Big Law

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:"Big Law"...puke. So pretentious.

Agree, better to hitch a ride on that pipeline from Bucknell to The Street. Now THAT'S livin'.

😂. Love it.

[Anonymous]

Omg biglaw never shuts down, troll. 24/7

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, the rule of thumb for getting a job in BigLaw is to attend one of the T14 law schools. Any one of them is fine. Get good grades first year especially. Obviously, hiring will vary with the state of the market.

For undergrad, get a high GPA in a normal major at a top 100+ school. Your state flagship will do just fine. You don't need to be picky and you definitely do not need to attend a prestigious undergrad for T14 admission or for BigLaw.

Consider working full-time after college in a real-world setting for a couple of years. Definitely does not have to be a legal setting; business of some kind is perfect.

(Any minute now, someone will come along with a list of undergrad "feeders" to T14 and focus on Yale Law School specifically. Ignore them.)

I went to a T14, but I wish I had gone to a cheaper law school in the 20-50. While it's easier to get into a big coast law firm from from a T14, it isn't that hard from a good-not-great law school. Top firms are full of grads from Fordham, Hastings, George Washington, BU, etc. To be fair, you'll want to be in the top 10-20% of your class and maybe on law review from such schools to get a first-year job at top firms. In my case, the debt I racked up in my T14 meant that I had no choice but to go into "Big Law" and remain there longer than I would have preferred. I wish I had looked for scholarships and cheaper options. As others have said, the big-firm life is a grind and, in my experience, only about 10% of those in it truly enjoy their jobs.

[Anonymous]

imagine aspiring for your child to be in BigLaw. it’s honestly really sad.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, the rule of thumb for getting a job in BigLaw is to attend one of the T14 law schools. Any one of them is fine. Get good grades first year especially. Obviously, hiring will vary with the state of the market.

For undergrad, get a high GPA in a normal major at a top 100+ school. Your state flagship will do just fine. You don't need to be picky and you definitely do not need to attend a prestigious undergrad for T14 admission or for BigLaw.

Consider working full-time after college in a real-world setting for a couple of years. Definitely does not have to be a legal setting; business of some kind is perfect.

(Any minute now, someone will come along with a list of undergrad "feeders" to T14 and focus on Yale Law School specifically. Ignore them.)

I went to a T14, but I wish I had gone to a cheaper law school in the 20-50. While it's easier to get into a big coast law firm from from a T14, it isn't that hard from a good-not-great law school. Top firms are full of grads from Fordham, Hastings, George Washington, BU, etc. To be fair, you'll want to be in the top 10-20% of your class and maybe on law review from such schools to get a first-year job at top firms. In my case, the debt I racked up in my T14 meant that I had no choice but to go into "Big Law" and remain there longer than I would have preferred. I wish I had looked for scholarships and cheaper options. As others have said, the big-firm life is a grind and, in my experience, only about 10% of those in it truly enjoy their jobs.

Are you sure about Hastings ?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Dickinson then Penn. They are second year associate at a Biglaw firm in M&A. Got out early (6 pm) on Thanksgiving. We saved them a plate and then they had dessert with us.

Total comp this year will be $260k. So we talked about that for 45 minutes and then they took Metro back to their apartment in CityCenterDC.

Sounds miserable.

Sounds troll . . . and false.

Big law shuts down Wed-Sun on Thanksgiving week. Unless there is a deal ------ and if there was -- DC associates would not be working Thanksgiving.

I’m old but I worked every holiday for the first few years as a junior associate in BigLaw.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, the rule of thumb for getting a job in BigLaw is to attend one of the T14 law schools. Any one of them is fine. Get good grades first year especially. Obviously, hiring will vary with the state of the market.

For undergrad, get a high GPA in a normal major at a top 100+ school. Your state flagship will do just fine. You don't need to be picky and you definitely do not need to attend a prestigious undergrad for T14 admission or for BigLaw.

Consider working full-time after college in a real-world setting for a couple of years. Definitely does not have to be a legal setting; business of some kind is perfect.

(Any minute now, someone will come along with a list of undergrad "feeders" to T14 and focus on Yale Law School specifically. Ignore them.)

So true

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Dickinson then Penn. They are second year associate at a Biglaw firm in M&A. Got out early (6 pm) on Thanksgiving. We saved them a plate and then they had dessert with us.

Total comp this year will be $260k. So we talked about that for 45 minutes and then they took Metro back to their apartment in CityCenterDC.

Sounds miserable.

Sounds troll . . . and false.

Big law shuts down Wed-Sun on Thanksgiving week. Unless there is a deal ------ and if there was -- DC associates would not be working Thanksgiving.

Big law shuts down on holidays just like it shuts down on weekends. As an associate, you are completely at the mercy of the partners you are working for and the workload of the cases/deals you are on. Golden handcuffs.

OP, if you kid chooses this life on their own, support them in every way possible. But please don’t push it on them. For many of us, this road is not a happy one.

Of the five BigLaw partners I know, all are doing everything possible to ensure their own kids don’t follow the path (short of handing them tons of $$$s).

They figure at least if the kid does follow, the kid will know exactly how mind-numbing and painful the job may be so no pollyannish view.

I have forbidden my children from becoming lawyers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Dickinson then Penn. They are second year associate at a Biglaw firm in M&A. Got out early (6 pm) on Thanksgiving. We saved them a plate and then they had dessert with us.

Total comp this year will be $260k. So we talked about that for 45 minutes and then they took Metro back to their apartment in CityCenterDC.

Sounds miserable.

Sounds troll . . . and false.

Big law shuts down Wed-Sun on Thanksgiving week. Unless there is a deal ------ and if there was -- DC associates would not be working Thanksgiving.

Lol if you truly think that Big law “shuts down” from Wed to Sun on Thanksgiving. That’s laughable.

Glad you said it. I worked in two Big Law firms and could never plan weekends or holidays (litigation) . Law firms never "close". the staff may go home but you are still at the beck smd call of the partners.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, the rule of thumb for getting a job in BigLaw is to attend one of the T14 law schools. Any one of them is fine. Get good grades first year especially. Obviously, hiring will vary with the state of the market.

For undergrad, get a high GPA in a normal major at a top 100+ school. Your state flagship will do just fine. You don't need to be picky and you definitely do not need to attend a prestigious undergrad for T14 admission or for BigLaw.

Consider working full-time after college in a real-world setting for a couple of years. Definitely does not have to be a legal setting; business of some kind is perfect.

(Any minute now, someone will come along with a list of undergrad "feeders" to T14 and focus on Yale Law School specifically. Ignore them.)

I went to a T14, but I wish I had gone to a cheaper law school in the 20-50. While it's easier to get into a big coast law firm from from a T14, it isn't that hard from a good-not-great law school. Top firms are full of grads from Fordham, Hastings, George Washington, BU, etc. To be fair, you'll want to be in the top 10-20% of your class and maybe on law review from such [b]schools to get a first-year job at top firms. In my case, the debt I racked up in my T14 meant that I had no choice but to go into "Big Law" and remain there longer than I would have preferred. I wish I had looked for scholarships and cheaper options. As others have said, the big-firm life is a grind and, in my experience, only about 10% of those in it truly enjoy their jobs.

Are you sure about Hastings ?

Seriously, Hastings (now UC law SF) is around 82 to 84 . My Big Law firms did not hire frim there

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, the rule of thumb for getting a job in BigLaw is to attend one of the T14 law schools. Any one of them is fine. Get good grades first year especially. Obviously, hiring will vary with the state of the market.

For undergrad, get a high GPA in a normal major at a top 100+ school. Your state flagship will do just fine. You don't need to be picky and you definitely do not need to attend a prestigious undergrad for T14 admission or for BigLaw.

Consider working full-time after college in a real-world setting for a couple of years. Definitely does not have to be a legal setting; business of some kind is perfect.

(Any minute now, someone will come along with a list of undergrad "feeders" to T14 and focus on Yale Law School specifically. Ignore them.)

I went to a T14, but I wish I had gone to a cheaper law school in the 20-50. While it's easier to get into a big coast law firm from from a T14, it isn't that hard from a good-not-great law school. Top firms are full of grads from Fordham, Hastings, George Washington, BU, etc. To be fair, you'll want to be in the top 10-20% of your class and maybe on law review from such schools to get a first-year job at top firms. In my case, the debt I racked up in my T14 meant that I had no choice but to go into "Big Law" and remain there longer than I would have preferred. I wish I had looked for scholarships and cheaper options. As others have said, the big-firm life is a grind and, in my experience, only about 10% of those in it truly enjoy their jobs.

It can be hard to get BigLaw interviews from T20+ law schools. Top 10-20% won't cut it. More like top 10-20 students.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:"Big Law"...puke. So pretentious.

[b]

Maybe that anti-elite, anti-entitlement mindset of yours isn't allowing you to
think rationally anymore. All "Big" means is "Big" as in large. Largest in terms of employees, largest in terms of complex litigation and other areas of the law that it can handle. Largest in terms of offices around the world. Read here: "https://law.usnews.com/law-firms/advice/articles/what-is-big-law#:~:text=9%3A29%20a.m.-,What%20Is%20'Big%20Law%3F,revenue%20and%20number%20of%20offices.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Dickinson then Penn. They are second year associate at a Biglaw firm in M&A. Got out early (6 pm) on Thanksgiving. We saved them a plate and then they had dessert with us.

Total comp this year will be $260k. So we talked about that for 45 minutes and then they took Metro back to their apartment in CityCenterDC.

Sounds miserable.

Sounds troll . . . and false.

Big law shuts down Wed-Sun on Thanksgiving week. Unless there is a deal ------ and if there was -- DC associates would not be working Thanksgiving.

I’m old but I worked every holiday for the first few years as a junior associate in BigLaw.

yep. I don’t think there’s even any holiday that BigLaw shuts down for.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:"Big Law"...puke. So pretentious.

[b]Maybe that anti-elite, anti-entitlement mindset of yours isn't allowing you to
think rationally anymore. All "Big" means is "Big" as in large. Largest in terms of employees, largest in terms of complex litigation and other areas of the law that it can handle. Largest in terms of offices around the world. Read here: "https://law.usnews.com/law-firms/advice/articles/what-is-big-law#:~:text=9%3A29%20a.m.-,What%20Is%20'Big%20Law%3F,revenue%20and%20number%20of%20offices.

I'm rational.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Dickinson then Penn. They are second year associate at a Biglaw firm in M&A. Got out early (6 pm) on Thanksgiving. We saved them a plate and then they had dessert with us.

Total comp this year will be $260k. So we talked about that for 45 minutes and then they took Metro back to their apartment in CityCenterDC.

Sounds miserable.

Sounds troll . . . and false.

Big law shuts down Wed-Sun on Thanksgiving week. Unless there is a deal ------ and if there was -- DC associates would not be working Thanksgiving.

Former DC Biglaw associate here who had to work Thanksgiving. 🤷‍♂️