Date: October 27th, 2006 5:52 PM Author: Exhilarant mustard cuckold
This is certainly possible. I indicated that I would have probably chosen Cravath over S&C. As for Wachtell, the hours and QOL hit represent a meaningful difference - and one I would have had to think about seriously.
Date: October 27th, 2006 8:17 PM Author: Free-loading Piazza Old Irish Cottage Subject: Congratulations!
Based on your reaction to getting the offer, this is probably the best thing that could have hever appened to you. I encourage you to enjoy the summer and take accept their offer as nothing in the world will cure you of your prestige obsession quicker than some time at S&C.
During orientation, they'll give you an S&C shoulderbag and you'll wear it with the S&C logo facing outward so any other commuters in the know can see it and you'll just know that they're either impressed or envious. And that will make you happy and proud. And then you'll try to figure out the best way to ensure that you're sworn in as soon as possible after receiving your bar results because then you'll get the box full of business cards that say "Sullivan & Cromwell LLP" with your actual name underneath. You'll be giddy at the thought of casually passing one (mid-conversation) to some acquaintance from undergrad you've lost touch with.
You'll start working and you'll notice that there are an awful lot of "Farewell" emails and someone will tell you that the farewell emails can only contain 4 names at a time per firm policy because the partners decided sometime in 2004 that emails indicating 6 or 7 people were leaving the firm in a two week period might cause some unhelpful whispering. You'll talk to a midlevel associate who is super-psyched to work at S&C and you'll find out that he (not a lot of shes) lateralled from some firm that frankly you would never have considered working for (too TTT for you). When you get back to your office, this will trouble you a bit, you'll wonder if your own escutcheon is being blemished by the presence of this type of person (i.e., non-elite) at your S&C. But that feeling will pass as you'll find plenty of other like-minded first years who equally relish the prestige as you you head for a drink at Ulysses (shoulderbag logo facing outward).
Then you'll get staffed on your first big deal and you'll work late night after late night and then on the weekend and on to the next weekend and then on to the weekend when you had planned to go to a friend's wedding. And you won't go because the work has to get done and you have dues to pay (or so you'll be told). You'll get a little bit upset about this turn of events, but the arrival of those business cards will soften the blow.
You'll meet more and more laterals from firms that you would never work for (some you've never even heard of). You'll note in the farewell emails that some of the junior and midlevel associates leaving S&C are going to those very same firms. Survival of the fittest you'll say. But late at night, when the air conditioning clicks down from a barely perceptible hissing sound to complete silence, these things will bother you. But you'll tell yourself you're just tired and frustrated and anyway you have work to do.
You'll have lunch with Rodge and he'll tell you that business is good and that he's listening to associates' concerns about quality of life issues. You'll notice that some of the senior associates visibly roll their eyes at each other when this comes up, but you won't mind that much because, really, what other firm's managing partner regulalry has lunch with associates to hear their concerns (and takes notes!)
A few months will pass, a few marathon deals will happen, you'll have to re-schedule a vacation but you'll tell yourself that that is to be expected.
About a year in, a couple of your classmates will crack and start talking about how much the job sucks. They'll very likely have gone to Yale Law School. You'll joke that they couldn't hack it when they leave the firm for a clerkship, or an academic position or to go to a firm in another city.
Things will go on in this pattern and you'll notice the fact that you're working a lot harder than your friends who went to "peer" firms. At first you'll be proud of this and brag about it, but after a while you'll find yourself downplaying it. At least when you have the time to get out and socialize with your law school friends.
Something will happen: a partner will scream at you, a senior associate gunning for partner will blame you for her mistake, the partner will tell you that the trip to Europe your spouse meticulously planned just won't be able to happen (he'll be really sorry and will tell you a funny story about the exotic vacation he missed or cut short). Doesn't matter what, but you'll get really pissed and you'll start to take some of the 4 or 5 calls from headhunters that you'll receive every day at that point (vultures spell blood). They'll give you the names of firms that you laughed on in the days when you posted on the XOXO board, but you'll find yourself looking into them. The headhunter will encourage to just listen to their offer and you'll consider doing so. But you won't leave because then you'd have to give up your business cards. And stop wearing the shoulder bag. And the bonus is only x months away so you'll start thinking about it then.
Until one day you won't be able to take it any more and you'll find yourself arranging to meet with people from a lightly regarded firm for a position in their New York office. And you'll worry that the XOXO crowd will see you.
And you don't believe any of this will happen, but I suggest you print this out and keep it in the top desk of your drawer so late at night when you're feeling sorry for yourself, you can add to the list of reasons to be miserable this fact: someone told you this was going to happen and you thought that person was crazy.
Date: October 27th, 2006 9:18 PM Author: hyperactive headpube boistinker
this doesn't sound so bad. there are millions (ok, maybe not millions, thousands) of people going through the same experience. at least this guy has some prestige that seems truly to make him happy and isn't in it just for the money.
also, PSA: many people initially love their jobs, then hate their jobs and then leave them. lawyers are not special.
Date: October 27th, 2006 10:42 PM Author: Exhilarant mustard cuckold
Noted and printed.
I actually don't think you are crazy. But I do think you are misguided if you believe that the same progression of misery would not just as likely befall me at any other big law firm. And as you mention, when it does, the fact that I endured that misery at a firm as well regarded as S&C will leave me with plenty of options when deciding where to go to dry my eyes.
Date: October 29th, 2006 12:23 AM Author: cordovan university cuck
Mostly true, though S&C associates who've managed to stick around for 3-4 years place very well.
However, for the next few graduating classes, the mid-levels at most of these firms are going to be laterals. Ya'll better get over the superiority complex when your boss ends up being a new york law grad.
Based on your reaction to getting the offer, this is probably the best thing that could have hever appened to you. I encourage you to enjoy the summer and take accept their offer as nothing in the world will cure you of your prestige obsession quicker than some time at S&C.
During orientation, they'll give you an S&C shoulderbag and you'll wear it with the S&C logo facing outward so any other commuters in the know can see it and you'll just know that they're either impressed or envious. And that will make you happy and proud. And then you'll try to figure out the best way to ensure that you're sworn in as soon as possible after receiving your bar results because then you'll get the box full of business cards that say "Sullivan & Cromwell LLP" with your actual name underneath. You'll be giddy at the thought of casually passing one (mid-conversation) to some acquaintance from undergrad you've lost touch with.
You'll start working and you'll notice that there are an awful lot of "Farewell" emails and someone will tell you that the farewell emails can only contain 4 names at a time per firm policy because the partners decided sometime in 2004 that emails indicating 6 or 7 people were leaving the firm in a two week period might cause some unhelpful whispering. You'll talk to a midlevel associate who is super-psyched to work at S&C and you'll find out that he (not a lot of shes) lateralled from some firm that frankly you would never have considered working for (too TTT for you). When you get back to your office, this will trouble you a bit, you'll wonder if your own escutcheon is being blemished by the presence of this type of person (i.e., non-elite) at your S&C. But that feeling will pass as you'll find plenty of other like-minded first years who equally relish the prestige as you you head for a drink at Ulysses (shoulderbag logo facing outward).
Then you'll get staffed on your first big deal and you'll work late night after late night and then on the weekend and on to the next weekend and then on to the weekend when you had planned to go to a friend's wedding. And you won't go because the work has to get done and you have dues to pay (or so you'll be told). You'll get a little bit upset about this turn of events, but the arrival of those business cards will soften the blow.
You'll meet more and more laterals from firms that you would never work for (some you've never even heard of). You'll note in the farewell emails that some of the junior and midlevel associates leaving S&C are going to those very same firms. Survival of the fittest you'll say. But late at night, when the air conditioning clicks down from a barely perceptible hissing sound to complete silence, these things will bother you. But you'll tell yourself you're just tired and frustrated and anyway you have work to do.
You'll have lunch with Rodge and he'll tell you that business is good and that he's listening to associates' concerns about quality of life issues. You'll notice that some of the senior associates visibly roll their eyes at each other when this comes up, but you won't mind that much because, really, what other firm's managing partner regulalry has lunch with associates to hear their concerns (and takes notes!)
A few months will pass, a few marathon deals will happen, you'll have to re-schedule a vacation but you'll tell yourself that that is to be expected.
About a year in, a couple of your classmates will crack and start talking about how much the job sucks. They'll very likely have gone to Yale Law School. You'll joke that they couldn't hack it when they leave the firm for a clerkship, or an academic position or to go to a firm in another city.
Things will go on in this pattern and you'll notice the fact that you're working a lot harder than your friends who went to "peer" firms. At first you'll be proud of this and brag about it, but after a while you'll find yourself downplaying it. At least when you have the time to get out and socialize with your law school friends.
Something will happen: a partner will scream at you, a senior associate gunning for partner will blame you for her mistake, the partner will tell you that the trip to Europe your spouse meticulously planned just won't be able to happen (he'll be really sorry and will tell you a funny story about the exotic vacation he missed or cut short). Doesn't matter what, but you'll get really pissed and you'll start to take some of the 4 or 5 calls from headhunters that you'll receive every day at that point (vultures spell blood). They'll give you the names of firms that you laughed on in the days when you posted on the XOXO board, but you'll find yourself looking into them. The headhunter will encourage to just listen to their offer and you'll consider doing so. But you won't leave because then you'd have to give up your business cards. And stop wearing the shoulder bag. And the bonus is only x months away so you'll start thinking about it then.
Until one day you won't be able to take it any more and you'll find yourself arranging to meet with people from a lightly regarded firm for a position in their New York office. And you'll worry that the XOXO crowd will see you.
And you don't believe any of this will happen, but I suggest you print this out and keep it in the top desk of your drawer so late at night when you're feeling sorry for yourself, you can add to the list of reasons to be miserable this fact: someone told you this was going to happen and you thought that person was crazy.
Date: October 27th, 2006 11:43 PM Author: Concupiscible Church Laser Beams
I pwn3d the hell out of a shitty brief written by two S&C attorneys last month. Frankly, I was shocked at the poor quality - don't be the guy that diminishes the firm in the eyes of its inferiors. Ty.
Date: October 27th, 2006 4:34 PM Author: Exhilarant mustard cuckold
I didn't encounter any hard interview questions at any firm I went to - they just don't ask you tough questions. Maybe they do in banking interviews, but not law firms. Because the screening interviews are so short, they provide little opportunity for probative questions, and interviewers tend to just yawn their way through a day of 20 interviews and pick a handful of the best transcripts at the end of it. Then, once you get to the callback, they are more concerned about recruiting you (as there is typically a presumption that you are qualified at that point) so nobody wants to be a dick and ask tough questions.
Date: October 27th, 2006 5:58 PM Author: lilac bespoke abode
bankers have to ask questions because they recruit history and econ majors who are taught zero about banking. law school is a pretty fair judge i guess of how well one knows the law or legal theory, so they dont need to ask questions
Date: October 27th, 2006 6:30 PM Author: Exhilarant mustard cuckold
Yes, but how well you are able to learn and do in law school (i.e., your grades) serve as a pretty reliable predictor of how well you will be able to learn and do at a law firm. Thus, they have reliable information on which to base a decision without asking any tough questions. The same cannot be said of an i-bank interviewing a liberal arts major.
Date: October 27th, 2006 11:15 PM Author: Sickened mood boltzmann
I doubt this.
Everyone knows the legal doctrine and can apply it well enough (anyone above the median at a T14 anyway). Issue spotting and being able to crank out a good paper in time span of 3 1/2 hours is a different skill.
Date: October 27th, 2006 4:41 PM Author: Exhilarant mustard cuckold
I am a very cool and sociable person. I found that interviewers found this to be very refreshing. They are used to meeting with unbelievable losers during these interviews. Either interviewer is cool and are relieved to finally meet somebody they can actually talk to, or they are similarly losers and revert back to middle school tendencies and try their best to impress me and get me to like them too. Either way, when I leave, they are left with the impression that I am somebody they would like to work with, which is what their decision really boils down to (presuming you have the grades).
Date: October 27th, 2006 5:53 PM Author: Filthy Point Brethren
definitely. what part of the interview did you most show off your coolness and sociability? the part where you told them how awesome and prestigious you are? or the part where you told them you'd be taking questions on your awesomeness and prestigiousness?
Date: October 27th, 2006 4:29 PM Author: Exhilarant mustard cuckold
Credited.
But more to the point, there is no chance I am working months of 80 hour weeks. Its just not realistic. An occasional 80 hour week? Maybe.
Semi-regular 70 hour weeks will likely suck a lot, but I anticipate that knowing that I am at the top of the legal profession and will essentially have the freedom to choose whatever I want the next step in my career to be will help me get through it for a couple of years.
Date: October 27th, 2006 4:36 PM Author: Slippery Ebony Market
"Semi-regular 70 hour weeks will likely suck a lot, but I anticipate that knowing that I am at the top of the legal profession and will essentially have the freedom to choose whatever I want the next step in my career to be will help me get through it for a couple of years."
litigation or corporate? If corporate, you are at the top of the legal profession, and the bottom of the finance profession, so it isn't too exciting. If litigation, you can get similar training in any major market with considerably less hours.
Date: October 27th, 2006 5:59 PM Author: blue boyish therapy den
except that it isn't. You aren't in the finance profession if you are corporate lawyer. That is as dumb as saying an analyst at morgan stanley is at the top of the legal profession.
Date: October 27th, 2006 4:41 PM Author: clear orchestra pit
True corporate lawyers have to deal with the fact that they are not the main professional talent involved in the deals that they are working on. They also make less $$$ than the bankers.
Date: October 27th, 2006 4:44 PM Author: Exhilarant mustard cuckold
"bottom of the finance profession"
This is funny. And I agree. Corporate lawyers make no sense to me - why go into debt just to be doing less glamorous financial work than you could have done right out of college?
I want to do litigation, and specifically securities litigation.
Date: October 27th, 2006 4:48 PM Author: Slippery Ebony Market
so then what are these great exit options? I understand corporate, because half of corporate lawyers want to be bankers or in business, but if you are in litigation you aren't going into business. There is big time securities litigation all over the place, not just NYC. Where are you going to exit to anyway, another lawfirm or in house as an inhouse litigation expert?
Date: October 27th, 2006 4:57 PM Author: Charismatic Gaming Laptop Space
"why go into debt just to be doing less glamorous financial work than you could have done right out of college?
I want to do litigation, and specifically securities litigation."
you did, you made the implicit distinction between less glamorous financial corporate work and impliedly more glamorous securities litigation, and all the glamorous doc review that goes along with it.
Date: October 27th, 2006 5:54 PM Author: Exhilarant mustard cuckold
Yep. They're very good at the lit I think I want to do, and they are strong across all practice areas and have a big international presence, which were both important to me.
Date: October 27th, 2006 4:51 PM Author: Exhilarant mustard cuckold
"Why not just figure out where you want to be and go there? Why pick a firm for its exit strategy?"
This is like asking: Why go to law school? If you know you want to be a lawyer, why not just start at a law firm?
Well, firms won't hire you without a legal degree - you won't consider you qualified to work for them until you have been trained in this regard. And the better school you come from, the more likely the more competitive firms will want you.
The same logic applies for the next step in one's career (at least mine). The jobs I would like to end up doing wouldn't hire me straight out of law school. They will hire somebody after three years of BigLaw experience, and will be more likely to do so if they have been trained at a better firm.
I assume that if someone can get a job at Sullivan that same person could get a job at any boutique firm he wanted. Instead, OP will go through three years of misery at Sullivan for the prestigue and move on to the firm that he should have chosen to begin with.
Date: October 27th, 2006 5:22 PM Author: Exhilarant mustard cuckold
First, let's take a step back. This is for a summer position at this point. I will certainly be exploring my options after the summer, and will be asking myself and many others the very questions that you raise. My sense at the moment is that you have many more options after a few years of BigLaw experience than you do at graduation.
At the very least, a summer at a firm like S&C will look good coming out if it turns out I'm wrong and I decide to do something else directly after graduation. So either way, I am happy.
Date: October 27th, 2006 5:22 PM Author: peach trump supporter
"I assume that if someone can get a job at Sullivan that same person could get a job at any boutique firm he wanted."
Not true. Sullivan is fairly prestigious and selective, but they take a lot of bodies. Smaller boutiques might be more selective or they might take very few people.
Date: October 27th, 2006 4:55 PM Author: Exhilarant mustard cuckold
It has improved my self-esteem. But it may well worsen my self-esteem issues by confirming that I require success such as this to make me feel good about myself. Only time will tell, I guess.
yeah it's strange. by most traditional xoxo standards he is a shining success story, and yet one person after another piles on to express horror at his prospects. are we going all softbatch and work-life-balancy here and turning away from our collective belief that prestige is a bitter but essential medicine? or is it just envy speaking?
Date: October 27th, 2006 6:14 PM Author: Disgusting yellow double fault station
Should I take Cravath over Sullcrom? Do you perceive any difference in hours worked at these two firms? I'd imagine it'd be fairly easy for me to lateral to Sullcrom from Cravath whereas it'd be a lot harder the other way around?
Date: October 27th, 2006 6:27 PM Author: Exhilarant mustard cuckold
Your assessment is probably accurate. Cravath historically does not hire any laterals (though I have heard rumors that they have started to do so). I don't know that it would be "fairly easy" to lateral to S&C, but I may be wrong about that.
As for hours, I think you will work slightly more at Cravath, but that the difference will be largely negligible. From what I hear, you will definitely work a lot more over the summer.
As far as I'm concerned, a Cravath v. S&C decision should probably come down to how comfortable you are with being handcuffed to a single partner at Cravath. If you are ok with the risks associated with that system (or even prefer it) and you can handle working first year associate hours over the summer, I would choose Cravath. If either or both of these things bother you, I would choose S&C. Everything else seems pretty comparable between the two, with these minor potential drawbacks being weighed against the minor bump in prestige.
Date: October 27th, 2006 8:40 PM Author: brass odious faggotry
S&C is a TTT in decline... sorry.
Wouldn't be surprised if they shut down some of their overseas offices. My impression is that they would be nothing if it wasn't for Goldman Sachs and Lehman Brothers.
Date: October 27th, 2006 11:15 PM Author: Exhilarant mustard cuckold
A little bit intimidated, to be honest.
But this intimidation is tempered quite a bit by the fact that I am only in the internet presence of such a person. If you and I were in the same room IRL, I would fear and revere you.
Date: October 28th, 2006 12:16 AM Author: Exhilarant mustard cuckold
Being intimidated in the presence of somebody more prestigious than you is not a universal trait. I just know it to be one that I possess. This, of course, played into my deisre to end up at as prestigious a firm as possible (so as to minimize the amount of people in whose presence I would find myself intimidated).
So it's entirely possible he does not get intimidated in the presence of a Wachtell lawyer, though in his position, I would.
And knowing him to be more prestigious than I (and experiencing the concommitant intimidation), I would not readily attribute this trait to him, as it is one that I see as a weakness in myself and would thus not assume that my prestige superiors possess it.
Date: October 28th, 2006 12:10 AM Author: Exhilarant mustard cuckold
I was only seriously considering DPW and Cleary.
Partner contact means little to me, and even if it didn't, I see no reliable way to obtain truthful information about this metric, or many others for that matter. This is the type of thing you have to experience yourself, not something you can get from talking to others. People at various firms will tell you whatever they want you to think because they are recruiting you, and even seemingly neutral parties (friends you know who work there and will shoot straight with you, for instance) can not be relied upon because most of these things are completely subjective and depend largely on the personality of the individual assessing them. For example, a very introverted person may say that partner contact sucks at S&C, when he would probably have the same gripe about any other firm had he ended up there instead.
So, basically, I determined that relying on information like that (whether promulgated by other firms or insiders "in the know") was foolish. So it came down to prestige, both firm-wide and within the practice areas that interest me, taking into account perceived prestige within the larger legal community, quality of clients, etc. These metrics are much easier to objectively verify. A firm's clients are a matter of fact, and reputation and prestige are subjective assessments that can be objectively measured (i.e., by Vault, C&P, etc.).
Weighing these factors, I arrived at S&C pretty easily.
Date: October 28th, 2006 12:21 AM Author: Exhilarant mustard cuckold
Why do you say that? What about my response do you disagree with or think is so outrageous that it could be flame?
I believe I chose wisely. Others may think there is some value in searching out reliable information on these metrics, and that's fine. I'm not concerned with them. I was asked about how I made my decision, and I answered truthfully, while providing what I think (and hope) is useful information for others similarly situated.
Oh, now I see why you think its flame. I was being honest and trying to be helpful. Thats a no-no around here.
Date: October 28th, 2006 12:54 AM Author: Fiercely-loyal church building
do the mountains make you think of Busch beer? i don't think i could work at a firm whose website reminds me of Busch beer. i prefer blinding websites. blinding.
Date: October 28th, 2006 1:10 AM Author: Exciting chapel gunner
no, that sounds legit to me. so between DPW and S&C you were able to objectively decide that S&C was materially better than DPW in the practice groups you were interested in and overall, putting aside all other factors that you found unreliable (partner contact, "niceness," etc)? good for you. was just curious as i'm still trying to sort firms out.
Date: October 28th, 2006 1:35 AM Author: Exhilarant mustard cuckold
Correct. That's what I was able to do. But I realize that not everybody is capable of that, which is completely fine. I am really just trying to present an alternative to all the people who say you should really just look for "fit" and "culture" and how well you get along with the people because I think those are impossible to get any meaningful sense of during the recruiting process.
If I had one piece of advice that I would stress over all others, it would be not to buy the "niceness" routine (from DPW or anybody else, for that matter). It simply cannot be true, and even if it were, I can't see how it would possibly improve your quality of life in any meaningful way.
In fact, I consider "niceness" to be a slight drawback. I would rather have a partner or senior associate be blunt about what exactly is wrong with my work than spend the whole time walking back to my desk wondering how far I missed the mark because whoever was giving me feedback was trying to be nice and soften the blow. Some people say the nice-guy reputation just means they use nicer words and calmer tones when they chew you out. I don't see this as the problem. The problem is the hazy expectations that comes when one tries to be kind with their criticism.
So, as a firm, you can either always strive to be nice and get shittier and less consistent work, or you can tell your attorneys everything they do wrong, so they can fix it and improve in the future. I'd rather work for the latter. And I honestly think that any firm worth shit would rather be the latter - hence my skepticism that any firms actually fulfill the nice guy role that some purport to.
Date: October 28th, 2006 1:56 AM Author: Exciting chapel gunner
yeah, i agree with you that finding "your own" method of looking at firms is important. i am trying to isolate those things that are important to me too.
i was asking about partner interaction because i had an associate there tell me that he doesn't know partners at all. i found this odd and was wondering if you had picked up on this while going through the recruiting process. i know it's an individual thing and not a firm thing, but thought i would throw it out there and see what you thought. if you don't like it, just throw it back.
Date: October 28th, 2006 2:08 AM Author: Exhilarant mustard cuckold
It sounds like you are going about things better than most people I know.
I agree with the things you have identified as important, and I too place a lot of importance on them. As far as I'm concerned, the sole purpose should be finding the place that will help you become the best lawyer possible (as you say). The quality of your ineractions with supervisors, etc. is a big part of that. But as I have said, I don't think there's any meaningful or reliable way to predict that from going through recruiting. So if this dimension (and other similar ones) are largely a crapshoot (and thus as likely to be good or bad at one firm as the next), I figured I'd base my decision on things I could know with some certainty - prestige, practice area strength, clients, etc.
It's funny, most of the people I spoke with at S&C were actually quite pleased with their experiences with partners. But I put very little faith in these assessments, for the reasons I have discussed. I would have done the same had the assessments been negative. While a negative assessment may seem more readily believable (what incentive do they have to lie about a bad aspect about the firm?), you can't ignore that these things are mostly driven by the individual (as you recgnize) and can do little to tell you how you might actually experience that aspect of the firm.
Anyway, it sounds like you are going about things the best possible way. I wish you luck.
Date: October 28th, 2006 11:55 PM Author: cordovan university cuck
"If I had one piece of advice that I would stress over all others, it would be not to buy the "niceness" routine (from DPW or anybody else, for that matter). It simply cannot be true, and even if it were, I can't see how it would possibly improve your quality of life in any meaningful way.
In fact, I consider "niceness" to be a slight drawback. I would rather have a partner or senior associate be blunt about what exactly is wrong with my work than spend the whole time walking back to my desk wondering how far I missed the mark because whoever was giving me feedback was trying to be nice and soften the blow. Some people say the nice-guy reputation just means they use nicer words and calmer tones when they chew you out. I don't see this as the problem. The problem is the hazy expectations that comes when one tries to be kind with their criticism. "
This is typical logic I hear for rejecting a firm with a culture, but corporate cultures are a real phenomenon and there is no reason to think they can't exist at a law firm. Just look at some of the mergers that have bombed because the corporate cultures didn't mix - it is a real thing. To say "it cannot be true" is just an ignorant statement, as well thought-out as it might be. A lot of people, both working there now and alumni, really seem to believe that it has a better working environment than other firms.
Davis Polk is a top quality law firm that is just as successful at S&C. To assume that there is some inefficency because associates don't get criticized enough or that partners waste time trying to figure out how to break it nice to you is silly. It isn't about "hazy expectations" - they have very high expectations and everyone knows that. The question is - do they throw a phone at you (actually happens at Cravath), or do they tell you you screwed up - say it is OK that you screwed up - and help you fix the problem? You can be very clear about your expectations without being obnoxious or dismissive of the person's intelligence.
Date: October 29th, 2006 2:17 PM Author: Unholy fragrant range goyim
Abuse is definitely a huge drawback. Thing is, the great majority of people at S&C are actually nice and polite, as I'm sure people are at most firms. Applicants shouldn't draw upon the conventional wisdom too much in making their decisions, as it is quite flawed.
Date: October 28th, 2006 2:14 AM Author: Exhilarant mustard cuckold
I am actually quite interested in non-profit or public interest work, and I think something along those lines may well be my next step after after a stint in big law. I just believe I can get better training at a big firm with lots of resources, which I think is the most important thing to a young legal career, regardless of what you want to do long-term.
Why should I feel guilty about that?
Money was not a motivating factor for me. I do not pay tuition, and thus have incurred no debt, and I have plenty of personal money to live comfortably without a high paying job.
Date: October 28th, 2006 2:20 AM Author: dashing indigo doctorate
How is working for Sullivan going to prepare you for the ACLU? Sullivan mostly represents corporation and business firms that has nothing to do with civil liberties. I think you're a bit idealistic if corporate law will help you with civil liberties and constitutional litigation.
Overturning the death penalty in the courts does not equal helping corporations make a bang for their buck. HTH!
Date: October 28th, 2006 2:25 AM Author: Exhilarant mustard cuckold
First of all, I am doing litigation, not corporate.
Learning how to litigate big cases (discovery, etc.) is a skill that can be transferrable. Presumably working on securities litigation will help teach me how to litigate a case, which is what public interest legal organizations do a lot of.
Many other legal skills (research, writing, etc.) are also transferrable, and learning and honing them under very smart people for very demanding clients is certain to help.
Date: October 30th, 2006 8:42 AM Author: frum apoplectic box office people who are hurt
NAMBLA isn't really helping America. And I don't want to hear some treatise on the nobility of robust speech. It's freaking gay kiddie porn.
I honestly believe that helping companies grow, participate in the market, etc. does more good for America than clogging the gov't docket with cases for terrorist muslims and gay molesters. I don't think that's so far fetched.
they make more money, but the ACLU's victories create a lot of positive externalities -- so while the ACLU doesn't make as much, it might still promote more social welfare
Date: October 28th, 2006 2:36 PM Author: arrogant galvanic set mad-dog skullcap
For corporate, I actually think there's a difference in the substance that the top NY places perform and real differences in exit options based on things like relationships with important banks, etc. You're just not going to have the same opportunity at, say, a chicago firm or the DC office of a national firm or whatever. Litigation is litigation though, and for junior people smaller cases can be a lot better experience.
Date: October 28th, 2006 2:34 PM Author: arrogant galvanic set mad-dog skullcap
Let's see. Off the top of my head, I think youre better off at:
Quinn Emmanuel, Munger, Irell, Williams & Connolly, Covington, Gibson Dunn, Arnold & Porter, O'Melveny (some offices), Debevoise, Paul Weiss, Kirkland (maybe)
That's just off the top of my head. These are places that, from what I gather, you're actually going to get real litigation experience, will actually be challenged to perform, will be encouraged to sharpen your skills with pro bono work, and won't exactly stain your resume in the process.
Date: October 28th, 2006 9:18 PM Author: Exhilarant mustard cuckold
"Quinn Emmanuel"
Maybe. Certainly very good lit - can't argue with that. But too small for my tastes. Especially in NY.
"Munger, Irell"
Don't want to live on the west coast. Ever. Seriously, ever.
"Williams & Connolly, Covington, Gibson Dunn"
Sure, if you want to be in DC and do appellate work. And anybody who interviews with their DC office and believes they will be doing a lot of appellate work is an idiot.
"Arnold & Porter, O'Melveny (some offices)"
See above, but far less prestigious and even more stupid.
"Debevoise"
This has to be a joke.
"Paul Weiss"
Good point. Very legit at litigation. But a true one trick pony. Not that impressive of a firm overall.
Date: October 28th, 2006 9:36 PM Author: Well-lubricated menage
"""Williams & Connolly, Covington, Gibson Dunn""
"Sure, if you want to be in DC and do appellate work. And anybody who interviews with their DC office and believes they will be doing a lot of appellate work is an idiot. "
Date: October 29th, 2006 8:18 AM Author: Magenta effete sanctuary Subject: You are going to fit in so well at S&C
I can just tell by the sound of your posts.
Your first friend will be the S&C 2nd year associate who interviewed at my law school. He talked for about 5 minutes in a Thurston Howell-ish accent about how great everything is at "Esh and Shee," and spent the rest of the time talking about baseball. Insecurity and frattishness oozed out of every pore, and he usually maintained a kind of forced, studied modesty, but you could see that he just couldn't contain his pride every time he remembered where he worked. He was happy as a pig in shit.