I am 2L at a t13 law school interested in working in the public sector after I graduate. I am not entirely sure what I want to do specifically yet, but I have enjoyed working with criminal related matters like wrongful convictions.
This summer I have an opportunity to work in the city I am from and I want to return to after graduation in the DA's office. However, my group is insurance fraud which is not something I am particularly interested in. Would taking a position in a group that specific hurt me or disadvantage me in any way from doing other areas of criminal law (i.e. is the group too narrow for me to be competitive for other later opportunities)?
Practice group too narrow? Forum
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Re: Practice group too narrow?
Caveat: also a 2L- but I spent the summer after 1L in a district attorney's office, and I also wasn't very excited about the division that I was assigned to initially.
I have 2 things to tell you from my own experience:
1. Criminal law is very similar regardless of what type of crime you are prosecuting. There are obviously some differences, but I worked with a lot of prosecutors that changed their assignments every couple years: from capital, to gangs, to sex crimes, etc. Especially as a summer intern, the division you are assigned to over the summer is not the division you are married to in the future (unless you want it to be and express that to your supervisors). In my opinion, insurance fraud will be an awesome experience and provide you with great experience, as it is white collar and often more complex. If your office is anything like mine (and all of the other offices that I'm familiar with), should you be hired on post-graduation you will start your career prosecuting misdemeanors and low level felonies anyway.
2. You may even discover that you enjoy your assignment. Be open to it, learn a lot, and if you don't like it by the end, refer to #1 above.
I have 2 things to tell you from my own experience:
1. Criminal law is very similar regardless of what type of crime you are prosecuting. There are obviously some differences, but I worked with a lot of prosecutors that changed their assignments every couple years: from capital, to gangs, to sex crimes, etc. Especially as a summer intern, the division you are assigned to over the summer is not the division you are married to in the future (unless you want it to be and express that to your supervisors). In my opinion, insurance fraud will be an awesome experience and provide you with great experience, as it is white collar and often more complex. If your office is anything like mine (and all of the other offices that I'm familiar with), should you be hired on post-graduation you will start your career prosecuting misdemeanors and low level felonies anyway.
2. You may even discover that you enjoy your assignment. Be open to it, learn a lot, and if you don't like it by the end, refer to #1 above.
