Emerging Companies/VC practices in NYC Forum

[Anonymous User]

I found a few older threads (2015ish or older) on this topic, but I was wondering if people on this forum would know:
(1) what the current market is like in NYC for Emerging Companies/VC biglaw work and (2) what the top firms in this space (in NYC) currently are.

Thanks!

[lnsl123]

I found a few older threads (2015ish or older) on this topic, but I was wondering if people on this forum would know:
(1) what the current market is like in NYC for Emerging Companies/VC biglaw work and (2) what the top firms in this space (in NYC) currently are.

Thanks!

Gunderson probably has the most startup clients but mostly on the early stage side. They lose clients as the companies start growing. Cooley is probably the best overall, they also took the entire team at WSGR NY last summer. Fenwick moved in to the market a couple of years ago but are mostly thought of as a joke by the other NYC players. Latham is also very big in the NYC scene and their team is led by a former Orrick partner. Other players are Lowenstein and Goodwin.

[Anonymous User]

Gunderson probably has the most startup clients but mostly on the early stage side. They lose clients as the companies start growing. Cooley is probably the best overall, they also took the entire team at WSGR NY last summer. Fenwick moved in to the market a couple of years ago but are mostly thought of as a joke by the other NYC players. Latham is also very big in the NYC scene and their team is led by a former Orrick partner. Other players are Lowenstein and Goodwin.

OP here. Thanks for this. Do you think the gap between NYC/SV for this type of work is narrowing a bit at all/is it growing in NYC? I'm really interested in the field but for family reasons might need to be in NYC.

[Anonymous User]

I found a few older threads (2015ish or older) on this topic, but I was wondering if people on this forum would know:
(1) what the current market is like in NYC for Emerging Companies/VC biglaw work and (2) what the top firms in this space (in NYC) currently are.

Thanks!

Gunderson probably has the most startup clients but mostly on the early stage side. They lose clients as the companies start growing. Cooley is probably the best overall, they also took the entire team at WSGR NY last summer. Fenwick moved in to the market a couple of years ago but are mostly thought of as a joke by the other NYC players. Latham is also very big in the NYC scene and their team is led by a former Orrick partner. Other players are Lowenstein and Goodwin.

I've talked to lots of people in this space, and at these law firms. Why is Fenwick a joke in NY?

[lnsl123]

Gunderson probably has the most startup clients but mostly on the early stage side. They lose clients as the companies start growing. Cooley is probably the best overall, they also took the entire team at WSGR NY last summer. Fenwick moved in to the market a couple of years ago but are mostly thought of as a joke by the other NYC players. Latham is also very big in the NYC scene and their team is led by a former Orrick partner. Other players are Lowenstein and Goodwin.

OP here. Thanks for this. Do you think the gap between NYC/SV for this type of work is narrowing a bit at all/is it growing in NYC? I'm really interested in the field but for family reasons might need to be in NYC.

I'm biased but I think the community in NYC is stellar. It's not raining startups like it once did but it's a strong market and the companies are maturing. I don't think you're at a disadvantage being in NYC over SV, a lot of people go back and forth between the two markets. My impression about NY is that it's easier to stand out here than in SV. I'm currently in school but intend to pursue this work and am very comfortable deciding to stay in NYC over moving to SV. Otherwise getting in touch with some of the partners at these firms would be illuminating for you, most of them have done stints in both markets. In my experience they're very friendly and like supporting people who are interested in this work.

[SFSpartan]

I found a few older threads (2015ish or older) on this topic, but I was wondering if people on this forum would know:
(1) what the current market is like in NYC for Emerging Companies/VC biglaw work and (2) what the top firms in this space (in NYC) currently are.

Thanks!

Gunderson probably has the most startup clients but mostly on the early stage side. They lose clients as the companies start growing. Cooley is probably the best overall, they also took the entire team at WSGR NY last summer. Fenwick moved in to the market a couple of years ago but are mostly thought of as a joke by the other NYC players. Latham is also very big in the NYC scene and their team is led by a former Orrick partner. Other players are Lowenstein and Goodwin.

I've talked to lots of people in this space, and at these law firms. Why is Fenwick a joke in NY?

IME, Fenwick's NYC team is overly aggressive, extremely defensive, and fairly disorganized. They also ask for a bunch of shit that's not market, which drags deals out much longer than necessary. I really dislike working across from those guys/gals.

[lnsl123]

I found a few older threads (2015ish or older) on this topic, but I was wondering if people on this forum would know:
(1) what the current market is like in NYC for Emerging Companies/VC biglaw work and (2) what the top firms in this space (in NYC) currently are.

Thanks!

Gunderson probably has the most startup clients but mostly on the early stage side. They lose clients as the companies start growing. Cooley is probably the best overall, they also took the entire team at WSGR NY last summer. Fenwick moved in to the market a couple of years ago but are mostly thought of as a joke by the other NYC players. Latham is also very big in the NYC scene and their team is led by a former Orrick partner. Other players are Lowenstein and Goodwin.

I've talked to lots of people in this space, and at these law firms. Why is Fenwick a joke in NY?

The firm is not a joke, but right now in NY they're just the new player, and so people don't take them as seriously in this market as they otherwise would. Of course give them time and things will change, but they're a small team right now and they're trying to build out the business. Cooley and Gunderson have been here for ten years or more so are far more entrenched in the market. For the record, Fenwick is a fabulous firm and one of the best for this work.

[Anonymous User]

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[Anonymous User]

How do exits in this practice in NY compare to the quantity/quality of exit options in SV? People make it sound like the exits from EC/VC in SV are great - was wondering if they're similar here

[Anonymous User]

How do exits in this practice in NY compare to the quantity/quality of exit options in SV? People make it sound like the exits from EC/VC in SV are great - was wondering if they're similar here

I'm a junior associate in this field. Not sure why people think exits are great in VC work. The skills aren't really transferrable. Someone please prove me wrong.

[ithrowds]

How do exits in this practice in NY compare to the quantity/quality of exit options in SV? People make it sound like the exits from EC/VC in SV are great - was wondering if they're similar here

I'm a junior associate in this field. Not sure why people think exits are great in VC work. The skills aren't really transferrable. Someone please prove me wrong.

People make it sound like there are a plethora of exit options to startups from the top emerging company practices (WSGR/Cooley/Fenwick), but not sure about the VC side specifically.

[Anonymous User]

How do exits in this practice in NY compare to the quantity/quality of exit options in SV? People make it sound like the exits from EC/VC in SV are great - was wondering if they're similar here

IME, in-house counsel at startups/vc in NY mostly don't come from Cooley/Gunderson/Fenwick. You can see any number of big firm alumni like from Latham, Skadden, Weil, Cravath, etc. The number of opportunities in NY are less than Bay Area but still pretty robust overall.

[Anonymous User]

How do exits in this practice in NY compare to the quantity/quality of exit options in SV? People make it sound like the exits from EC/VC in SV are great - was wondering if they're similar here

IME, in-house counsel at startups/vc in NY mostly don't come from Cooley/Gunderson/Fenwick. You can see any number of big firm alumni like from Latham, Skadden, Weil, Cravath, etc. The number of opportunities in NY are less than Bay Area but still pretty robust overall.

Having just done a ton of research, interviewing, and accepted an offer from a C/W/F/G, I came away with the impression that there are opportunities to go "in-house" with a growing company. I think I saw even more examples, however, of lawyers in these firms joining a start-up as a co-founder, starting their own, or something like that. I spoke with a few partners at these firms who "lived the dream" for a few years, then came back to a firm.

[oblig.lawl.ref]

How do exits in this practice in NY compare to the quantity/quality of exit options in SV? People make it sound like the exits from EC/VC in SV are great - was wondering if they're similar here

I'm a junior associate in this field. Not sure why people think exits are great in VC work. The skills aren't really transferrable. Someone please prove me wrong.

People make it sound like there are a plethora of exit options to startups from the top emerging company practices (WSGR/Cooley/Fenwick), but not sure about the VC side specifically.

Yeah, in my view I have a hard time imagining better in-house exit ops than from those 3 firms, at least in the bay area. Idk about NY but it doesn't strike me as quite as good.