BigLaw to NYC DAs/NYS AG Forum

[Anonymous User]

Anyone know about exit options from NYC BigLaw litigation if the US Attorney's Offices don't take me? I heard some people become ADAs or Assistant AGs. Do they work on white collar matters or serious felonies straight out or do you start as a rookie with low level crimes?

[Anonymous User]

Anyone know about exit options from NYC BigLaw litigation if the US Attorney's Offices don't take me? I heard some people become ADAs or Assistant AGs. Do they work on white collar matters or serious felonies straight out or do you start as a rookie with low level crimes?

There is no way someone in this situation would ever be staffed on white collar matters or serious felonies. It takes a serious amount of training and practice in criminal courts before you can become competent enough to handle such matters. A junior associate in biglaw is getting basically zero courtroom experience, so that will not substitute for it. You should expect to be put in the same rotation as every other prosecutor, which is a good thing. If you're smart and have a knack for more sophisticated litigation, you will rise through the ranks naturally to handle the cool stuff whereas others will not.

[Anonymous User]

Anyone know about exit options from NYC BigLaw litigation if the US Attorney's Offices don't take me? I heard some people become ADAs or Assistant AGs. Do they work on white collar matters or serious felonies straight out or do you start as a rookie with low level crimes?

There is no way someone in this situation would ever be staffed on white collar matters or serious felonies. It takes a serious amount of training and practice in criminal courts before you can become competent enough to handle such matters. A junior associate in biglaw is getting basically zero courtroom experience, so that will not substitute for it. You should expect to be put in the same rotation as every other prosecutor, which is a good thing. If you're smart and have a knack for more sophisticated litigation, you will rise through the ranks naturally to handle the cool stuff whereas others will not.

And just to be clear, this is true if you end up at a USAO as well. There are plenty of simple/minor cases that USAOs address where you’d start.

I think there might be some distinction between and ADA and AAG in that in many states, the AG’s office only handles certain kinds of cases that are by their nature a little more sophisticated/complex. But you’d still start at the bottom of whatever hierarchy exists (if you were even hired by the AG’s office to do criminal cases; I’m not familiar with NY but where I am the criminal AAGs are mostly former ADAs. There are also civil AAGs, of course.)

For the purpose of learning how to run a criminal case and conduct a criminal trial, podunk gun and drug cases are a great way to learn, anyway.

[Anonymous User]

In a major city, a starting prosecutor is going to be assigned to cases that by and large involve:

* Charging decisions alone (no merits trials)
* Probation violations
* Misdemeanor trials, that are usually bench trials, not jury

After some familiarity has baked in from this experience, you can move on to the next level where you might start handling cases that actually go to jury trials. The bigger the city, the longer it takes before you get that chance.