Which partners at your firms are notoriously terrible to work for? Forum

[Anonymous User]

STB m&a - Sebastián tiller, Ben Schaye, Mike holick, marni Lerner, William Allen. The culture and group is generally horrific.

Why are people letting Caroline Gottschalk and Brian Stadler off so easy? There are some people who are good to work for in M&A (realistic with time, interested in teaching) - mainly doing strategic M&A rather than PE - but in general I agree with the post above. If working for "nice" (but no less demanding) people is your bag, stick to the credit group.

Could you PM me? Would love to hear more about the culture of STB's M&A group. Isn't STB centralized staffing so you don't rly get to control who you get?

Same here. Incoming STB SA—was pretty set on M&A and never heard anything like this about the group from any of the people I've spoken to.

Recruiting sure did their job well... STB M&A is widely known as being one of the worst groups amongst big law firms.

That's quite unfortunate to hear. Would you say Skadden is better? I have a 1L SA with one of STB/Skadden and those two firms are my top choices for M&A - trying to discern between them

[Anonymous User]

STB m&a - Sebastián tiller, Ben Schaye, Mike holick, marni Lerner, William Allen. The culture and group is generally horrific.

Why are people letting Caroline Gottschalk and Brian Stadler off so easy? There are some people who are good to work for in M&A (realistic with time, interested in teaching) - mainly doing strategic M&A rather than PE - but in general I agree with the post above. If working for "nice" (but no less demanding) people is your bag, stick to the credit group.

Could you PM me? Would love to hear more about the culture of STB's M&A group. Isn't STB centralized staffing so you don't rly get to control who you get?

Same here. Incoming STB SA—was pretty set on M&A and never heard anything like this about the group from any of the people I've spoken to.

Recruiting sure did their job well... STB M&A is widely known as being one of the worst groups amongst big law firms.

That's quite unfortunate to hear. Would you say Skadden is better? I have a 1L SA with one of STB/Skadden and those two firms are my top choices for M&A - trying to discern between them

Your experience in the Skadden M&A will vary a lot depending on the partners you work for. Many are nice/reasonable to work for and a couple (like one mentioned earlier in this thread) are horrible to work for. I'd say the number of horrible partners is far fewer than mediocre or nice partners, but if you get stuck on a deal with a horrible one, your life will be miserable. I think a lot of the horrible partners tend to be on the more junior side and are trying to prove themselves. The rainmakers will usually cut you a long leash as long as you do good work.

[Anonymous User]

Any insight on Debevoise?

I’ve never seen a Debevoise partner mentioned in one of these threads. Also never heard anyone complain about any partners. Take that for what it’s worth.

[Anonymous User]

STB m&a - Sebastián tiller, Ben Schaye, Mike holick, marni Lerner, William Allen. The culture and group is generally horrific.

Why are people letting Caroline Gottschalk and Brian Stadler off so easy? There are some people who are good to work for in M&A (realistic with time, interested in teaching) - mainly doing strategic M&A rather than PE - but in general I agree with the post above. If working for "nice" (but no less demanding) people is your bag, stick to the credit group.

Could you PM me? Would love to hear more about the culture of STB's M&A group. Isn't STB centralized staffing so you don't rly get to control who you get?

Same here. Incoming STB SA—was pretty set on M&A and never heard anything like this about the group from any of the people I've spoken to.

Recruiting sure did their job well... STB M&A is widely known as being one of the worst groups amongst big law firms.

That's quite unfortunate to hear. Would you say Skadden is better? I have a 1L SA with one of STB/Skadden and those two firms are my top choices for M&A - trying to discern between them

Your experience in the Skadden M&A will vary a lot depending on the partners you work for. Many are nice/reasonable to work for and a couple (like one mentioned earlier in this thread) are horrible to work for. I'd say the number of horrible partners is far fewer than mediocre or nice partners, but if you get stuck on a deal with a horrible one, your life will be miserable. I think a lot of the horrible partners tend to be on the more junior side and are trying to prove themselves. The rainmakers will usually cut you a long leash as long as you do good work.

Really appreciate the insight. Could anyone name Partners to work with/Partners to avoid at Skadden NY in M&A specifically?

[Anonymous User]

Why are people letting Caroline Gottschalk and Brian Stadler off so easy? There are some people who are good to work for in M&A (realistic with time, interested in teaching) - mainly doing strategic M&A rather than PE - but in general I agree with the post above. If working for "nice" (but no less demanding) people is your bag, stick to the credit group.

Could you PM me? Would love to hear more about the culture of STB's M&A group. Isn't STB centralized staffing so you don't rly get to control who you get?

Same here. Incoming STB SA—was pretty set on M&A and never heard anything like this about the group from any of the people I've spoken to.

Recruiting sure did their job well... STB M&A is widely known as being one of the worst groups amongst big law firms.

That's quite unfortunate to hear. Would you say Skadden is better? I have a 1L SA with one of STB/Skadden and those two firms are my top choices for M&A - trying to discern between them

Your experience in the Skadden M&A will vary a lot depending on the partners you work for. Many are nice/reasonable to work for and a couple (like one mentioned earlier in this thread) are horrible to work for. I'd say the number of horrible partners is far fewer than mediocre or nice partners, but if you get stuck on a deal with a horrible one, your life will be miserable. I think a lot of the horrible partners tend to be on the more junior side and are trying to prove themselves. The rainmakers will usually cut you a long leash as long as you do good work.

Really appreciate the insight. Could anyone name Partners to work with/Partners to avoid at Skadden NY in M&A specifically?

Great: Brill, Serating, Stebbins (mixed reviews from others but I like her)
Avoid: June (avoid at all costs), Blair (OK depending your personality. He's nice but works 24/7), Howard (you won't work with him directly anyway as he is way too senior)

Everyone else is pretty much average IMO.

[Anonymous User]

Anyone especially awful to avoid at PW M&A (aside from Barshay)?

Interested as well -- also is Barshay that bad or is he just very demanding?

[Anonymous User]

Could you PM me? Would love to hear more about the culture of STB's M&A group. Isn't STB centralized staffing so you don't rly get to control who you get?

Same here. Incoming STB SA—was pretty set on M&A and never heard anything like this about the group from any of the people I've spoken to.

Recruiting sure did their job well... STB M&A is widely known as being one of the worst groups amongst big law firms.

That's quite unfortunate to hear. Would you say Skadden is better? I have a 1L SA with one of STB/Skadden and those two firms are my top choices for M&A - trying to discern between them

Your experience in the Skadden M&A will vary a lot depending on the partners you work for. Many are nice/reasonable to work for and a couple (like one mentioned earlier in this thread) are horrible to work for. I'd say the number of horrible partners is far fewer than mediocre or nice partners, but if you get stuck on a deal with a horrible one, your life will be miserable. I think a lot of the horrible partners tend to be on the more junior side and are trying to prove themselves. The rainmakers will usually cut you a long leash as long as you do good work.

Really appreciate the insight. Could anyone name Partners to work with/Partners to avoid at Skadden NY in M&A specifically?

Great: Brill, Serating, Stebbins (mixed reviews from others but I like her)
Avoid: June (avoid at all costs), Blair (OK depending your personality. He's nice but works 24/7), Howard (you won't work with him directly anyway as he is way too senior)

Everyone else is pretty much average IMO.

Solid list, tho Serating can be tough to work for and v demanding at times (depending on which of his clients' deals you're on, I suppose). Marie Gibson and Sean Doyle are also great from my experiences. And agreed that most others are just kinda average/tolerable.

[Anonymous User]

Same here. Incoming STB SA—was pretty set on M&A and never heard anything like this about the group from any of the people I've spoken to.

Recruiting sure did their job well... STB M&A is widely known as being one of the worst groups amongst big law firms.

That's quite unfortunate to hear. Would you say Skadden is better? I have a 1L SA with one of STB/Skadden and those two firms are my top choices for M&A - trying to discern between them

Your experience in the Skadden M&A will vary a lot depending on the partners you work for. Many are nice/reasonable to work for and a couple (like one mentioned earlier in this thread) are horrible to work for. I'd say the number of horrible partners is far fewer than mediocre or nice partners, but if you get stuck on a deal with a horrible one, your life will be miserable. I think a lot of the horrible partners tend to be on the more junior side and are trying to prove themselves. The rainmakers will usually cut you a long leash as long as you do good work.

Really appreciate the insight. Could anyone name Partners to work with/Partners to avoid at Skadden NY in M&A specifically?

Great: Brill, Serating, Stebbins (mixed reviews from others but I like her)
Avoid: June (avoid at all costs), Blair (OK depending your personality. He's nice but works 24/7), Howard (you won't work with him directly anyway as he is way too senior)

Everyone else is pretty much average IMO.

Solid list, tho Serating can be tough to work for and v demanding at times (depending on which of his clients' deals you're on, I suppose). Marie Gibson and Sean Doyle are also great from my experiences. And agreed that most others are just kinda average/tolerable.

for incoming juniors, keep in mind that while the partner will set the tone of the deal and holds the buck for all staffing related issues, most of your experience depends on the quality of the seniors/mid-levels you work with, as you will interact with them on the daily

[Anonymous User]

To the Skadden M&A ppl in this thread, first tysm for the insight. Will be super useful this summer and beyond. I also wanted to ask if the 1800 bonus minimum ever caused any trouble for ppl. Is it a hard minimum? Will I EVER have trouble hitting it in M&A?

[12YrsAnAssociate]

for incoming juniors, keep in mind that while the partner will set the tone of the deal and holds the buck for all staffing related issues, most of your experience depends on the quality of the seniors/mid-levels you work with, as you will interact with them on the daily

Let's get a list of terrible senior and mid-level associates then! (/s)

[Anonymous User]

To the Skadden M&A ppl in this thread, first tysm for the insight. Will be super useful this summer and beyond. I also wanted to ask if the 1800 bonus minimum ever caused any trouble for ppl. Is it a hard minimum? Will I EVER have trouble hitting it in M&A?

Several first years miss it every year. You will get a half bonus (or if you really miss it by a lot, which is possible depending on how your rotations line up with your deal flow, you will legit get no bonus).

It’s hard to complain, since unlimited pro Bono etc etc... but also I think it’s false to think of skadden as a market paying firm when there’s a real chance that you’re out 15k as a first year.

[Anonymous User]

STB m&a - Sebastián tiller, Ben Schaye, Mike holick, marni Lerner, William Allen. The culture and group is generally horrific.

Why are people letting Caroline Gottschalk and Brian Stadler off so easy? There are some people who are good to work for in M&A (realistic with time, interested in teaching) - mainly doing strategic M&A rather than PE - but in general I agree with the post above. If working for "nice" (but no less demanding) people is your bag, stick to the credit group.

Could you PM me? Would love to hear more about the culture of STB's M&A group. Isn't STB centralized staffing so you don't rly get to control who you get?

Same here. Incoming STB SA—was pretty set on M&A and never heard anything like this about the group from any of the people I've spoken to.

Recruiting sure did their job well... STB M&A is widely known as being one of the worst groups amongst big law firms.

The number of STB attorneys that rotated through M&A and a different corporate group and ended up in the other corporate group told me all I needed to know. Any dirt on STB Cap Markets or Funds?

[Anonymous User]

This thread has incredible potential.

Any partners in the NY bankruptcy scene with a reputation? Or bankruptcy/RX generally. Would like to have a heads up as an incoming RX associate.

Garrett Fail at Weil
Andy Dietderich at S&C
Tom Lauria at White and Case
Everyone at Akin

Having been across from Andy Dietderich at S&C, he's also a dumbass lol. And that simpering voice. The worst voice in the world; just dripping bullshit. I constantly wanted to slap him.

can 100% confirm all of this.

[Anonymous User]

Hope this surpasses the (now whimpering) vale. This is the best thread on TLS

[Anonymous User]

Hope this surpasses the (now whimpering) vale. This is the best thread on TLS

Agreed. This thread is also cathartic because some names in here, I know, and I always thought I was alone in thinking that they were top a-holes. Thank you for the sanity check.

[Anonymous User]

It is surprising to me that there have been no Kirkland partners mentioned given the large size of that firm. Is there a particular reason?

[Anonymous User]

It is surprising to me that there have been no Kirkland partners mentioned given the large size of that firm. Is there a particular reason?

I also noticed this. There seems to be some type of bizarre trend where current Kirkland folks rarely talk badly about the firm on these types of forums.

[Anonymous User]

Kirkland Chicago's litigation group. Who should I avoid?

[Anonymous User]

Who has the survival guide for S&C General Practice group?

Who is good to work for? Who to avoid, other than Dietderich?

[lolwutpar]

It's not rocket science people. You need an attorney who posts on TLS, is at a particular firm in a particular group and has experience with said partners. And they need to be not paranoid about being outed. It's a limited pool as is, of course you aren't going to hear about partners at all firms.

[avenuem]

It's not rocket science people. You need an attorney who posts on TLS, is at a particular firm in a particular group and has experience with said partners. And they need to be not paranoid about being outed. It's a limited pool as is, of course you aren't going to hear about partners at all firms.

Pretty much this. I am working with a screamer who made a colleague cry, but dropping his name isn't going to do anything for me (but that hasn't stopped me from checking to see if someone else drops it).

Plus, if mods can ban me because my post makes someone feel trolled (I would never troll a fly), how can I trust them not to out us if some firm comes knocking, demanding information such as ip addresses, etc. with the threat of a lawsuit, subpoena, etc.

[Anonymous User]

It's not rocket science people. You need an attorney who posts on TLS, is at a particular firm in a particular group and has experience with said partners. And they need to be not paranoid about being outed. It's a limited pool as is, of course you aren't going to hear about partners at all firms.

Pretty much this. I am working with a screamer who made a colleague cry, but dropping his name isn't going to do anything for me (but that hasn't stopped me from checking to see if someone else drops it).

Plus, if mods can ban me because my post makes someone feel trolled (I would never troll a fly), how can I trust them not to out us if some firm comes knocking, demanding information such as ip addresses, etc. with the threat of a lawsuit, subpoena, etc.

True, and lawyers are a risk averse bunch. .... but isn’t truth a full defense to a claim of defamation? And arguably, some of these are opinions....

[Anonymous User]

Would love the tea on Kirkland Chi Rx. Both the good and the bad.

[Anonymous User]

Would love the tea on Kirkland Chi Rx. Both the good and the bad.

Kirkland Chicago's litigation group. Who should I avoid?

Or just Chi attorneys in general?

[Anonymous User]

On the topic of STB M&A, there is an email that got passed around my firm for a while from one of their PE partners who, in response to a disagreement about whether a particular term was “market,” wrote about a 2 page long email of his resume and career highlights to demonstrate that he should be the arbiter of what was market.