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Current SA at NYC V20. Anonymous because my post history reveals firm.

I know there are some firms that offer class bumps for JD/MBAs. For someone going into transactional work (Cap Markets, M&A), does a class bump help or hurt? Yes, the higher pay helps, but you'd essentially be a first-year and would still have to learn the ropes of the legal work. Business school is useless for the day-to-day work I have seen junior associates doing on these matters. A high-level understanding of the business dynamics of the deal + soft skills would probably help to an extent, but do they really matter when you're essentially clueless about the legal aspects of the work and are on the same footing in that regard as regular JDs? Does the class bump then hinder your prospects at the firm because you've "skipped" a grade but don't have the legal expertise to back that up—in contrast to clerks who get a class bump but have had the chance to build the relevant skills for litigation work? Is a class bump for transactional associates a net negative then?

Asking because our final review is coming up next week.

I'm a junior but I honestly cannot see a single negative. So what if it takes a little while to get up to speed. At the point I am now (10 months in) there's not really much difference between a first year and a second year. It'll definitely smooth out by 3-4 years in, when the salary and bonus difference starts to pile up. It's a lot of money to give up.