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How does one get into this type of work? As a 0L, how feasible is it for me to make FCPA practice a goal after completing law school? Is this practice area more difficult to get into than standard biglaw?

I was interested in getting into FCPA work while going through OCI and interviewed with a number firms that had strong FCPA practices. I will say that these firms were, on average, harder to get than other firms that came to NYC. If you go to a top law school and get top grades you should be able to grab interviews at WilmerHale and Gibson Dunn + others.

EDIT: Since you're a 0L, I'll provide you with more information. This is a list of firms that have very strong FCPA practices: http://www.chambersandpartners.com/1278 ... torial/5/1 - FCPA isn't a bread & butter practice like Corporate/M&A is for other firms and so you'll notice that some firms wrap FCPA into a broader White Collar / Gov't Investigations group while others will have a standalone FCPA group. This distinction is an important one to note. Since the SEC/DOJ are both responsible for enforcing the FCPA, the biggest groups are based in DC. WilmerHale and Gibson Dunn, in particular, impressed me the most and I get the impression that they're the leading FCPA firms in the country (I could be wrong).

In law school you'll quickly learn that some markets are more "competitive" than other markets during OCI. By competitive, we mean that grade "cut-offs" are generally higher. DC is known to be one of the most, if not the most, competitive markets. As such, getting interviews with WH and GDC will be difficult. However, it's not impossible. There are many firms in DC that do FCPA work and plenty of NYC firms will touch on FCPA as well. So wanting to go straight into FCPA out of law school is a feasible goal provided that you go to a school that will give you the opportunity to sit in front of these firms come OCI.

Wilmer and Gibson DC are like... you're going to need to be top quarter at most T14 to have a shot. So crush 1L and you have a chance.

My summer and future firm has a good FCPA practice, but it's one of the more sought after practice groups. The downside is I think the people who do FCPA work more than the ones that do M&A, but that may be unique to my firm.

Awesome, thank you for the info. Are there any other skills essential for breaking into this practice area? I've read that foreign language knowledge and an accounting background can help

torchiestacos215 wrote:Awesome, thank you for the info. Are there any other skills essential for breaking into this practice area? I've read that foreign language knowledge and an accounting background can help

Having lived abroad is helpful or any demonstrated interest in traveling. Language skills are a definite plus but I went through the FCPA recruiting gamut without any meaningful foreign language skills. Demonstrating why you're interested in FCPA is probably going to be key and can help make up for lack of ties to DC if you don't already have any. Your interview will boil down to whether you have (1) top law school credentials, (2) top grades, and (3) are a good fit. That's really all it takes. It's nailing the (1) and (2) that's most difficult.