Trial Firm W/ Less Than Stellar Credentials Forum

[Anonymous User]

I'm a 2L who'll be summering at a top firm in DC (Not W&C or Cov but right below). I went into law with the intention of doing a significant amount of trial work and realized that this will be extremely difficult at my firm. I know that the general advice for someone who wants to do trial work is to go to a trial boutique if you can get it. While my grades and credentials are good (Moot Court/Law Review/Top 20% at a lower T14), I don't see myself as being competitive for firms like Susman, MTO, and Kekker. I could probably secure a district court clerkship but still not sure how competitive I'd be. While I understand that being a DA or a PD would give me the most trial experience, it just not feasible with my student loans and family situation.

My main question is, are there firms in DC (and other major markets) where I'd get significant exposure to trial work and still make a decent wage and have chances of making partner? I obviously wouldn't expect to be compensated at Cravath scale levels and I'd take a significant pay cut to be able to regularly try cases as an associate. I'm also very good at oral argument and have won a number of oral advocacy competitions both in undergrad and law school if that makes a difference. I'd consider going plaintiffs side as well.

TL;DR: Looking for firms with signficant opportunity to do trial work that aren't as selective as the elite litigaiton botiques mentioned aove.

[wwwcol]

If you want to regularly try cases, be a partner, and don’t mind significant pay cut, do solo practice or a small firm. What you’ve described doesn’t really exist elsewhere

[BasilHallward]

It's highly unlikely that you'll be trying cases out of the gate at a bigger law firm. This could happen after several years of grunt work and learning the trial process. Maybe you'll take some depos your first year (I've been lucky enough to do this), but you will need to learn to handle mounds of discovery, communication with client, opposing counsel, etc. A firm just won't roll out the red carpet for you and let you be first chair on important cases paid for by clients that you don't have. If you can get clients out of law school, this changes your ability to have more control.

[Lacepiece23]

I think going to the das office for a while can be a good way to get trial experience. A lot of the trial lawyers at my big firm spent a few years there and then made their way back into private practice. You take a pay cut for a bit, but I bet with the trial experience you’d be more likely to get staffed on more trial upon your return to firm life.

[cavalier1138]

If you're in DC, why not rack up as much pro bono trial experience as possible in the next few years, then try to lateral to the US Attorney's Office for DDC?

[Anonymous User]

If you're in DC, why not rack up as much pro bono trial experience as possible in the next few years, then try to lateral to the US Attorney's Office for DDC?

OP here. Would a heavily litigating civil component of the DOJ be better or worse for exiting back to a firm (have a connection there)? No interest in white collar if that matters.

I also don't know how competitive I'd be for DDC but could maybe get EDVa or DMd.

[LBJ's Hair]

If you're in DC, why not rack up as much pro bono trial experience as possible in the next few years, then try to lateral to the US Attorney's Office for DDC?

OP here. Would a heavily litigating civil component of the DOJ be better or worse for exiting back to a firm (have a connection there)? No interest in white collar if that matters.

I also don't know how competitive I'd be for DDC but could maybe get EDVa or DMd.

Don't think EDVa is meaningfully less competitive than DDC. That said, apply to all three after a few years of work experience and you should get some bites. The standards are meaningfully lower for people who have put in time at a firm. (Not to say that you're egregiously unqualified or anything.)

[Anonymous User]

What kind of "trials" do you want to do? As a rough metric for "types" of trials, you can think of them in terms of digits: 6 figs, 7 figs, 8 fig ones, 9 fig ones, and the big Billion dollar cases.

Elite lit boutiques do 8 figs minimum, with the bulk of their case load in the 9 figure range. You'll be able to take deps and even conduct direct examinations far earlier in your career, but you won't be giving opening statements until you're at least a decade in. If you're seeing yourself trying a case every year 5 years into your career, not even the elite lit boutiques can give you that.

By contrast, I wouldn't be surprised if you can find biglaw lit senior partners that have never first chaired a case in their life outside probono.

If you wanna be in the courtroom a ton, you gotta look for the smaller firms (10-50 lawyers) that are super trial heavy. Most of the cases are 6-7 figs, with the very occasional 8 figure one, purely because they don't have the manpower or time to handle 9 figure cases. These firms go entirely based off reputation and take cases that are too small potatoes for biglaw firms. The way it goes is someone with a 7 fig claim reaches out to a Hogan partner, who then points him to Ex-Hogan small firm partner. Because these firms consist heavily of ex-biglaw/elite boutique associates, that's often where they hire from, if at all. These firms don't hire much because they're not looking to grow. That's why these jobs are hard to find. They typically don't have the resources to train so to the extent they're looking for someone, they want someone more or less fully cooked.

[nixy]

If you're in DC, why not rack up as much pro bono trial experience as possible in the next few years, then try to lateral to the US Attorney's Office for DDC?

OP here. Would a heavily litigating civil component of the DOJ be better or worse for exiting back to a firm (have a connection there)? No interest in white collar if that matters.

I also don't know how competitive I'd be for DDC but could maybe get EDVa or DMd.

Don't think EDVa is meaningfully less competitive than DDC. That said, apply to all three after a few years of work experience and you should get some bites. The standards are meaningfully lower for people who have put in time at a firm. (Not to say that you're egregiously unqualified or anything.)

I'd actually bet EDVa is more competitive than DDC, because the DDC USAO is the local as well as federal prosecution, so has cases a bit more like a DA's office.

[AUSAorBust]

If you're geographically flexible, there are good trial focused firms that might bite that are less selective than the like of Keker, etc. Specifically, I'm thinking of Wheeler Trigg in Denver, and I'd bet that there are other similar firms elsewhere.