Advice? Forum

[Anonymous User]

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[deepseapartners]

Does the office managing partner(s) happen to be on the hiring committee, or your assigned partner mentor? If so, don't worry until you have to worry.

You definitely made this sound quite ominous, though. Is there a specific incident or reason that one of the partners didn't like you? And, thinking introspectively, would you say that you generally (a) fit in with the firm's attorneys, (b) met all deadlines, regardless of the quality of work you produced, and (c) did nothing that other attorneys would say was inappropriate?

[Anonymous User]

NY or a satellite office?

[mjb447]

If you do end up no/cold offered, I believe the usual advice is take a day or two to process, then start mass mailing in earnest. Participate in 3L OCI to the extent that it exists but don't expect a lot from it. Look into opportunities outside the private sector - clerkships, government, public interest. (I'm sure someone will correct me if this is wrong - it's been a long time since I was in this boat.)

Again, though, this seems premature.

[Anonymous User]

Sorry for being so vague. I am paranoid that my firm/the recruiter might read TLS. The managing partner is not on the hiring committee but he's very involved in the hiring process. My partner mentor has been unavailable/not responding to me.

I just feel that if they were going to give me an offer, they would've done so over the phone. Plus the fact that all my co summers got their offer makes me feel more paranoid.

Yes re: a-c. I did turn one assignment late, but that was because I needed to wait on an approval from the assigning attorney, so it wasn't really "late".

This is a non NY major market.

Do firms typically give no offers in person or over the phone?

[Anonymous User]

No specific incident as to why the partner doesn't like me. He just personally doesn't like me. Even on an assignment I did well on, he managed to find a way to say it was really bad. I spoke with me reviewer about this and they said that they disagree with this partner. But I still can't help but feel nervous.

[RaceJudicata]

No specific incident as to why the partner doesn't like me. He just personally doesn't like me. Even on an assignment I did well on, he managed to find a way to say it was really bad. I spoke with me reviewer about this and they said that they disagree with this partner. But I still can't help but feel nervous.

Just an FYI, bolded means the assignment is bad - whether or not you or others disagree.

[Anonymous User]

No specific incident as to why the partner doesn't like me. He just personally doesn't like me. Even on an assignment I did well on, he managed to find a way to say it was really bad. I spoke with me reviewer about this and they said that they disagree with this partner. But I still can't help but feel nervous.

Just an FYI, bolded means the assignment is bad - whether or not you or others disagree.

I believe what OP is saying might be true. At my firm, there's a partner I've never worked with, but in every interaction I've ever had with him he's been extremely rude to me, from my interview to social events. I'm not sure what it is, but I have a few guesses. Partners can be prejudiced, too. I stay the F away from him because I know no matter how good of a job I might do for him he'll find an excuse to shit on it.

[cavalier1138]

No specific incident as to why the partner doesn't like me. He just personally doesn't like me. Even on an assignment I did well on, he managed to find a way to say it was really bad. I spoke with me reviewer about this and they said that they disagree with this partner. But I still can't help but feel nervous.

Just an FYI, bolded means the assignment is bad - whether or not you or others disagree.

I believe what OP is saying might be true. At my firm, there's a partner I've never worked with, but in every interaction I've ever had with him he's been extremely rude to me, from my interview to social events. I'm not sure what it is, but I have a few guesses. Partners can be prejudiced, too. I stay the F away from him because I know no matter how good of a job I might do for him he'll find an excuse to shit on it.

I think the point was more that the assigning partner's opinion is the only thing that matters.

[Anonymous User]

No specific incident as to why the partner doesn't like me. He just personally doesn't like me. Even on an assignment I did well on, he managed to find a way to say it was really bad. I spoke with me reviewer about this and they said that they disagree with this partner. But I still can't help but feel nervous.

Just an FYI, bolded means the assignment is bad - whether or not you or others disagree.

I believe what OP is saying might be true. At my firm, there's a partner I've never worked with, but in every interaction I've ever had with him he's been extremely rude to me, from my interview to social events. I'm not sure what it is, but I have a few guesses. Partners can be prejudiced, too. I stay the F away from him because I know no matter how good of a job I might do for him he'll find an excuse to shit on it.

I think the point was more that the assigning partner's opinion is the only thing that matters.

OP here

The assigning attorney said the assignment was great, but the partner said it was horrible. I've turned in several assignments afterwards that were well-received by the assigning attorneys, yet that partner thought they were crap.

[Mullens]

From your posts in this thread, it definitely sounds like you might get cold or no-offered. I suggest you start preparing for the possibility by getting your materials together and start mass mailing. Even if you do get an offer, you might want to consider if you even want to go back to this firm based on how you're being treated by partners there and how it will affect your reputation if you were to start there as an Associate.

[Anonymous User]

the assigning partner's opinion is the only thing that matters. It might seem unfair, or annoying, but at the end of the day this is the best advice I've received. Part of the job is learning some of the quirks of the people you're doing work for.

Conversely, if these issues persist and he/she is just insufferable, you know to look for work from other partners before going to this person (unless your office is slow and you really need work). As a summer, I had an associate who took the opportunity to be catty at every turn. All that taught me was that I didn't want to work with her. So, I simply looked for work from other people, and if she was also on the deal I'd just deal with her if I was required to.

[FSK]

You are getting nooffered. Sorry to tell you. Get ready for whats coming, and good luck.

[Anonymous User]

OP here.

From the sounds of it, I am getting no-offered. This blows because I really did try hard. Yes my first assignment was not the best, but all my subsequent assignments were good based on the assigning attorney's reviews. I came in early, stayed late, worked from home, etc. I feel that even though I tried my hardest, I am just not good enough, and maybe I should just forego biglaw. I also feel blind-sided because based on the majority of my work product, and the reputation of this V10 firm, I thought I would definitely get an offer.

[acr]

OP here.

From the sounds of it, I am getting no-offered. This blows because I really did try hard. Yes my first assignment was not the best, but all my subsequent assignments were good based on the assigning attorney's reviews. I came in early, stayed late, worked from home, etc. I feel that even though I tried my hardest, I am just not good enough, and maybe I should just forego biglaw. I also feel blind-sided because based on the majority of my work product, and the reputation of this V10 firm, I thought I would definitely get an offer.

I would prepare for the possibility of being no-offered, but you just don't know yet.

As others have mentioned, it is wise to start gathering your materials and even mailing firms.

But don't take away from this experience that you're "not good enough." One poor assignment (your first assignment, and as a summer associate nonetheless) is not an indication of your skills over the course of a career. It's unfortunate that the people you work with let this one assignment "poison the well," but if they don't understand that everyone has a different learning curve and some people take time to settle into a role and develop, then you're probably better off somewhere else anyway.

[Anonymous User]

Can someone help me? I accidentally posted anonymously. Sorry.

[Anonymous User]

OP here.

From the sounds of it, I am getting no-offered. This blows because I really did try hard. Yes my first assignment was not the best, but all my subsequent assignments were good based on the assigning attorney's reviews. I came in early, stayed late, worked from home, etc. I feel that even though I tried my hardest, I am just not good enough, and maybe I should just forego biglaw. I also feel blind-sided because based on the majority of my work product, and the reputation of this V10 firm, I thought I would definitely get an offer.

I would prepare for the possibility of being no-offered, but you just don't know yet.

As others have mentioned, it is wise to start gathering your materials and even mailing firms.

But don't take away from this experience that you're "not good enough." One poor assignment (your first assignment, and as a summer associate nonetheless) is not an indication of your skills over the course of a career. It's unfortunate that the people you work with let this one assignment "poison the well," but if they don't understand that everyone has a different learning curve and some people take time to settle into a role and develop, then you're probably better off somewhere else anyway.

Thank you. I really appreciate your kind words. Admittedly I have a different learning curve and I am not one to give a riveting assignment on the first try if I have never encountered something of similar substance before. But I am one to really try my hardest on every assignment.

I have started gathering my materials and will get ready to go back into the recruiting pool. You guys are the best. I am already feeling better.