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Class of 2020 graduate. Top 10% at a T20 in the coastal city (LA/SF/DC/NY) where I grew up and have since started at a V5. I have lined up district (21-22) and COA (22-23) clerkships in that same city as well.

As much as I love where I'm from, though, my wife and I have settled on Charlotte as the ideal place to raise a family. Having researched the matter and read several threads about the Charlotte market on TLS, it seems like the top local firms (Robinson Bradshaw, MVA) and some of the prominent, non-NY satellites (A&B, King & Spalding) place a premium on local ties.

My question is: With my credentials, do I have any chance at landing a job at a top litigation firm without those local ties once I've finished clerking? My wife has some family in the state, and I've visited Charlotte several times over the years, but that's about it.

With those credentials, yes you can. You correctly identify that the best places to be in Charlotte are the local, not national, firms. The downside there is that the local firms do not pay the same types of clerkship bonuses that the national firms will pay. I think it’s $75k for two clerkships at the national firms, right? It’s nowhere close to that at the local firms.

Wife with family in state is pretty strong ties in the context of big/mid law so I think it’s fair to say you can get a job in Charlotte.

OP here.

@Zoey, the tiny clerkship bonus (5k in Charlotte vs. 75-100k in a Cravath-scale market) is definitely something to consider. But it’s great to hear you think I have a chance at the top “local” firms for litigation, which I presume are RBH and MVA? I had my doubts after checking out those firms’ lit associate profiles: it seemed like almost every one of them attended either undergrad, law school, or both in North Carolina. Assuming you work in the area, any thoughts on how to start building a bridge to the market now?

@notinbiglaw Fair point! My wife isn’t from North Carolina though, so think extended family (grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc.), not parents or siblings. I figured that might be insufficient given the local, interconnected nature of the market.

The emphasis on local ties with local markets is more just people don't want to recruit someone who's just going to leave in a few years. Worse, often, they won't even accept offers.

I don't think either is applicable in your situation. If you're worried, I don't see why you can't start sending out feelers now (coffee chats and stuff well before you're ready to move will convince partners you really want to be there and your credentials are really strong).

Anonymous User wrote: ↑

Tue Dec 22, 2020 12:08 pm

OP here.

@Zoey, the tiny clerkship bonus (5k in Charlotte vs. 75-100k in a Cravath-scale market) is definitely something to consider. But it’s great to hear you think I have a chance at the top “local” firms for litigation, which I presume are RBH and MVA? I had my doubts after checking out those firms’ lit associate profiles: it seemed like almost every one of them attended either undergrad, law school, or both in North Carolina. Assuming you work in the area, any thoughts on how to start building a bridge to the market now?

@notinbiglaw Fair point! My wife isn’t from North Carolina though, so think extended family (grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc.), not parents or siblings. I figured that might be insufficient given the local, interconnected nature of the market.

I think that the clerkship bonus is more like $20-30k now, but you won't get a higher amount for having done two of them as opposed to just one. I also would not expect to come in as a fourth year after your clerkships. The NC firms generally do not give class year credit for the clerkships, so I would think you would come in as a 2nd year, or 3rd if you're very lucky.

As far as "top firms" go in NC, in the litigation sphere I think the general consensus is: RBH, then Brooks Pierce (who doesn't have an office in Charlotte), then MVA and Smith Anderson (who also doesn't have an office in Charlotte).

I'm not really sure what you would do to start "building a bridge" now, and I don't think you need to worry too much about your ties. Your profile seems to match what the firms would be looking for in a lateral, but these firms' litigation groups are just small, which means it may come down to whether you happen to be applying at a time that they happen to be looking for a new associate. I think RBH has less than 10 litigation associates, for example.

I know someone who got hired at K&S in Charlotte without having ever been there before interviewing.

OP, PM me.