Stay in house or take NEP/Jr. Partner position? Forum

[Anonymous User]

TLDR: Should I give up my cushy in-house job in a tumultuous sector to go back to biglaw as a non-equity partner?

Right now I'm the top legal executive at a small portfolio company in the renewable energy sector. For obvious reasons, recently the stability of smaller companies in this industry has come into question -- many shops are conducting layoffs, and there's a growing sentiment that small players may be weeded out as a result of the various market headwinds.

I've been approached by a few biglaw firms about returning to biglaw as a non-equity partner or junior partner (not entirely sure what that means, but assume it's a NEP position). One of them is my former biglaw shop where I did 6 years, and the other two are firms that I've worked with regularly while I've been in house. All of these are top in my practice area and I'd classify them as very financially healthy firms.

I've never really considered going back to biglaw before since I love my lifestyle and freedom being in-house, but with all of the market dynamics, I'm starting to wonder if it's worth going back for some additional stability.

My current in-house my comp is pretty generous. I'm in a HCOL area and my comp is:

• Base Salary: $400k

• Bonus: 50% target (but doesn't mean I'll get full 50%, especially with what's going on in the industry)

• Equity: Material amount of equity, but it remains to be seen if it'll ever be worth anything

• Benefits: Decent employer paid health insurance, 6% 401k match, other fringe benefits

• Fully remote

In casual talks with partners at these firms, they've floated something like:

• Base Salary: $600-800k

• Bonus: Tied to generation and firm performance

• Equity: Defined path to equity partnership at one firm, the other two seem to be more permanent NEP roles

• Benefits: W2 treatment, so wouldn't have to worry about the ramifications of being a K-1 employee

• Hybrid in office 3 days per week

Am I crazy to even consider moving back to biglaw, or is it something I should look at more closely?

[Crazysnackaroo]

This is very much a personal decision and I'm not sure how much we can help you. If you're bored and want to jump and make more money, go for it. It sounds like you could secure employment fairly readily should the company go under or need to "restructure". I'm not sure I would personally jump ship until that time. 400k, fully remote at a gig you seem to actually like? That's pretty fantastic. 600-800k for a hybrid schedule billable grind? I mean, that's not bad at all either. We don't know your personal life. I personally think at a certain point cash has diminishing returns and that salary from the law firm is going to be dependent on your billables/collections. But double your salary is something seriously worth considering. I personally wouldn't do this jump, but I have a young family and also don't have an option like this either.

[nealric]

Tough call. I think it really boils down to where you think your company is headed. If it's going down the drain, then the Biglaw offers look pretty good. If you think it could be on an upward trajectory, then it may be worth sticking it out. Base is pretty good for what sounds like a fairly chill fully remote job.

One thought is that you should have some amount of warning if the company is in dire straights. Biglaw will probably still be there for you if/when that happens. I'd focus on one with a defined path to equity partner.