MWE layoffs Forum

[guesswhatsdifferent]

Hi, anyone on here affected by this right now? I had a horrific experience at the firm as a summer asociate turned associate. Will possibly have to post more on this but if anyone is leaving right now, please message?

[Anonymous User]

Doing a quick search, a number of McDermott posts came up that I may not be able to find again to comment on directly but while people may have time to read this -- if and when the world ever gets back to state where people are considering firms, consider the fact there is one associate out there who would had what some may consider a career-destroying experience at MWE, and don't take the gamble of working here if you have a choice. And you do -- there many firms and even ways to satisfactorily practice law, and people have such unique career paths that lead to the same place or to all kinds of different places. I wish I had read the Glassdoor reviews before I started. Read them. How people treat staff is very telling. To quote one about MWE, I too have never seen anything like it. I may not have known much about practicing law then, but in terms of good management practices, the place is in the stoning ages. Why train associates or give them reviews when you can just try to fire them if you change your mind? I think that summarizes the MWE way, but I really can't explain their thinking. There were such ridiculous assumptions that it almost makes you alarmed about what people are projecting about themselves. In terms of what I did, if you find out, let me know. Any place that will try to fire a first-year associate or encourage an environment of harassment while simultaneously trying to keep her from saying anything is succinctly: fucked-up, if TLS doesn't screen out language.

MOD NOTE: ANON IS AN ALT OF OP. FUTURE USE OF SOCKPUPPET ACCOUNTS WILL RESULT IN A BAN.

[HarrisonK]

Doing a quick search, a number of McDermott posts came up that I may not be able to find again to comment on directly but while people may have time to read this -- if and when the world ever gets back to state where people are considering firms, consider the fact there is one associate out there who would had what some may consider a career-destroying experience at MWE, and don't take the gamble of working here if you have a choice. And you do -- there many firms and even ways to satisfactorily practice law, and people have such unique career paths that lead to the same place or to all kinds of different places. I wish I had read the Glassdoor reviews before I started. Read them. How people treat staff is very telling. To quote one about MWE, I too have never seen anything like it. I may not have known much about practicing law then, but in terms of good management practices, the place is in the stoning ages. Why train associates or give them reviews when you can just try to fire them if you change your mind? I think that summarizes the MWE way, but I really can't explain their thinking. There were such ridiculous assumptions that it almost makes you alarmed about what people are projecting about themselves. In terms of what I did, if you find out, let me know. Any place that will try to fire a first-year associate or encourage an environment of harassment while simultaneously trying to keep her from saying anything is succinctly: fucked-up, if TLS doesn't screen out language.

Maybe I'm very tired, but I can't read this.

What happened at MWE?

[decimalsanddollars]

Maybe I'm very tired, but I can't read this.

What happened at MWE?

No, you're fine. It's barely readable. The poster was basically saying: MWE is bad; the culture is bad and they treat people poorly (particularly staff and junior associates); some people at the firm allegedly tried to fire and/or harass people; you shouldn't work there if you have other options, which many of their hires do.

[JusticeJackson]

It sounds like maybe you were pushed out as a first year. But other than that, your post doesn’t say much. Can you provide details? If not, it’s hard to evaluate your post.

[Iowahawk]

It sounds like maybe you were pushed out as a first year. But other than that, your post doesn’t say much. Can you provide details? If not, it’s hard to evaluate your post.

It's particularly unclear whether the concern is just that they're laying people off (which everyone who reads ATL knows) or if there's some other problem. For what it's worth the firm's Glassdoor profile is about as positive as you could expect for a biglaw firm.

[Wild Card]

It sounds like maybe you were pushed out as a first year. But other than that, your post doesn’t say much. Can you provide details? If not, it’s hard to evaluate your post.

Why is it hard to evaluate the post? It's clear, and you're all bad people for shitting on fired first years who understandably are deeply traumatized that they were fired--as first years. Put yourself in their shoes. It will happen to you and it has been happening to first years.

In short, what it tells us is that firms are no longer hesitating to fire first years.

Applicants and law school students should keep this in mind.

[nixy]

There have been stories here about first years getting fired for years.

[nolifeloser]

Hi, anyone on here affected by this right now? I had a horrific experience at the firm as a summer asociate turned associate. Will possibly have to post more on this but if anyone is leaving right now, please message?

Do you mean that you were a 2019 grad who got stealth'd? You won't be the last.

Read The Scorpion and The Frog, be honest about what kinds of people biglaw partners and most people in biglaw are, and you'll see that you're complaining about getting mugged at the Muggers of America bulletin board.

[JusticeJackson]

There have been stories here about first years getting fired for years.

From MWE? I always thought of MWE as top notch. I get one off people that clearly won’t work out from the get go. But that’s a really rare thing. I’m surprised to hear this.

[nixy]

There have been stories here about first years getting fired for years.

From MWE? I always thought of MWE as top notch. I get one off people that clearly won’t work out from the get go. But that’s a really rare thing. I’m surprised to hear this.

Oh, no, I meant first years getting fired in general. The idea that "firms are no longer hesitating to fire first years" didn't make much sense to me because there have always been some first years getting fired. I'm not saying it's common, but there enough one-off people who don't work out (or whose firms decide that's the case) that it happens.

[Big Red]

MOD NOTE: ANON IS AN ALT OF OP. FUTURE USE OF SOCKPUPPET ACCOUNTS WILL RESULT IN A BAN.

A sockpuppet is an online identity used for purposes of deception. The term, a reference to the manipulation of a simple hand puppet made from a sock, originally referred to a false identity assumed by a member of an Internet community who spoke to, or about, themselves while pretending to be another person.

[JusticeJackson]

Honestly, I’d like to hear more about this story, to the extent OP is willing to share. I’m not really alarmed by this sock puppet thing because I screw up anonymous posting all the time. But I’ll be honest, I find OP’s writing very difficult to decipher, and I’d probably decline to work with someone that wrote legal documents that way. To be fair, there’s a difference between posting on the web, and turning in biglaw assignments, and I recognize that. Anyways, I doubt OP will respond at this point because we’ve done some badgering, but I’d like to hear it.

[cavalier1138]

Honestly, I’d like to hear more about this story, to the extent OP is willing to share. I’m not really alarmed by this sock puppet thing because I screw up anonymous posting all the time. But I’ll be honest, I find OP’s writing very difficult to decipher, and I’d probably decline to work with someone that wrote legal documents that way. To be fair, there’s a difference between posting on the web, and turning in biglaw assignments, and I recognize that. Anyways, I doubt OP will respond at this point because we’ve done some badgering, but I’d like to hear it.

Just to be clear: The OP created a separate account to post anonymously, in order to prevent a moderator from noticing that it was the same account pretending to be two different people. [Note: I didn't catch the sockpuppeting.]

But I agree that if this post represents their writing ability (even in the online context), I'm shocked they even had the opportunity to get fired from MWE.

[nealric]

Honestly, I’d like to hear more about this story, to the extent OP is willing to share. I’m not really alarmed by this sock puppet thing because I screw up anonymous posting all the time. But I’ll be honest, I find OP’s writing very difficult to decipher, and I’d probably decline to work with someone that wrote legal documents that way. To be fair, there’s a difference between posting on the web, and turning in biglaw assignments, and I recognize that. Anyways, I doubt OP will respond at this point because we’ve done some badgering, but I’d like to hear it.

Just to be clear: The OP created a separate account to post anonymously, in order to prevent a moderator from noticing that it was the same account pretending to be two different people. [Note: I didn't catch the sockpuppeting.]

But I agree that if this post represents their writing ability (even in the online context), I'm shocked they even had the opportunity to get fired from MWE.

I remembered a past poster with similar posts so I ran a scan for alts. The forum software can detect them. We are totally fine with airing grievances against law firms, but we are not ok with doing so in a deceptive way by pretending to be two different people.

[Anonymous User]

Wow, I just now read this but I am amused at the sockpuppeting. Bold to be the first reply with your own alt as well.