Big law to in house counsel jobs

[Anonymous]

How did you do it? What year were you when you loved? How big of a pay cut did you take?

I think my DH has to seriously look at in house jobs and jump ship from big law. He is an 8th year and while they say he is on “partner track” who knows what that means. Also the stress is going to kill him. He makes a lot of money but it’s not worth it ($300k plus $100k bonus this year).

I would love for him to seriously look into it but don’t know how to start. Would be willing to love to a lower col location as well. Any advice on how to start this?

[Anonymous]

Consider fed too.

[Anonymous]

I moved in house as a 5th (almost 6th) year. I started with a base salary of $185k and earned a bonus of $75k plus $35k stock (vests in 2 years). I also now get a 401k match and better benefits that I got at the firm. It works out to about the same as $300k in firm compensation.

[Anonymous]

Headhunter specializing in lawyers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Headhunter specializing in lawyers.

This. He needs a good headhunter. He should also browse sites such as goinhouse.com. If you're willing to relocate, he'll have many more options as there are so many BigLaw attorneys looking to jump ship in this area and only a limited number of in house positions.

PP seems to have lucked out with almost $300K in comp. Closer to $200K starting out is more typical, but it certainly can vary.

[Anonymous]

Op here ... thanks for the info! For those of you who have moved have you found that the quality of life has increased exponentially? Do you work a lot less and are less stressed?

DH is worried about leaving to go in house just to make less money and still be extremely stressed and work all the time. The GCs and counsel who he works with all seem equally as stressed as him and work all the time.

[Anonymous]

If he wants to go in house, he can't really afford to be picky about the pay. Because there is like 1 in house job for 100 big law refugees. And being an 8th year makes it look like he wasn't good enough for partner, which is a strike against him when the competition is so fierce.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op here ... thanks for the info! For those of you who have moved have you found that the quality of life has increased exponentially? Do you work a lot less and are less stressed?

DH is worried about leaving to go in house just to make less money and still be extremely stressed and work all the time. The GCs and counsel who he works with all seem equally as stressed as him and work all the time.

His experience is due in part to the reality that most companies typically only use outside counsel for higher stake, stressful matters. Depending on your practice area, the day to day work of many in house counsel is less stressful, with occasional peaks (during high risk litigation or investigations, during M&A that puts your job at risk). And, as anywhere, it also depends on the personalities of the people you work for and with. So look carefully and ask the right questions.

In our experience, we have not missed the money because we make more than enough for our standard of living, and our quality of life makes us look back on our firm days and wonder what we were thinking. After you cross a certain income threshold, most people begin to value time over money (that threshold varies by person too).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Op here ... thanks for the info! For those of you who have moved have you found that the quality of life has increased exponentially? Do you work a lot less and are less stressed?

DH is worried about leaving to go in house just to make less money and still be extremely stressed and work all the time. The GCs and counsel who he works with all seem equally as stressed as him and work all the time.

His experience is due in part to the reality that most companies typically only use outside counsel for higher stake, stressful matters. Depending on your practice area, the day to day work of many in house counsel is less stressful, with occasional peaks (during high risk litigation or investigations, during M&A that puts your job at risk). And, as anywhere, it also depends on the personalities of the people you work for and with. So look carefully and ask the right questions.

In our experience, we have not missed the money because we make more than enough for our standard of living, and our quality of life makes us look back on our firm days and wonder what we were thinking. After you cross a certain income threshold, most people begin to value time over money (that threshold varies by person too).

OP here .. thanks for your insight.

He works insane hours right now (typically gone from 7am until 8pm every week day) and always a few hours on the weekends if not more depending if there is an urgent deadline. Plus he does protest work so the deadlines are incredibly tight and the stress level is ridiculously high.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op here ... thanks for the info! For those of you who have moved have you found that the quality of life has increased exponentially? Do you work a lot less and are less stressed?

DH is worried about leaving to go in house just to make less money and still be extremely stressed and work all the time. The GCs and counsel who he works with all seem equally as stressed as him and work all the time.

Depends. I had a friend go in-house, and she ended up traveling much more than was initially represented. I think her schedule is more predictable, but not really less intense.

[Anonymous]

I got an in house position as an 8th year starting at $230. 401k match and health insurance is so much better than at firms. I work usually 8-5 and never on the weekends. I travel about once a quarter for a week at a time. Otherwise my job is amazing. Get a good recruiter and be willing to move. I hope your DH is not a litigator as those jobs are not usually transferable to in house gigs.

[Anonymous]

New poster. Any recommendations for recruiters specializing in in-house placements?

[Anonymous]

Does he have relationships with any clients? That's usually the best way to get an in house job, that's what I did. It sounds from your description if his "protest work" that he's a litigator, though. If that's the case I don't think his chances are good, he should look at fed jobs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Does he have relationships with any clients? That's usually the best way to get an in house job, that's what I did. It sounds from your description if his "protest work" that he's a litigator, though. If that's the case I don't think his chances are good, he should look at fed jobs.

OP here ... yes he is a litigator. Why wouldnt his chances be good? Sorry I don't know a ton about the legal market (I should obviously).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does he have relationships with any clients? That's usually the best way to get an in house job, that's what I did. It sounds from your description if his "protest work" that he's a litigator, though. If that's the case I don't think his chances are good, he should look at fed jobs.

OP here ... yes he is a litigator. Why wouldnt his chances be good? Sorry I don't know a ton about the legal market (I should obviously).

DP. There are many fewer litigation in-house positions relative to corporate jobs. Only fairly big companies have dedicated litigators, and often only one. Doing bid protest work, rather than general lit, may actually help him a bit because of the number of contractors in the area. Otherwise, you may have to be willing to move to where big corporate HQs are to have a better shot.