2016-17 Post-Clerkship Hiring Thread Forum

[clerk1251]

Pretty sure he/she was responding to the post that you were also responding to, which noted that the situation "feels awkward."

Ah, true, my bad.

[Anonymous User]

Anybody know where the Atlanta market stands? I had a phone screener with a firm who has yet to make any decisions, and I have a callback with another, but I haven't heard from most of the firms I applied to there.

[Anonymous User]

.

[Anonymous User]

I'm waiting on two different firms to let me know if they're hiring me or not, post-callback. Both said end of April. By my count, the 24th is the end of April. I've managed to largely put it out of my mind, but ahhhhhghhh.

[Anonymous User]

A new week! And hopefully good news all around for those of us still waiting. Are there any DC updates?

[Anonymous User]

No updates in DC. Clearly the BigLaw clerk hiring cycle has passed me by. Turning toward smaller shops who have more volatile needs. As someone with pre-clerkship experience, curious as to whether I should reach out to recruiters at this point. Any insight?

[Anonymous User]

No updates in DC. Clearly the BigLaw clerk hiring cycle has passed me by. Turning toward smaller shops who have more volatile needs. As someone with pre-clerkship experience, curious as to whether I should reach out to recruiters at this point. Any insight?

I have pre-clerkship experience and I've spoken to a number of recruiters. Uniformly, they've told me that they don't place post-clerkship candidates.

[Anonymous User]

No updates in DC. Clearly the BigLaw clerk hiring cycle has passed me by. Turning toward smaller shops who have more volatile needs. As someone with pre-clerkship experience, curious as to whether I should reach out to recruiters at this point. Any insight?

I have pre-clerkship experience and I've spoken to a number of recruiters. Uniformly, they've told me that they don't place post-clerkship candidates.

They don't place them as in they don't accept them as clients? Or as in they don't fare well?

[clerk1251]

No updates in DC. Clearly the BigLaw clerk hiring cycle has passed me by. Turning toward smaller shops who have more volatile needs. As someone with pre-clerkship experience, curious as to whether I should reach out to recruiters at this point. Any insight?

I have pre-clerkship experience and I've spoken to a number of recruiters. Uniformly, they've told me that they don't place post-clerkship candidates.

They don't place them as in they don't accept them as clients? Or as in they don't fare well?

They don't accept them as clients because firms won't pay commissions on post judicial clerk candidates.

[Anonymous User]

No updates in DC. Clearly the BigLaw clerk hiring cycle has passed me by. Turning toward smaller shops who have more volatile needs. As someone with pre-clerkship experience, curious as to whether I should reach out to recruiters at this point. Any insight?

I have pre-clerkship experience and I've spoken to a number of recruiters. Uniformly, they've told me that they don't place post-clerkship candidates.

They don't place them as in they don't accept them as clients? Or as in they don't fare well?

They don't accept them as clients because firms won't pay commissions on post judicial clerk candidates.

I had two years of pre-clerkship experience, and a recruiter placed me with my post-clerkship firm in Chicago. Firms didn't like it, but it didn't stop them from giving offers.

[Anonymous User]

I accepted a biglaw offer a few weeks ago. Today, I got an interview email invite from a midlaw/boutique that was probably my number one pick for location and practice group. Last week a midsized firm that was a close second choice for the same reasons posted an opening, when they told me they didn't have anything a few months ago "but that could change unexpectedly."

[Anonymous User]

I accepted a biglaw offer a few weeks ago. Today, I got an interview email invite from a midlaw/boutique that was probably my number one pick for location and practice group. Last week a midsized firm that was a close second choice for the same reasons posted an opening, when they told me they didn't have anything a few months ago "but that could change unexpectedly."

Care to share the type of boutique/region since you're already set?

[Anonymous User]

No updates in DC. Clearly the BigLaw clerk hiring cycle has passed me by. Turning toward smaller shops who have more volatile needs. As someone with pre-clerkship experience, curious as to whether I should reach out to recruiters at this point. Any insight?

I have pre-clerkship experience and I've spoken to a number of recruiters. Uniformly, they've told me that they don't place post-clerkship candidates.

They don't place them as in they don't accept them as clients? Or as in they don't fare well?

They don't accept them as clients because firms won't pay commissions on post judicial clerk candidates.

I had two years of pre-clerkship experience, and a recruiter placed me with my post-clerkship firm in Chicago. Firms didn't like it, but it didn't stop them from giving offers.

Care to say how your process went, in general? I have a few years of pre-clerkship biglaw in chicago at a firm I think I could go back to (albeit with little bonus) but have sights set on AUSA. Given the freeze, timing, and general unlikelihood of that, I'm preparing for a return to Chicago biglaw and wonder how I will be viewed.

[Anonymous User]

No updates in DC. Clearly the BigLaw clerk hiring cycle has passed me by. Turning toward smaller shops who have more volatile needs. As someone with pre-clerkship experience, curious as to whether I should reach out to recruiters at this point. Any insight?

I have pre-clerkship experience and I've spoken to a number of recruiters. Uniformly, they've told me that they don't place post-clerkship candidates.

They don't place them as in they don't accept them as clients? Or as in they don't fare well?

They don't accept them as clients because firms won't pay commissions on post judicial clerk candidates.

I had two years of pre-clerkship experience, and a recruiter placed me with my post-clerkship firm in Chicago. Firms didn't like it, but it didn't stop them from giving offers.

Care to say how your process went, in general? I have a few years of pre-clerkship biglaw in chicago at a firm I think I could go back to (albeit with little bonus) but have sights set on AUSA. Given the freeze, timing, and general unlikelihood of that, I'm preparing for a return to Chicago biglaw and wonder how I will be viewed.

Not sure this will be entirely helpful for you, but I am all about sharing knowledge. I'll keep the details slightly vague since I am easily outable, but don't really care... Top 20 school with roughly top 20% grades, clerking AIII in DC. I have a few years of solid litigation experience, but in "boutique" shops in two different markets with only local name recognition - one being in the DMV. When I left my last firm they told me they wanted me to come back enough times that I believe them. That colored my approach to post-clerkship hiring. Meaning, I did not mass mail all the big shops in DC in Nov, Dec, Jan. Instead, I targeted those firms where I actually wanted to practice and where the culture was demonstrably acceptable to me. (Lots of coffee dates and networking). I sent resumes to roughly 25 Biglaw shops in DC and the surrounding areas in December, 5 to firms in "fun" cities (where I could waive into state bar, but had no connections), 10-15 to well respected smaller firms, and probably 10 more that I am forgetting. I had two interviews at vault ranked firms, both ended up telling me that they weren't hiring anyone. Maybe a nice way of letting me down? I have, however, also received that same feedback from a number of places right after applying. Those firms appear hesitant to hire in white collar, antitrust, regulatory investigation/enforcement generally because they do not know what Trump will end up doing re enforcement. The last few places I have reached out to have let me know they are done hiring for the cycle. So I am scouring Indeed and LinkedIn Jobs for openings that suit my fancy. Oh, and my commitment doesn't end until later in the fall, so I am still decently far from the end. I have heard that recruiters won't touch clerks straight out of law school, but wasn't sure how they view those with experience.

[Anonymous User]

No updates in DC. Clearly the BigLaw clerk hiring cycle has passed me by. Turning toward smaller shops who have more volatile needs. As someone with pre-clerkship experience, curious as to whether I should reach out to recruiters at this point. Any insight?

I have pre-clerkship experience and I've spoken to a number of recruiters. Uniformly, they've told me that they don't place post-clerkship candidates.

They don't place them as in they don't accept them as clients? Or as in they don't fare well?

They don't accept them as clients because firms won't pay commissions on post judicial clerk candidates.

I had two years of pre-clerkship experience, and a recruiter placed me with my post-clerkship firm in Chicago. Firms didn't like it, but it didn't stop them from giving offers.

Care to say how your process went, in general? I have a few years of pre-clerkship biglaw in chicago at a firm I think I could go back to (albeit with little bonus) but have sights set on AUSA. Given the freeze, timing, and general unlikelihood of that, I'm preparing for a return to Chicago biglaw and wonder how I will be viewed.

I don't know how comparable our situations are, as I have no Chicago ties. But I am from the Midwest. That said, the process went well. Recruiter set up a round of screeners, most of those turned into callbacks, and I had three offers from big firms.

I can pm you if you'd like me to be more specific.

[Anonymous User]

Finally dinged at Quinn DC

[Anonymous User]

I accepted a biglaw offer a few weeks ago. Today, I got an interview email invite from a midlaw/boutique that was probably my number one pick for location and practice group. Last week a midsized firm that was a close second choice for the same reasons posted an opening, when they told me they didn't have anything a few months ago "but that could change unexpectedly."

Care to share the type of boutique/region since you're already set?

SoCal. Environmental.

[JakeTappers]

No updates in DC. Clearly the BigLaw clerk hiring cycle has passed me by. Turning toward smaller shops who have more volatile needs. As someone with pre-clerkship experience, curious as to whether I should reach out to recruiters at this point. Any insight?

I have pre-clerkship experience and I've spoken to a number of recruiters. Uniformly, they've told me that they don't place post-clerkship candidates.

They don't place them as in they don't accept them as clients? Or as in they don't fare well?

They don't accept them as clients because firms won't pay commissions on post judicial clerk candidates.

I had two years of pre-clerkship experience, and a recruiter placed me with my post-clerkship firm in Chicago. Firms didn't like it, but it didn't stop them from giving offers.

Care to say how your process went, in general? I have a few years of pre-clerkship biglaw in chicago at a firm I think I could go back to (albeit with little bonus) but have sights set on AUSA. Given the freeze, timing, and general unlikelihood of that, I'm preparing for a return to Chicago biglaw and wonder how I will be viewed.

I don't know how comparable our situations are, as I have no Chicago ties. But I am from the Midwest. That said, the process went well. Recruiter set up a round of screeners, most of those turned into callbacks, and I had three offers from big firms.

I can pm you if you'd like me to be more specific.

Please do.

[Anonymous User]

Not sure this will be entirely helpful for you, but I am all about sharing knowledge. I'll keep the details slightly vague since I am easily outable, but don't really care... Top 20 school with roughly top 20% grades, clerking AIII in DC. I have a few years of solid litigation experience, but in "boutique" shops in two different markets with only local name recognition - one being in the DMV. When I left my last firm they told me they wanted me to come back enough times that I believe them. That colored my approach to post-clerkship hiring. Meaning, I did not mass mail all the big shops in DC in Nov, Dec, Jan. Instead, I targeted those firms where I actually wanted to practice and where the culture was demonstrably acceptable to me. (Lots of coffee dates and networking). I sent resumes to roughly 25 Biglaw shops in DC and the surrounding areas in December, 5 to firms in "fun" cities (where I could waive into state bar, but had no connections), 10-15 to well respected smaller firms, and probably 10 more that I am forgetting. I had two interviews at vault ranked firms, both ended up telling me that they weren't hiring anyone. Maybe a nice way of letting me down? I have, however, also received that same feedback from a number of places right after applying. Those firms appear hesitant to hire in white collar, antitrust, regulatory investigation/enforcement generally because they do not know what Trump will end up doing re enforcement. The last few places I have reached out to have let me know they are done hiring for the cycle. So I am scouring Indeed and LinkedIn Jobs for openings that suit my fancy. Oh, and my commitment doesn't end until later in the fall, so I am still decently far from the end. I have heard that recruiters won't touch clerks straight out of law school, but wasn't sure how they view those with experience.

Very much appreciated. Sounds like its been a bit of rough sailing. My main reason for not wanting to go back to my old firm is that I doubt they would give much, if any, in terms of clerkship bonus (they are a notoriously frugal v50). Since I am targeting AUSA so heavily, if I return to a firm I would likely try for two things: 1) as big a bonus as possible--in hopes that the firm gig is only a year or two; and 2) in a locality where I hope to become an AUSA (the latter being likely impossible). But it sounds like even city flexibility might not yield too many options.

[Anonymous User]

Anyone know anything about MoloLamken - compensation, RPL, PPP, etc.? Seems like sort of a black box. Asking because of promising recent contact with someone who works there.

[Anonymous User]

Anyone know anything about MoloLamken - compensation, RPL, PPP, etc.? Seems like sort of a black box. Asking because of promising recent contact with someone who works there.

From Vault "Survey Says"

Hours/Money

Hours

"Work is evenly distributed, and all associates work long hours. For the most part, face time is not required, but there are some partners who work best on briefs when they can talk face-to-face about editing. Those in person meetings almost always occur during business hours."
"There are little to no face time requirements. We work hard, but everyone has families and enjoys spending time with them."
"Work is evenly distributed, and the partners are generally flexible with face time requirements. Most partners typically leave the office between 6 PM and 7 PM, and it's rare that I need to stay later than that. I've also never had any issues when I've had to arrive in the office late or leave early to take care of something. The emphasis is on getting work done well and efficiently, not necessarily on billing hours for the sake of billing a lot of hours."
"Workload is generally high and fast-paced."

Compensation

"Every year I've been here, it has either matched or beat what is considered the 'market rate' for a BigLaw firm in New York or DC."
"Our salary plus bonus is slightly above the Cravath salary plus bonus, with more of the pay in the form of bonuses. Compensation for associates seems to be mostly lockstep. It could be higher given how busy we are."
"The base salary is below market, but we end up being on par with the market after bonuses are included. It is unclear to me whether bonuses are based on billable hours."
"Same as other market-paying firms. Bonus structure makes it less transparent and predictable, however. Not clear whether there is any yearly billable-hour requirement."

[Anonymous User]

Anyone know anything about MoloLamken - compensation, RPL, PPP, etc.? Seems like sort of a black box. Asking because of promising recent contact with someone who works there.

Tons of early responsibility like at Susman, Keker, etc. Expect MoloLamken in 15y to be were Kellogg Hansen is today.

[Anonymous User]

I accepted a biglaw offer a few weeks ago. Today, I got an interview email invite from a midlaw/boutique that was probably my number one pick for location and practice group. Last week a midsized firm that was a close second choice for the same reasons posted an opening, when they told me they didn't have anything a few months ago "but that could change unexpectedly."

Care to share the type of boutique/region since you're already set?

SoCal. Environmental.

Quoted anon again. I got another interview invitation for a boutique that was a top choice that I had contacted a few months ago. They told me they had no hiring needs but would "keep my resume on file" if that changed. I have heard that countless times before, so I assumed it was BS. Apparently their needs changed, and the hiring partner contacted me before they posted the opening.

Posting this as a data point to keep those still looking hopeful. I went from six weeks of radio silence and rejections to two offers and a few interview invites in what felt like rapid succession. I don't know how helpful this will be to those of you focusing only on big law, but I thought it was worth sharing.

[Anonymous User]

I interviewed with a couple firms in early April. Both said they would get back at the end of the month. How far into May would you go before getting in touch with them again? I was pretty glum this weekend assuming that both were a no, but I am trying to shake it off.

[Jchance]

If they said end of the month (April), you can send a follow up email tomorrow or Wednesday. I wouldn't give up all hopes, as firms sometime have delay in their meeting time.