Midlevel/senior in finance, ideally looking to broaden my practice a bit to include more general corporate stuff. Coming from a secondary market on the east coast. Probably not going to use a recruiter (found a thread saying Seattle is a small enough market where you get better traction applying straight). Never lateraled before. Targeting basically every big law shop since there aren’t a ton (Perkins, Wilson Sonsini, K&L, Cooley, Baker Hostetler, Dorsey, Fenwick, Orrick)—let me know if I’m missing any, not sure if NALP is fully updated.
I guess I’ve got about 10 months of runway? When should I start hitting submit on applications?
Not really sure how long this could/should take.
Moving to Seattle around June 2022—when to start applying? Forum
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Anonymous User
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Moving to Seattle around June 2022—when to start applying?
Last edited by Anonymous User on Sat Aug 28, 2021 2:14 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Anonymous User
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Re: Moving to Seattle around June 2022—when to start applying?
Openings are rarely in abundance. I would honestly consider reaching out now so they at least have your apps if something opens up between now and your move.
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Anonymous User
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Re: Moving to Seattle around June 2022—when to start applying?
OP here. Damn. We’ll—I guess my couple concerns are: (i) I want to get my EOY bonus, which my current V60 annoyingly pays out first week of March (and is a sizable amount of cash that I don’t want to leave on the table) and (ii) I’m concerned that my apps would be stale if I pulled the trigger now (like, I’d probably have to explain in the cover letter that, while I’m applying now, it’s on a delay until at the earliest March), which I’m guessing might make it more complicated than I guess most recruiting folks want to deal with (e.g., could see them either forgetting or thinking “huh this dude still hasn’t been able to land a job?” when I follow up months later closer to my ideal start date).Anonymous User wrote: ↑Sat Aug 28, 2021 2:12 pmOpenings are rarely in abundance. I would honestly consider reaching out now so they at least have your apps if something opens up between now and your move.
Is applying way in advance with a planned start range something that’s more common than I think it is? Or is this purely that there aren’t a ton of big law jobs in Seattle for what I do so I can’t be too particular about when I’m hired?
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Re: Moving to Seattle around June 2022—when to start applying?
Former anon. I honestly am not experienced enough to comment on most of your questions, but to give you some sense, here are Perkins Coie's openings:
https://perkinscoie.wd1.myworkdayjobs.c ... d9780d30be
Perkins is the top and biggest player in Seattle, so that list is probably the longest you will see at any Seattle firm. There are only 18 openings across all practice areas and all seniority levels.
K&L Gates is also another big Seattle player, with 150+ attorneys there. It has exactly one opening, and it is for a position that is not even specific to Seattle: https://www.klgates.com/job-opportuniti ... tion=83772
I know some Perkins attorneys who moved to Seattle and took a government job or something instead of Perkins off the bat, and then wanted to pivot to private practice. They essentially told Perkins to just let them know when there was an opening so they could apply.
Seattle's biglaw scene is pretty tiny, surprisingly so when you consider the size of the city and the number of tech giants in it. It may be worth reaching out to, say, Perkins' legal recruiter in the Seattle office and explain your situation and ask what makes the most sense.
https://perkinscoie.wd1.myworkdayjobs.c ... d9780d30be
Perkins is the top and biggest player in Seattle, so that list is probably the longest you will see at any Seattle firm. There are only 18 openings across all practice areas and all seniority levels.
K&L Gates is also another big Seattle player, with 150+ attorneys there. It has exactly one opening, and it is for a position that is not even specific to Seattle: https://www.klgates.com/job-opportuniti ... tion=83772
I know some Perkins attorneys who moved to Seattle and took a government job or something instead of Perkins off the bat, and then wanted to pivot to private practice. They essentially told Perkins to just let them know when there was an opening so they could apply.
Seattle's biglaw scene is pretty tiny, surprisingly so when you consider the size of the city and the number of tech giants in it. It may be worth reaching out to, say, Perkins' legal recruiter in the Seattle office and explain your situation and ask what makes the most sense.
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Anonymous User
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Re: Moving to Seattle around June 2022—when to start applying?
Do you have any friends (or friends of friends) who work at any of the Seattle law firms?
Being from there, Seattle is notoriously tight-knit and will want to see that you're committed to the area/have ties/etc.
Being from there, Seattle is notoriously tight-knit and will want to see that you're committed to the area/have ties/etc.
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Anonymous User
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Re: Moving to Seattle around June 2022—when to start applying?
Was wondering that, actually—the tie is that my SO got a great job at Amazon that starts in July 2022, so we’re definitely moving there. Is that a legit enough tie?Anonymous User wrote: ↑Sat Aug 28, 2021 9:33 pmDo you have any friends (or friends of friends) who work at any of the Seattle law firms?
Being from there, Seattle is notoriously tight-knit and will want to see that you're committed to the area/have ties/etc.
Don’t know anyone in Seattle biglaw, but I do know a few folks in Amazon’s legal department.
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Anonymous User
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Re: Moving to Seattle around June 2022—when to start applying?
OP -- PP from Seattle here. Yes, definitely mention that your SO is moving for a job at Amazon.
And reach out to your friends in Amazon legal. More likely than not, they'll use the big firms in Seattle as outside counsel and can put you in touch with associates/partners at Perkins, K&L Gates, etc. That has a MUCH higher chance of giving you a landing spot in Seattle vs cold applying to the firms.
And reach out to your friends in Amazon legal. More likely than not, they'll use the big firms in Seattle as outside counsel and can put you in touch with associates/partners at Perkins, K&L Gates, etc. That has a MUCH higher chance of giving you a landing spot in Seattle vs cold applying to the firms.
