, most special counsel or partners), and I find myself doing a lot of paralegal work / helping partners with their billing / and other administrative stuff that literally drives me crazy. Generally, if the partner can have me do the work and "creatively bill" for it, instead of a paralegal, then they will. I can't tell how much of that is just how biglaw operates, or if my department is just shitty at delegating properly. FWIW, I'm the most junior person there, and we only have one paralegal (who is basically used as a file clerk).

I also don't feel like there's much mentorship, or a real desire to see associates grow within the department. Associates (there aren't many) generally come and go, and we just replace them with laterals from other firms when they get sick of it.

Besides the way the department itself operates, I think I just don't enjoy the type of work that I'm doing. Billing in bankruptcy drives me crazy, I don't feel like even the substantive work I do matters in the long in the wrong run. I do a small bit of real estate/transactional work as part of my job, which I enjoy the most. Eventually, I would love to make a switch in practice areas to real estate or transactional. I'd also eventually like to leave NYC and am worried about exit options as a bankruptcy attorney, especially from a non top-tier firm.

Any ideas on the best path forward? Should I at least stick it out until I have two solid years under my belt?

I can (a) try to get a position at a more prestigious firm in the bankruptcy department (there are a decent amount of openings right now) where I can at least get more experience, or (b) try to switch practice groups and lateral to a different firm. Not sure how hard this will be. My credentials are good, but not great, but I consider myself a strong attorney and a good interviewer.

Any advice before I straight up lose my mind would be appreciated!

[Anonymous User]

bump for being in similar situation

[Anonymous User]

just curious, but are any of the partners home grown, or all they all laterals? I'm guessing the latter, and also that you probably aren't in the best bk group out there and they just don't have the type of deals come in to be able to really train young associates, but they still need a few bk partners to handle the little bk work that comes in, so they get lateral partners to handle. this was basically my situation. I, and basically all the other associates in the group, lateraled out. it was an awful and toxic group

[Anonymous User]

just curious, but are any of the partners home grown, or all they all laterals? I'm guessing the latter, and also that you probably aren't in the best bk group out there and they just don't have the type of deals come in to be able to really train young associates, but they still need a few bk partners to handle the little bk work that comes in, so they get lateral partners to handle. this was basically my situation. I, and basically all the other associates in the group, lateraled out. it was an awful and toxic group

If you don't mind me asking, what did you lateral too? Which practice area? Any to lit? Was it difficult?

[Anonymous User]

post people in my group lateraled to a specialty finance practice (e.g. structured finance, financial institution group, etc.). often times this is done by taking a hit to class year