How to transition from Fed to nonequity law partner?

[Anonymous]

Talk to Darin Morgan at MLA. MLA is the top recruiting shop and he's good.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

When it comes to private practice, you're either IN or you're OUT. This means that you either dedicate yourself to the firm, you you stay put in your safe government job. Job security should not be underrated. If you're still serious about going into private practice, I would set a 2-year goal of going to conferences, networking and publishing articles to build up a VERY strong reputation that the firm can sell to its clients. You should also build up relationships with in house counsel who you would like to solicit for business. In the end, that's what it's all about.

OP again -- very pragmatic, thanks, esp. regarding relationships with in house counsel as I need to improve my networking here. You also make a good point about serious or not, from seeing the responses to my original message I think I am not ready to fully commit at this time. I appreciate everyone's honesty, as I also see that I have not been giving my current job security its due weight. Perhaps I may already have, to use a PP's phrasing, a "mommy unicorn job" without appreciating it...

Finding one that pays more with mommy hours is a whole other unicorn. It can be done, but you need good connections. Lawyers are a dime a dozen.

[Anonymous]

Every time one of these "fed to firm" posts comes up, especially "fed to partner" posts comes up, I want to now just post this link: https://abovethelaw.com/2018/01/he-wanted-to-be-more-successful-in-biglaw-why-a-former-partner-tried-to-sell-whistleblower-complaints/

I went from fed to associate and it was a cold splash of water in the face, and it has taken me MANY years to adapt to the demands of BIGLAW (with lots of mistakes along the way). I can't imagine going form fed to partner. YIKES.

I don't think it can be overstated how difficult it is when you are a fed attorney to understand the significantly greater demands of BIGLAW. There many be some agencies where the work is incredibly demanding, but there you don't have the "customer service" demands of finding and keeping clients happy.

OP be VERY careful and really do your homework. A recruiter is a great idea but remember, they make money if you change jobs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Every time one of these "fed to firm" posts comes up, especially "fed to partner" posts comes up, I want to now just post this link: https://abovethelaw.com/2018/01/he-wanted-to-be-more-successful-in-biglaw-why-a-former-partner-tried-to-sell-whistleblower-complaints/

I went from fed to associate and it was a cold splash of water in the face, and it has taken me MANY years to adapt to the demands of BIGLAW (with lots of mistakes along the way). I can't imagine going form fed to partner. YIKES.

I don't think it can be overstated how difficult it is when you are a fed attorney to understand the significantly greater demands of BIGLAW. There many be some agencies where the work is incredibly demanding, but there you don't have the "customer service" demands of finding and keeping clients happy.

OP be VERY careful and really do your homework. A recruiter is a great idea but remember, they make money if you change jobs.

Haha -- this is definitely an extreme case, but the pressure is REAL. I'm going from biglaw to fed and while I know it's not going to be a cake walk, I'm looking forward to leaving the "customer service" bullshit that results in 5 layers of review for a simple email to the client and manufactured firedrills 3-4 times a week.

[Anonymous]

Depending on the area of expertise, it is entirely possible to move to a firm as counsel or a non-equity partner. It may even be possible to do so on a part-time basis. At my firm (one of the firms OP mentioned), there are several highly-specialized former government attorneys who are given accommodations in terms of part-time status. As noted above, counsel may be a better position because a) you still get subsidized health care, tax withholding, etc., and b) the expectations aren't the same. With the partner title comes the expectation that you are seeking to build a book in order to become an equity partner. It certainly is possible to move from counsel to non-equity partner with the expectation of continuing to do service work, but only once you've established your value. I would not want to lateral in to that position though, if part of the objective is to control hours/commitment. This is all from someone who made the transition agency to biglaw transition successfully, first as counsel and now (after quite a few years) as equity partner. By the way, I did work with a recruiter, but am not sure it's necessary. It certainly wouldn't hurt to call someone you know well and ask what they think the market might be for someone with your SME. Good luck!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Talk to Darin Morgan at MLA. MLA is the top recruiting shop and he's good.

Agree with this recommendation. Darin is a great guy and doesn't play games. Will also not try to monopolize your representation and will help you with your presentation.

[Anonymous]

I worked in an agency where it was common for fed lawyers to transition to big law. Most went in as senior associates if they had 5-7 years with the government. If they held mid level leadership positions they went in as counsel, or in rare cases, partner. However, most of the ones who I saw go in as partners held fairly substantial, and in most cases, multiple, leadership positions in government. I am still in touch with most of them and though the hours are not worse than what they had in government, the pressure to produce is enormous in the first few years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I worked in an agency where it was common for fed lawyers to transition to big law. Most went in as senior associates if they had 5-7 years with the government. If they held mid level leadership positions they went in as counsel, or in rare cases, partner. However, most of the ones who I saw go in as partners held fairly substantial, and in most cases, multiple, leadership positions in government. I am still in touch with most of them and though the hours are not worse than what they had in government, the pressure to produce is enormous in the first few years.

It's all about who you know in the government after you leave. Your Rolodex is what the firm is buying.