Page 1 of 2
How easy is it to Lateral/Backdoor Entrance into BigLaw?
Posted: Fri Nov 04, 2016 8:49 pm
by Anonymous User
K-JD. Struck out of OCI. Was a T4 transfer to a T1. That's primary why. Was top 15% at T4. (specifically 11 to 12% within the top 15%). That's another reason why. Now, I'm having trouble even finding small law. But, I will keep trying.
How easy will it be to get into Biglaw after graduation and working in a small or mid law firm? Can I do it within a year or two if I work hard? I will have to find a backdoor route like I did to get into my T1 school.
Is lateraling any way comparable to
transferring law schools? For example, the line for transferring students is much less than the line for fall admissions, so it's more easier to get in and partly why I got in to my T1. So, comparing this to Biglaw, the line is much greater during 2l OCI than it is in lateraling? Thus, it may be easier to get into Biglaw through a backdoor entrance like into a T1 school if both processes are similar in nature.
Lastly, will grades even matter when lateraling because I have given up gunning as hard as I did in 1L? I hope to lateral within a year or so.
Re: How easy is it to Lateral/Backdoor Entrance into BigLaw?
Posted: Fri Nov 04, 2016 8:54 pm
by zot1
Have you tried to get a clerkship?
Getting biglaw out of a small/medium firm is nearly impossible. Wouldn't count on it.
Re: How easy is it to Lateral/Backdoor Entrance into BigLaw?
Posted: Fri Nov 04, 2016 8:56 pm
by Anonymous User
No I have not tried to get a clerkship. I think it may be too late now. Besides I'm really not interested in clerking. I know it will help, but I don't see myself clerking.
Thanks for your input. Anyone else?
Re: How easy is it to Lateral/Backdoor Entrance into BigLaw?
Posted: Fri Nov 04, 2016 9:01 pm
by bruinfan10
Anonymous User wrote:How easy will it be to get into Biglaw after graduation and working in a small or mid law firm? Can I do it within a year or two if I work hard? I will have to find a backdoor route like I did to get into my T1 school.
To my knowledge, you can't do that. Pretty much period. Sorry.
Re: How easy is it to Lateral/Backdoor Entrance into BigLaw?
Posted: Fri Nov 04, 2016 9:01 pm
by Anonymous User
I wouldn't say never. I am a mediocre applicant all around. T25 + median GPA. I struck out obviously and landed at a small firm for a year. I lateraled to a big insurance defense firm in a major market after a year at a small firm, but I only got the job because the equity partner who hired me was a psycho bitch and nobody was willing to work for the said partner. I just started but I am already looking elsewhere along with my coworkers. If I could do it again, I would have skipped this biglaw firm and kept applying. Some jobs just aren't worth it. You pay dearly emotionally and psychologically. Take that with a grain of salt.
When I applied with 1 yr of lit at a small firm, I got roughly about 10/120 mm hits from midsize to v50> large firms. I ended up getting offered from 3 or 4/10 interviews.
Re: How easy is it to Lateral/Backdoor Entrance into BigLaw?
Posted: Fri Nov 04, 2016 9:06 pm
by Anonymous User
Op Here,
Big Insurance firm? Did they pay big law salaries assuming 160-180K associate salaries?
It seems like it worked out for you in the other hits you received but I'm curious to know how this is BigLaw?
Re: How easy is it to Lateral/Backdoor Entrance into BigLaw?
Posted: Fri Nov 04, 2016 9:07 pm
by zot1
Anonymous User wrote:I wouldn't say never. I am a mediocre applicant all around. T25 + median GPA. I struck out obviously and landed at a small firm for a year. I lateraled to a big insurance defense firm in a major market after a year at a small firm, but I only got the job because the equity partner who hired me was a psycho bitch and nobody was willing to work for the said partner. I just started but I am already looking elsewhere along with my coworkers. If I could do it again, I would have skipped this biglaw firm and kept applying. Some jobs just aren't worth it. You pay dearly emotionally and psychologically. Take that with a grain of salt.
When I applied with 1 yr of lit at a small firm, I got roughly about 10/120 mm hits from midsize to v50> large firms. I ended up getting offered from 3 or 4/10 interviews.
Big insurance defense firm =/= biglaw.
Re: How easy is it to Lateral/Backdoor Entrance into BigLaw?
Posted: Fri Nov 04, 2016 11:15 pm
by arklaw13
You should focus on finding your first job and then worry about your next one.
Re: How easy is it to Lateral/Backdoor Entrance into BigLaw?
Posted: Fri Nov 04, 2016 11:55 pm
by cron1834
Find some finance niche in which your poor command of English doesn't cripple your candidacy. Regardless, this is an extreme long shot, dude. No T-14, good but not great grades at a T-4, poor English... you should strongly consider taking any job tbh.
Re: How easy is it to Lateral/Backdoor Entrance into BigLaw?
Posted: Sat Nov 05, 2016 12:00 am
by RaceJudicata
cron1834 wrote:Find some finance niche in which your poor command of English doesn't cripple your candidacy. Regardless, this is an extreme long shot, dude. No T-14, good but not great grades at a T-4, poor English... you should strongly consider taking any job tbh.
more easier said than done.
Re: How easy is it to Lateral/Backdoor Entrance into BigLaw?
Posted: Sat Nov 05, 2016 12:04 am
by zot1
Anonymous User wrote:K-JD. Struck out of OCI. Was a T4 transfer to a T1. That's primary why. Was top 15% at T4. (specifically 11 to 12% within the top 15%). That's another reason why. Now, I'm having trouble even finding small law. But, I will keep trying.
How easy will it be to get into Biglaw after graduation and working in a small or mid law firm? Can I do it within a year or two if I work hard? I will have to find a backdoor route like I did to get into my T1 school.
Is lateraling any way comparable to transferring law schools? For example, the line for transferring students is much less than the line for fall admissions, so it's more easier to get in and partly why I got in to my T1. So, comparing this to Biglaw, the line is much greater during 2l OCI than it is in lateraling? Thus, it may be easier to get into Biglaw through a backdoor entrance like into a T1 school if both processes are similar in nature.
Lastly, will grades even matter when lateraling because I have given up gunning as hard as I did in 1L? I hope to lateral within a year or so.
Actually, I just realized I missed many important things here. I shouldn't TLS while tired, I suppose.
Saying you're at a T1, probably implies this is a lower ranked school. You also don't have good grades. I hate to tell you this but you will definitely not get biglaw barring a big miracle.
At this point just hustle for whatever you can get. The odds are already stacked against you because you don't seem to be in the top of your class. Don't waste your time asking about something you're not even close to.
Re: How easy is it to Lateral/Backdoor Entrance into BigLaw?
Posted: Sat Nov 05, 2016 12:27 am
by mjb447
Very unlikely, and if it happens I bet it will (1) take more than a year or so and (2) be based more on phenomenal luck than anything else.
Re: How easy is it to Lateral/Backdoor Entrance into BigLaw?
Posted: Sat Nov 05, 2016 12:29 am
by RaceJudicata
Best shot is clerkship or other fed gov't employment. Clerkship will get you there faster, Fed gov't will get you to partner (in like 15+ years).
ETA: sill a long shot.
Re: How easy is it to Lateral/Backdoor Entrance into BigLaw?
Posted: Sat Nov 05, 2016 12:32 am
by Anonymous User
Op here,
Yeah what I figured too. Oh well, maybe 3L OCI might be a fun way.
Re: How easy is it to Lateral/Backdoor Entrance into BigLaw?
Posted: Sat Nov 05, 2016 12:45 am
by A. Nony Mouse
3L OCI isn't like transferring. But I wish you luck. Keep in mind that biglaw isn't the be-all and end-all, and you might be better off networking/getting experience through interning etc. to get into a small/midlaw firm or local government or the like, rather than setting all your sights on biglaw at this point. Even though it's not easy to go from small/midlaw to biglaw, that's a much better position to be in than trying to get biglaw from nothing.
Re: How easy is it to Lateral/Backdoor Entrance into BigLaw?
Posted: Sat Nov 05, 2016 1:06 am
by Anonymous User
OP here,
Yes, I know, I know, that 3L OCI is horrid and is not what one would assume it to be. Hell, there is also the Vale. Just thought I would through some positive vibes in the air.
Re: How easy is it to Lateral/Backdoor Entrance into BigLaw?
Posted: Sat Nov 05, 2016 10:02 am
by zot1
RaceJudicata wrote:Best shot is clerkship or other fed gov't employment. Clerkship will get you there faster, Fed gov't will get you to partner (in like 15+ years).
ETA: sill a long shot.
OP is not top of his class. He couldn't get into honors programs with presumably not good grades.
OP, I know you said you're not interested in this, but if you reaaaally want biglaw and want to be positive about it, clerkship is in fact the way to go. You might not be competitive for a clerkship now, but after a year at a firm, you might be. Once you score the clerkship, that will open more opportunities for you. So there is hope. Sorry I wasn't more positive before.
Re: How easy is it to Lateral/Backdoor Entrance into BigLaw?
Posted: Sat Nov 05, 2016 10:45 am
by Genius
RaceJudicata wrote:cron1834 wrote:Find some finance niche in which your poor command of English doesn't cripple your candidacy. Regardless, this is an extreme long shot, dude. No T-14, good but not great grades at a T-4, poor English... you should strongly consider taking any job tbh.
more easier said than done.
More better
Re: How easy is it to Lateral/Backdoor Entrance into BigLaw?
Posted: Sat Nov 05, 2016 10:52 am
by Anonymous User
Anonymous User wrote:Op Here,
Big Insurance firm? Did they pay big law salaries assuming 160-180K associate salaries?
It seems like it worked out for you in the other hits you received but I'm curious to know how this is BigLaw?
I should say no my firm is biglaw in terms of number of attorneys not pay. I work for a firm that gets i90% of the revenue from insurance carriers. It is a horrible job. I did not know the difference between biglaw vs id biglaw when I took the job and im paying dearly for my ignorance.
I recommend getting some good experience at a small or midsize firms and try for a staff attorney position at biglaw firms. They are much easier to land and you may be able to lateral into biglaw later.
Re: How easy is it to Lateral/Backdoor Entrance into BigLaw?
Posted: Sat Nov 05, 2016 10:57 am
by LaLiLuLeLo
If you want a bit of anecdata, I know someone who did employment at a small plaintiffs firm. Did such good work and was a thorn in the defense's side that she was able to lateral to one of the biglaw firms she frequently went up against. I think she was a 3rd year.
Re: How easy is it to Lateral/Backdoor Entrance into BigLaw?
Posted: Sat Nov 05, 2016 12:01 pm
by dixiecupdrinking
You're very, very unlikely to get into biglaw and should probably forget about it. There's no shame in that. The vast majority of lawyers don't work in biglaw and many of those who do hate it.
Re: How easy is it to Lateral/Backdoor Entrance into BigLaw?
Posted: Sat Nov 05, 2016 12:05 pm
by BigZuck
OP- Why do you want big law? Just because of the salary?
Re: How easy is it to Lateral/Backdoor Entrance into BigLaw?
Posted: Sat Nov 05, 2016 12:19 pm
by Anonymous User
Thank you guys for the comments. I really appreciate it. At this point, all I have is luck to get me there. If I don't like it, I'll just leave. I know for a fact many are miserable there, but, hey, the compensation is not too bad. Big law will be a new experience for me, so why not give it a try?
As for luck, initially I had no chance of getting into an ABA accredited law school either, TBH. I bet a school like Cooley probably would not have accepted me because one of stats was so damn poor, nearly crippling. I, however,found a way to get into a T1 after one year. Now, look, it may not be comparable to T-14 or upper T1 schools, but this is good enough for me, especially where I was coming from in the past. I guess you could say this is as close to T-14 for me, and I'm happy with it.
Lastly, to the person that mentioned staff attorney at biglaw? What is that?
Re: How easy is it to Lateral/Backdoor Entrance into BigLaw?
Posted: Sat Nov 05, 2016 12:29 pm
by BigZuck
Dude, it's not going to happen. Which is fine. But you have to be realistic.
Re: How easy is it to Lateral/Backdoor Entrance into BigLaw?
Posted: Sat Nov 05, 2016 1:18 pm
by mjb447
This may turn out to be a blessing in disguise, OP: the flow is hard and fast out of biglaw after a few years for a reason, and it doesn't sound like you really have a burning desire to be there.