Am I crazy? Chances for postclerkship in NY? Forum

[marcotomas]

I'll be finishing up a federal district court clerkship in October. I'm licensed in Illinois. I'm from Chicago. And went to school here. I did my first state court appellate clerkship here and my second clerkship here at the ND Ill. So naturally, I want to move to NEW YORK to do litigation at a firm (Don't ask why. I'll just say my reasons for the move are more motivated by personal reasons than professional ones.)

I anticipate the potential roadblocks to be:
1) Law school. I went to a "local" school. That being said, I graduated tops in my class with a near-perfect GPA. And for what it's worth I went to an "elite" undergrad.
2) Bar admissions. I'd have to take the NY bar. I'm still a couple years from reciprocity.
3) Chicago. Firms will shy away from me because I'm too Chicago-centric.

Are these too much to overcome? Anyone have any idea of my chances of getting into litigation in NY or any advice on how to start the search? I have until October to lock something down, but I'm concerned because I have to imagine NY firms are even bigger school snobs than the Chicago firms, and the Chicago firms are pretty brutal when it comes to this. Any advice is appreciated! Thanks!

[dingus]

I don't think you're the first person who wants to move to NYC without any real ties.

I can't imagine it would be that big of a problem.

[jimmythecatdied6]

You are pretty late to the game, but I think if you apply broadly enough you may get some bites. New York City is a big market - not every firm can be "snobbish."