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Currently set to summer with a large V10 group in IP lit, but having some doubts over whether litigation is right for me. My work experience and EE degree led me to litigation naturally, and made it easy to get a job.

I really do enjoy working with tech, and don't want to throw my engineering degree out the window to work on deal support for M&A.

I guess my main questions are: 1) is there really any reason to pursue lit over tech trans if you don't like working in lit? and 2) do stem degrees help/get used in transactional work? Lit groups definitely prefer them.

Anyone else made this decision? I know the exit ops can be better for transactional, I just really know nothing about what the work is like and have zero experience with finance.

The answer to 1 is no, there’s no reason to work in any practice area that you don’t enjoy. Unless your goal is to work in an IP lit focused in house role (pretty dang specialist, mostly comprised of roles at large companies), but even then you said you don’t enjoy it. Life’s too short to do something you don’t enjoy for years.

From my experience, the answer to 2 is that it won’t be as relevant or as desired as it would be working in lit. That said, a lot of the work in IP lit (different from the getting the job part) isn’t going to draw immensely from your technical background. And there are plenty of cases where you will be “throwing out” your degree because you’ll be working on technology you didn’t focus on in your EE program. And while your EE degree may have made you feel directed into IP lit, a lot of the core work is specialized legal research, writing, and other litigation skills.

I know a few folks who went from IP lit to tech trans, but they were either (1) not performing well in IP lit and wanted a change of pace or (2) wanted to position themselves better for in house.

What is making you think litigation isn’t for you?

mardash wrote: ↑

Fri Oct 01, 2021 11:41 am

I know a few folks who went from IP lit to tech trans, but they were either (1) not performing well in IP lit and wanted a change of pace or (2) wanted to position themselves better for in house.

Not OP, but is this switch pretty common or at least not too difficult to make? Would this vary across markets and firms?

FWIW, I have an EE degree and worked as a patent agent prior to law school. While I enjoyed the attention from IP groups during OCI, I also found it annoying to always get slotted into a box. I ultimately chose to do transactional work, and I am glad I did. IMO, transactional work is broader than litigation and is closer to the business side, which I like.

As a lawyer, you aren't really going to use your EE degree much unless you're doing patent prosecution, which is the practice closest to the actual technology. Other than that, you kind of already "threw away" your EE degree by choosing to go to law school (like, you're not going to work as an engineer ever again, right?). I would try to think about maximizing your law degree and worry less about your EE degree. Trust that your EE degree already gives you a good foundation in any group, especially with tech clients.

As to litigation vs. transactional, the world is your oyster. IP litigation is there if you dream of being a lawyer in a courtroom. Litigators like EEs because it is a stat that suggests technical proficiency, and law firms love bragging about that stuff. If the courtroom is not your dream, then maybe you like the idea of working with companies and helping them run their businesses. That would be transactional work.

Right now, tech transactions is a solid path to in-house jobs. However, tech transactions is another sort of "box" for tech people that doesn't have a super high ceiling. Again I've tried to avoid that box because I don't want my past / EE degree to dictate my future. Good jobs, just be aware that it is another specialty group.

If you want the most options and upside, go general corporate / M&A. It will be the toughest group hours wise, and is more competitive generally, but you'll get to see all kinds of issues -- IP, employment, tax, finance, regulatory, etc. Maybe you'll really like one of those, or all of them?

Rest assured that any transactional group will be happy to hire an EE on their team. You can always change firms or practice groups after your summer. The transactional market is extremely hot right now. Happy to chat about things more.