Cleary v. STB v. Latham. Please help me choose! Forum

[Anonymous User]

Really torn and stuck here. All three are in NYC. I'm leaning towards corporate transactional work, but also open to litigation work. I thought I clicked with Cleary people the best, but also had great conversations with the other two firms' attorneys. Professor and some people recommend Cleary because of its prestige(?), PEOPLE and CULTURE. Agree that Cleary's people and culture are outstanding, but not sure if their practices are as strong as the other two these days. Attracted to Latham's transparency and unassigned program. Also the firm's growth during the past several years seems impressive.

Any information would be greatly appreciated!

[Anonymous User]

If you definitely wanted corporate I'd understand being this torn but Latham is clearly the choice if you want access to different practice areas (especially Litigation as compared to the other two options) and their summer/junior staffing structure is best suited for exploring and finding your fit instead of picking STB or Cleary and then finding out that corporate work wasn't what you thought it'd be.

Latham is almost as prestigious as it gets (though all 3 are semi-similar tier) and everyone I know there is chill. I don't think you can go wrong with any of these firms, but to make sure you're satisfied with your eventual work options, I think Latham is a clear cut choice.

[Anonymous User]

just my 2¢ -- summer is typically enough time for most 2Ls to decide conclusively whether they are a litigator at heart or a transactional lawyer. So long as your summer program will let you split between lit and corp (and most will let you if you make the request), I don't think there's that much incremental value from an "unassigned" program that lets you divide your time between lit and corp as a junior associate.

I disagree with Cleary being any more prestigious than these other two options -- even in the hair-splitting TLS sense.

[Anonymous User]

I believe STB will let you try anything over summer but then you join into corp or lit. If you think summer will help you decide then the fully open system may be less of a standout benefit. I am unfamiliar with Cleary's assigning system.

I would also consider (talk to people if possible) how truly open the system at Latham will be and for how long(beyond what the formal deadline is, how it plays out). I imagine if you do Corp for a year but hate it and want to do lit they will let you do it, but I think firms also will stick you at a certain point based on monetary considerations as well as where the work is. I expressed my excitement about the system to a Latham partner whose response was along the lines of...well it doesn't really play out the way of people just jumping around for a couple years but it does exist and some people switch. If you really wanted to switch at another firm early enough I imagine they might be willing to work with that too.

In terms of transparency, what is the tangible benefit? When thinking about your life as an associate, how often will you actually be thinking about that and what is the "transparency" going to do for you?

[the lsat failure]

Cleary is a mainstay white shoe law firm that's been well-known in NY for decades, which is probably why your professors seem to believe it retains a level of prestige over the others. When they graduated law school, Cleary was probably the bee's knees. I'd agree albeit in name only, as STB and Latham are both exceptional firms that are arguably better situated in terms of business outlook in the corporate space. I'm not too knowledgeable when it comes to litigation, but I'd give the edge to Cleary as they have quite a foothold in representing governments/sovereigns/int'l arb. if that's of any interest to you.

I'm almost positive that Cleary's refusal to break from pure lockstep partner compensation will hurt them in the future, but that's just my opinion based on recent departures.

[Anonymous User]

Cleary is a mainstay white shoe law firm that's been well-known in NY for decades, which is probably why your professors seem to believe it retains a level of prestige over the others. When they graduated law school, Cleary was probably the bee's knees. I'd agree albeit in name only, as STB and Latham are both exceptional firms that are arguably better situated in terms of business outlook in the corporate space. I'm not too knowledgeable when it comes to litigation, but I'd give the edge to Cleary as they have quite a foothold in representing governments/sovereigns/int'l arb. if that's of any interest to you.

I'm almost positive that Cleary's refusal to break from pure lockstep partner compensation will hurt them in the future, but that's just my opinion based on recent departures.

Cleary is certainly not what it used to be. It's lost a lot of partners in recent years and has shown other signs of decline. IT's still a great firm, obviously, but it's not where I'd go out of the three. I think STB is your best bet.

[Anonymous User]

Cleary is a mainstay white shoe law firm that's been well-known in NY for decades, [...]

Agreed, but that’s equally true of STB, no? If anything, STB sees itself as one of those super old Wall St. firms dating back to the 19th century (à la S&C or Cravath), whereas Cleary is a mid-20th century, less WASPy creation. I sort of jest, but the point is I’m not sure you could say that STB and Cleary are of a different vintage in terms of NY reputation or prestige.