Can you land a compliance job straight out of law school? Forum

(On Campus Interviews, Summer Associate positions, Firm Reviews, Tips, ...)
Forum rules
Anonymous Posting

Anonymous posting is only appropriate when you are revealing sensitive employment related information about a firm, job, etc. You may anonymously respond on topic to these threads. Unacceptable uses include: harassing another user, joking around, testing the feature, or other things that are more appropriate in the lounge.

Failure to follow these rules will get you outed, warned, or banned.
Anonymous User
Posts: 431113
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Can you land a compliance job straight out of law school?

Post by Anonymous User » Mon Jun 25, 2018 11:54 pm

Is there a well established pipeline to go into compliance work without working at a big law firm before hand? I’m an entry level job seeker struggling to find corporate and litigation work and was wondering if this was even a possibility.

Thanks.

User avatar
RCSOB657

Gold
Posts: 3346
Joined: Wed Jun 18, 2014 2:50 am

Re: Can you land a compliance job straight out of law school?

Post by RCSOB657 » Tue Jun 26, 2018 12:17 am

um, tax or USPTO compliance?

PMan99

Bronze
Posts: 349
Joined: Mon Jan 10, 2011 3:21 pm

Re: Can you land a compliance job straight out of law school?

Post by PMan99 » Tue Jun 26, 2018 1:43 am

Possible? Sure. Likely or desirable? That's a different story. There are companies that hire JDs straight out of law school, but it tends to put you on a track for lower salary and slower career advancement then going to a reputable firm first. That said, every circumstance is different.

Anonymous User
Posts: 431113
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: Can you land a compliance job straight out of law school?

Post by Anonymous User » Thu Jun 28, 2018 10:24 am

Banking compliance is always big, and banks always need to keep a fairly sizable compliance staff on hand--look at those applications.

Seconding what PMan99 has said--possible, definitely. But likely or desirable depends on what you want your career trajectory to be. I don't think it's a bad start if you land a good compliance gig somewhere that lets you gain some good insight and experience. That being said, you probably don't want to get stuck in the compliance gig more than 2 years because your legal skills will be viewed as stale to firms.

albanach

Gold
Posts: 1986
Joined: Tue Jul 08, 2008 10:05 pm

Re: Can you land a compliance job straight out of law school?

Post by albanach » Thu Jun 28, 2018 3:16 pm

I'd think that one problem you face is certification. CCEP needs work experience, which many folk can get by being an attorney in a compliance realm.

It's certainly not impossible but, as was mentioned above, it might impact your salary expectations. If you do get an offer, I'd suggest asking them to pay for your certification costs and (particularly if the money seems low) ask that they give you a raise upon completing certification.

Want to continue reading?

Register now to search topics and post comments!

Absolutely FREE!


Anonymous User
Posts: 431113
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: Can you land a compliance job straight out of law school?

Post by Anonymous User » Thu Jun 28, 2018 5:37 pm

If you have friends in the big4 and are at all interested in tax compliance/consulting, have them recomend you.

But try to find somebody at manager level who has a partner’s ear. Much more effective than a blind resume drop.

Anonymous User
Posts: 431113
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: Can you land a compliance job straight out of law school?

Post by Anonymous User » Thu Jun 28, 2018 7:07 pm

Had classmates that landed "compliance" jobs at smaller/regional banks in their trusts department. The pay is likely not great and not sure of any exit options, but seems like a decent gig to me. I don't think they are in abundance and obviously it is helpful to have previous work experience in the field.

Try looking directly on those types of banks' websites.

Want to continue reading?

Register for access!

Did I mention it was FREE ?


Post Reply Post Anonymous Reply  

Return to “Legal Employment”