Top Law Schools

Hello, eager beavers, and welcome. There's no fighting in the War Room, so please try to stay courteous. You could be the first class to ever actually accomplish this goal! And thanks to beepboopbeep for doing this last year. Good luck!

Important dates:
Bidding:
Interview schedule released:
Interviews: Week 1 (4 days), August 8, 9, 10, & 11. Week 2 (4 days), August 15, 16, 17, & 18


Previous Threads
2015: http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 3&t=250014
2014: http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 3&t=231959
2013: http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 3&t=212871
2012: http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 3&t=190405
2011: http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 3&t=161763
General UChicago OCI Advice from Alums: http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 3&t=222167

When posting a bidlist to get advice, please include the following information:

Form that would be helpful for future questions (you don't have to use it, but it'll help the people trying to help you). Under Misc put other info you think may be helpful for us--any idiosyncratic preference you may have. Under bidlist provide city of office / # of interview spots / expected incoming SAs (ex for New York/ 42 interviews / 30 incoming SAs: NY/42/30)

Grades:
URM/Female:
Work Exp:
Preferred Market:
Practice Area:
Misc:
Bid list:

In addition to general advice, please post ITT when you receive: 1) your final bid list, 2) a callback, 3) a ding, or 4) an offer (god willing).

That way people know a firm has started giving callbacks or dings. This should, where possible, include the firm name, the office (e.g. LA, DC), the method of notification (phone call, email, owl), and your approximate GPA. If an invitation for a reception or dinner is given, please mention it in your post. It will also be helpful to future classes to post bid lists and what firms you successfully bid on and those you didn't. I encourage share this information - it will not out you for most large firms, and it helps everyone know where the firm stands in the process.

Early, but not gunnery, advice.

I wanted to get this thread started a little early because bar studying blows, but more importantly, because if you start thinking about OCI a little early, it can really pay dividends once you get to August. I think some grades have trickled in, but not all. So you shouldn't be worrying about this yet. Instead here are some things to which you should devote your focus:

1. Resumes and Cover Letters.

Make sure your resumes are up to date and sent to career services for proofreading/restructuring. You should have just about all of the information you need to complete your resume - including your 1L job description. Things like K&E Scholar can always be added in later. Also reach out to 2Ls and 3Ls for cover letters. It's very easy to finish a template version of a cover letter for mass mailing purposes. Oh, you aren't sure whether you're going to mass mail? Yes, you will be mass mailing, and you'll be starting the very week that all of your grades come out. So you might as well get a cover letter started and looked at by career services or friends and family you trust.

2. Read up on the firms and markets that interest you.

Two of my favorite resources for this were Chambers Partners and Chambers Associates (http://www.chambers-associate.com/home and http://www.chambersandpartners.com). Chambers isn't exhaustive, but it will give you a solid foundation to begin your research. Knowing that Latham doesn't like to call any office its satellite office, or that Sullivan and Cromwell works a lot with investment banks won't get you the job, but it will prevent you from making a faux pas in a screener. Partners provides a great way to understand how law firms are situated in certain practice areas and markets.

I would also read up on the previous OCI threads, as those contain lots of good information, TLS in general, Above the Law (if you can stand that rag), law firm websites (as self-definition provides helpful information), and anything else you find useful.

3. Arrange phone calls, coffee, and lunches with associates and partners in your area, or the area you want to work.

Really, this is tremendously helpful if you can get past the awkwardness of cold emailing people and meeting someone new all the time. Oh, wait, what does that remind me of? Exactly, OCI. This is precisely the thing you need to get good at right now. And listening to attorneys talk about their practice and culture provides invaluable information that you can then turn around and use in interviews. Will this get you secret screeners/callbacks/offers? Probably not, but you never know. The earlier you start building relationships this summer the less obvious it is that all you're doing is looking for a foot in the door.

Reach out to UChicago alums and tell them you'd love to hear about what they do, and what advice they might have for a law student interested in working in their city/practice area. Attorneys are all too eager to talk about themselves. I would say try to do at least a handful of these at your most desired firms, but the more the better. And you shouldn't really be that busy as a 1L anyway, so go enjoy your city a little. You might even get a few free lunches out of it.

Final tidbit here, you can always say during a screener or interview, "I spoke to X attorney about Y subject over the summer and it sounded very interesting. It's one of the reasons I bid your firm and why I want to work in this area." This is a good way to demonstrate that you actually have interest in the practice area or firm.

4. Reflect on your resume and the common OCI questions that might come up.

You would be surprised how hard it is to talk about yourself for long periods of time without a little practice. Learn your resume front and back, and then try practicing answers to the basic interview questions. For example, 1) why law school; 2) why UChicago; 3) why this city/practice area. This is also a good time to try to formulate an initial answer to transactional v. litigation. You're career isn't set in stone already, but try to use number 3 to get a good sense of which one you might prefer at this point.

You do not, I repeat, do not have to have known you were going to be a lawyer ever since you looked down into your Alphabet Soup and saw the word "LAW" spelled out in noodle form. Don't feel bad if you have taken a non-traditional path, or if you just went straight through from undergrad. People just like you have been there before and gotten jobs. What you should be worried about is constructing an overarching narrative to your life's story. While every single decision on your resume doesn't need to form a straight line to a law firm, every choice should seem deliberate and well considered. And you should be able to speak to each item on your resume with confidence and a few anecdotes or things you learned. I think the only way you can go wrong here is if you seem flippant about your career, indecisive, or surprised by something you, yourself, elected to put on your own damn resume.

5. Jot down a few experiences and projects from this summer.

You should have a few stories and assignments that you can discuss from your 1L job. Don't have any good ones yet? Talk to your supervisors about your expectations and what you want out of the job. This is totally welcomed and professional.

It's true that your 1L job doesn't preclude you from any 2L firm jobs, but I think this advice overshadows how much of an asset a good 1L experience can be. Demonstrate that you took the initiative this summer by going beyond the scope of your work, or making yourself crucial to a project. I had one or two pretty, and I emphasize that they were not life changing, assignments over my summer, and my interviewers really liked my answers when they came up. I think a lot of people sort of just go through the motions (literally in some litigation jobs) and gloss over this as a potential asset.

6. Relax.

Enjoy the summer and city as much as you can. OCI is a slog, and the more energy you bring to the process, the better your results will be. You do not want to seem weighed down by the process, and it's easy to talk about your fun extra curricular experiences during an interview.


If you can get all of this stuff done by the time grades come out, you are really head of the curve.

Mass mail, god dammit. But wait until like mid-July.

Checking in. Let's crush this

eliminatorjr wrote:Mass mail, god dammit. But wait until like mid-July.

I disagree. Similarly situated people my year who mass mailed at the crack of July seemed to do better than I did. I'd say aim to have your mass mailing done by July 11th or so.

Good luck, everyone. Some initial advice:

1. Be nice to your classmates. I cannot stress this enough. BE NICE TO YOUR CLASSMATES.

2. If you want help with your bidlist, please include the information that the OP referenced. Also, remember that OCI is not an exact science.

3. The alumni that post have wonderful advice, take it. Don't be afraid to reach out via PM.

Good luck guys! Happy to help with bid lists, interviews, other OCI related questions. You will all do great!

probably worthwhile to add the 2015 thread to the OP

On other threads, it is suggested to mass-mail even the firms that are coming to OCI http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 3&t=265703. Would you recommend this? Would it get one in trouble with OCS?

It seems like the trend is tilting more towards early interviewing prior to OCI. With U Chicago's OCI relatively late, it couldn't hurt to get some apps out there to firms that are attending - best to ask forgiveness than permission. The worst a firm can tell you is "see you at OCI." One of the best resources on TLS seems to confirm this theory: http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 3&t=163550

If you're feeling a little dubious about this proposition, I would maybe mass mail some firms in a market you won't be bidding on, or your backup market and save your primary market/firms for actual bidding.

Alum here. Happy to help with bidding, particularly Chicago, Boston, NY for corporate.

I'm just here to tag.

Happy to help if anyone has questions - probably not doing in depth bidlist review this year but can answer questions here and there, especially about NY. Feel free to PM.

tag

Happy to help with any questions re: NY bidding, NY firms, or interviewing in general

Okay, I'll bite. Thanks in advance.

178.5
White male
Litigation
K-JD but strong internships
CHI>NY (Didn't grow up here but I have ties)
Best case scenario I work with people who are nice/sane

EDIT:
OCS just released the 2015 bid stats. A lot of my assumptions were incorrect, so I'm going back to the drawing board. Thanks!

Anonymous User wrote:Okay, I'll bite. Thanks in advance.

178.5
White male
Litigation
K-JD but strong internships
CHI>NY (Didn't grow up here but I have ties)
Best case scenario I work with people who are nice/sane

1 Sidley Austin Chi 84
2 Jones Day Chi 42
3 Jenner Block Chi 63
4 Skadden Arps Chi 84
5 Kirkland Ellis Chi 84
6 Mayer Brown Chi 73
7 Simpson Thatcher Bartlett NY 56
8 Latham Watkins CHI 69
9 Schiff Harden CHI 42
10 Winston and Strawn CHI 63
11 Paul Weiss NY 42
12 Greenberg Traurig CHI 21
13 McDermott Will & Emery CHI 63
14 Baker & McKenzie CHI 31
15 Foley & Lardner CHI 21
16 Duane Morris CHI 37
17 Paul Hastings CHI 21
18 Morgan Lewis CHI 13
19 K&L Gates CHI 21
20 Debevoise & Plimpton NY 63
21 Fox Rothschild CHI 10
22 Perkins Cole CHI 34
23 DLA Piper CHI 21
24 Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP CHI 21
25 Dechert CHI 21
26 Holland & Knight NY 11
27 Baker Botts NY 21
28 Boies Schiller & Flexner NY 21
29 Davis Polk & Wardwell NY 42

Those nyc firms seems like token bids. If you're actually serious about NY I would add a few more into your top ten. I've never even heard of Duane Morris. Not saying that because I'm so preftigious but like, would you really rather work there or Fox Rothschild than a big NYC firm?

The smaller Chicago firms after spot 15 are wasted. You don't need Sidley at 1. K&E and Sidley can be 3/4.

Before anyone gives you more specific advice you should really ask yourself if you prefer unemployment or a small Chicago firm to NYC. It seems like you do, and you're gonna get some pushback ITT if that's the case. I think all Chicago is running a bit too fast and loose with a 178.5. You're going to have to be a stellar interviewer.

--- Duplicate post

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Anonymous User wrote:DC firms, interested in litigation, with 178.5? suggestions

Why do you want to work there? Do you have a connection to DC, as in federal/regulatory work experience or family in the area? I would suggest having a backup market. Your grades are a bit low, but probably not a total bar to DC. It's just a tough market since many special snowflake classmates will also be bidding there. I would say don't even bother with Covington and W&C, and save those bids for other firms.

.

Anonymous User wrote:

Eldon Tyrell wrote:

Anonymous User wrote:DC firms, interested in litigation, with 178.5? suggestions

Why do you want to work there? Do you have a connection to DC, as in federal/regulatory work experience or family in the area? I would suggest having a backup market. Your grades are a bit low, but probably not a total bar to DC. It's just a tough market since many special snowflake classmates will also be bidding there. I would say don't even bother with Covington and W&C, and save those bids for other firms.

I don't have ties to the area but really looking to head there after graduation hopefully so i want to use this to establish that connection long-term. Looking at the OCS list, it looks like DC firms, other than the most competitive like WC and CB, have grade ranges which include mine but is that not accurate? Any DC firms that you suggest?

i was considering California as a back up market, I have some family ties there.

Remember, callbacks don't mean offers. So even if the CB report looks like a firm will give your GPA range callbacks, DC is a small market and might not offer a ton of people. I would say it's a generally risky move to only do DC with below a 179. I would suggest adding NY to your bid list. I'm not saying it's a total no-go, especially if you want to be there long term. Just make sure you have a compelling reason beyond "I really like the museums."

Are you from California? If you're from SF area, then I would be even more hesitant, because DC/SF bid list with below a 179 is a pretty risky proposition. If you're from LA, then maybe that's a little more palatable.

Overall, I would suggest that you narrow down your target markets to 2 for OCI purposes. This is advice that basically applies to anyone besides special, special snowflakes. If you don't feel like bidding California, but have ties there, then mass mail the fuck out of California right now. If you can grab an offer prior to OCI bidding then go all out over DC for bidding.

As for specific firms, I'm sorry but I'll defer to others who bid on that market. I didn't for OCI. I would consult the callback report and Chambers Partners though for your desired practice areas. You said you want litigation, but that's a little vague, as you can do lit anywhere. I would work on narrowing your focus a bit to the practice areas important to DC.

How risky is the Chicago market at 178.5 with strong Chicago ties?

Anonymous User wrote:How risky is the Chicago market at 178.5 with strong Chicago ties?

I would say less risky than DC, but not a sure thing. Your grades are good, but there still aren't a ton of spots in the city. I would still have a backup. I would say you're likely to get something out of Chicago. But what you'll get will be heavily dependent on your interviewing skills, resume, and practice areas of interest - and it might not be a super preftigious firm like Sidley/Latham/Kirkland etc.

Generally, I don't mean to dissuade anyone from picking a certain market, but a healthy dose of NY bidding does the body good. People around 177-178 can certainly strike out of Chicago or DC.

Grades: ~178
URM/Female: Female
Work Exp: Strong work experience
Preferred Market: Chicago & home market
Practice Area: Leaning lit
Misc: 1L SA this summer

Bid list - all offices are Chicago & I haven't included home market bids here:
(Firm, # of slots)
1. Skadden, 84
2. Sidley, 84
3. Kirkland, 84
4. Jones Day, 42
5. Winston & Strawn, 63
6. Jenner & Block, 63
7. Mayer Brown, 73
8. Greenberg Traurig, 21
9. Katten, 42
10. Ropes & Gray, 21
11. McDermott Will & Emery, 63
12. Reed Smith, 21
13. K&L Gates, 21
14. Locke Lord, 21
15. Dechert, 21
16. Steptoe & Johnson, 21
17. Sheppard Mullin, 21
18. Baker & McKenzie, 31
19. Proskauer Rose, 21
20. Barack Ferrazzano, 32
21. Schiff Hardin, 42
22. Vedder Price, 21
23. Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, 13
24. Holland & Knight, 10
25. Shook, Hardy & Bacon, 19
26. DLA Piper, 21
27. Drinker Biddle Reath, 36
28. Foley & Lardner, 21
29. Bryan Cave, 21
30. Dentons, 21
31. Perkins Coie, 34
32. Edelson, 21
33. Eimer Stahl, 21