Firms to Avoid

alighieri: I am nearing the end of a judicial clerkship, and I am about to start a search for an entry-level attorney position with a firm. Are there firms that I should completely avoid? On the flip side, are there certain firms that I should consider over others (assuming I'm lucky enough to be in such a position)? I think that I would rather work for a small to mid-size firm. Any opinions would be helpful, thanks.

dubs00: In what market (where do you want to live)?

alighieri: Chicago.

bakerstreet: Mayer Brown has a great rep. People don't seem to leave once they get there (No, it's not like the John Grisham novel). And it's a Chicago-based firm, which I think is vastly superior to working in the Chicago office of a NY firm.

JD_Jr: i worked for ross dixon & bell in chicago and they have no concept of "personal life" and treat associates like crap.

alighieri: What is a reasonable number of hours a firm should expect of its associates?

hamburgerman: depends on how much you get paid. biglaw is going to pay you a lot and demand a lot of hours.

Mr. Mysterio: "Reasonable" is 1800, but mega firms usually expect 2000, at a minimum, up to 2400. To put it in perspective, 2000 is the amount of time a normal person puts in by working 40 hours a week, i.e. 8 hours a day, for 50 weeks with 2 weeks off of vacation a year.

Ah, but the catch is that lawyers are not normal people, are they? In order to legitimately bill an average of 8 hours a day, you have to put in at least 10 and often more like 12 hour days, because it is very difficult to honestly bill for every minute of your time at the office. Billable hours means living your life in 6-minute increments of time.

As long as you have clients who pay, it's a great way to make a living, although one does become resentful of becoming a slave to one's watch and, when one is just starting out, feeling as if all one is good for is cranking out the hours so that the partners can all make their Mercedes payments.
The firms that pay those huge starting salaries tend to be the ones who don't give a flying f**k about the person who they are paying all that money to - it is worth it to them to bring in the best and the brightest, grind them up and spit them up out after five years of paying top dollar, because there are plenty more where that came from who will take the money every time. In those firms, research shows that the likelihood of ever reaching true partner status is slim and none.

Pretty much, at this stage, do some research and decide what you're willing to put up with. Ask yourself what kind of quality of life issues you are going to have for the first five years in practice. Probably the most important thing though is to try to steer yourself into an area that interests you, rather than taking something just because it's a job or because it pays well. It is really difficult to switch horses very radically once you've started down a particular path. I'm not saying it's impossible, but it can be tough, so just try to choose wisely. Or at least choose a firm or other institution where there might be opportunities in more than one department.

Finally, take advantage of the job you have now. As a clerk, you are in the cat bird seat because you get to see which firms turn in quality work, which don't. Check out the ones that have intrigues because of the kind of work, quality of work, or a particular attorney that caught your attention.

Way more info that you asked for, but, hey, it's worth every penny you paid for it.

A1Princess60: I have to agree with Baker - Mayer has a great rep and they do excellent work. They are a very dignified firm overall.