London CM Lateral Forum

[Anonymous User]

Wondering when is the soonest that a NY associate could lateral to London to do capital markets? Would a year of mixed CM and M&A be enough?

[Anonymous User]

Wondering when is the soonest that a NY associate could lateral to London to do capital markets? Would a year of mixed CM and M&A be enough?

There's quite a few threads archived here about making a lateral move to London, so you should be able to mine those for a lot more context. The market need for bodies will be the decisive factor for hiring. One year experience will be sufficient in a hot market, but not in others. Recent years have been so unpredictable, it's hard to forecast.

[Anonymous User]

Wondering when is the soonest that a NY associate could lateral to London to do capital markets? Would a year of mixed CM and M&A be enough?

There's quite a few threads archived here about making a lateral move to London, so you should be able to mine those for a lot more context. The market need for bodies will be the decisive factor for hiring. One year experience will be sufficient in a hot market, but not in others. Recent years have been so unpredictable, it's hard to forecast.

Completely agree with this. I think as of right now, there is not a massive need (at least at my firm), although I haven't been checking in my friends at other firms in the City recently. If you have more specific questions, feel free to post them. I have been in London CM for a few years now so should be able to help.

[Anonymous User]

Wondering when is the soonest that a NY associate could lateral to London to do capital markets? Would a year of mixed CM and M&A be enough?

There's quite a few threads archived here about making a lateral move to London, so you should be able to mine those for a lot more context. The market need for bodies will be the decisive factor for hiring. One year experience will be sufficient in a hot market, but not in others. Recent years have been so unpredictable, it's hard to forecast.

Completely agree with this. I think as of right now, there is not a massive need (at least at my firm), although I haven't been checking in my friends at other firms in the City recently. If you have more specific questions, feel free to post them. I have been in London CM for a few years now so should be able to help.

I'm a naive first year, so thank you. Should I inquire through my firm first before going through a recruiter? I'm guessing you don't get the financial benefit if your current firm is sending you?

[Anonymous User]

Wondering when is the soonest that a NY associate could lateral to London to do capital markets? Would a year of mixed CM and M&A be enough?

There's quite a few threads archived here about making a lateral move to London, so you should be able to mine those for a lot more context. The market need for bodies will be the decisive factor for hiring. One year experience will be sufficient in a hot market, but not in others. Recent years have been so unpredictable, it's hard to forecast.

Completely agree with this. I think as of right now, there is not a massive need (at least at my firm), although I haven't been checking in my friends at other firms in the City recently. If you have more specific questions, feel free to post them. I have been in London CM for a few years now so should be able to help.

I'm a naive first year, so thank you. Should I inquire through my firm first before going through a recruiter? I'm guessing you don't get the financial benefit if your current firm is sending you?

I think it could definitely be easier to move through your current firm. Only issue is that you won't get a signing bonus, plus there is the chance you'll get this whole "Hmm, we will look into it, sit tight!" response, which could mean they will look into it, or six months down the line let you know they couldn't make it happen.

In a way, going to a recruiter and getting a move sorted and then going to your current firm, could make them go above and beyond in getting you to transfer to their London office.

I will also say that UK-based firms are more pleasant to work for than US-based firms, at least what I have heard.

[Anonymous User]

Wondering when is the soonest that a NY associate could lateral to London to do capital markets? Would a year of mixed CM and M&A be enough?

There's quite a few threads archived here about making a lateral move to London, so you should be able to mine those for a lot more context. The market need for bodies will be the decisive factor for hiring. One year experience will be sufficient in a hot market, but not in others. Recent years have been so unpredictable, it's hard to forecast.

Completely agree with this. I think as of right now, there is not a massive need (at least at my firm), although I haven't been checking in my friends at other firms in the City recently. If you have more specific questions, feel free to post them. I have been in London CM for a few years now so should be able to help.

I'm a naive first year, so thank you. Should I inquire through my firm first before going through a recruiter? I'm guessing you don't get the financial benefit if your current firm is sending you?

I think it could definitely be easier to move through your current firm. Only issue is that you won't get a signing bonus, plus there is the chance you'll get this whole "Hmm, we will look into it, sit tight!" response, which could mean they will look into it, or six months down the line let you know they couldn't make it happen.

In a way, going to a recruiter and getting a move sorted and then going to your current firm, could make them go above and beyond in getting you to transfer to their London office.

I will also say that UK-based firms are more pleasant to work for than US-based firms, at least what I have heard.

I thought it was that you got a yearly COLA, not a signing bonus?

[Anonymous User]

Bumping this thread. Can anyone recommend a good recruiter for London? Also, a lot of the postings don't specify the qualifications - can we assume US degrees are good?

[Anonymous User]

Bumping this thread. Can anyone recommend a good recruiter for London? Also, a lot of the postings don't specify the qualifications - can we assume US degrees are good?

I don't think you'll need a recruiter to lateral to London. All the firms will post on their websites whether they're hiring US-qualified corporate associates. Just look at the hiring pages of any firm you're interested in. You could check all the AmLaw 100 in an hour or two.

I'm not sure I understand the second question. A US law degree is required for a US-qualified role. A role not listed as US-qualified is not soliciting applications from American lawyers. You'll also need to be barred in the US.

[Anonymous User]

Generally in London roles are not advertised. If they were advertised in the past, the purpose of the ad may have been up satisfy visa requirements. US qualified roles in London are unusual and may be different, but while you should be able to work out which firms have a US capital markets practice in London, you will likely need to either cold email partners or respond to recruiters to find an open role.