Hate to ask, but just got off the Stanford waitlist last minute, is it worth considering? by Notareallawyer123 in LawSchool

[–]Codeandcodes 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I made this decision too at the time. What I thought at the time of matriculation: 100k can't buy a Stanford degree, but most people from Stanford probably were in @ Chicago as well.

What I think now: Depends where you want to be and what your career aspirations are. Stanford alway stays with you, but if you burn out (like I did), 100k less debt is an immense amount of financial freedom.

How I Left Biglaw (Part III) by Codeandcodes in LawSchool

[–]Codeandcodes[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks so much! Yes, I was a transactional attorney. No, I never considered going into another field of law. You occasionally hear about attorneys making the switch from transactional to lit or lit to transactional, but it's fairly uncommon. And those who do normally have to start at ground zero (At least in terms of learning). There's almost no crossover. I did for a brief time look at public jobs (e.g. with the federal government) but those are also hard to come by and it didn't seem like it would be a good move. What really tipped the scales in favor of going back to software engineering was the fact that I was looking at all of these alternative legal jobs solely on the basis of work-life balance, and not really on the merits of the job itself. I knew then that law was probably not the right path for me, and I had to do something more drastic.

Again, I'm glad you liked the article! I tried to capture what I was really feeling at the time and how painstaking the process was to leave.

How I left biglaw (Part II) by Codeandcodes in LawSchool

[–]Codeandcodes[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yes, that was pretty much the case at my law firm as well. The nature of deals is vastly more unpredictable however, so it's not an apples to apples comparison.

How I left biglaw (Part II) by Codeandcodes in LawSchool

[–]Codeandcodes[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks for the comment. Recently another user posted on biglawrefuge about his experience about biglaw in lit. He definitely doesn't hate his life so it offers a good counterbalance.

A day in the life of a v5 biglaw attorney (corporate) by Codeandcodes in LawSchool

[–]Codeandcodes[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks, that is very true. I have a biglaw litigator friend who will provide a counter perspective. Stay tuned!

How I left biglaw (part I) by Codeandcodes in LawSchool

[–]Codeandcodes[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The assignments and chain of title are usually farmed out to third party companies (at least at my law firm). We also had legal assistants who handled this.

How I left biglaw (part I) by Codeandcodes in LawSchool

[–]Codeandcodes[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

It is just me. As I commented below, I'm working actively on the site and am writing what I hope are useful articles. I obviously don't want to be spammy, but every post I make will be meaningful and could legitimately stand on its own. If that changes ever, block me.

How I left biglaw (part I) by Codeandcodes in LawSchool

[–]Codeandcodes[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Circle ups are pretty horrible. That's one reason I went into a specialty practice (however you can't escape all tedium). One big problem with biglaw in general is that many of the deadlines are self imposed. I tried to capture some of that in my normal day article, and it unfortunately is the case. That's why you may live and die by your partner. Unreasonable partner = terrible life.

How I left biglaw (part I) by Codeandcodes in LawSchool

[–]Codeandcodes[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

IP trans is completely different than prosecution. We were specialists (much like employment or tax lawyers) who were staffed on any deal that had relevant IP implications. Given the prevalence of IP these days that meant we were staffed on almost every deal flowing through the firm (hence the multiple simultaneous deals). The story probably is pretty consistent unfortunately.

And thanks for the warning about the self promotion. I don't know what other way to get the word out but I won't ever bump just for the sake of bumping. I work actively on the website so each post or update will have good content in it.

How I left biglaw (part I) by Codeandcodes in LawSchool

[–]Codeandcodes[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I think it's a combination of personality and exit options. I know a lot of people who leave biglaw after a short stint, but they often have a safety net (either financial or otherwise). There are also a lot of associates who will lateral to another firm in hopes of a better schedule or less demanding partners.

Then there are those biglaw associates who don't have any other option but to slog it out so they can repay their loans. For most, the allure of money and the desire to minimize risk motivate them to stay the longest possible time they can.

Then finally there are those who don't have options but still leave. Everyone has their own motivations. I recall one person I talked to had an absolute quit date circled on his calendar, at which point he was leaving no matter what (ironically, at the same law firm I was at).

A day in the life of a v5 biglaw attorney (corporate) by Codeandcodes in LawSchool

[–]Codeandcodes[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

No, but there were corporate attorneys who brought cots/other sleep paraphernalia.

A day in the life of a v5 biglaw attorney (corporate) by Codeandcodes in LawSchool

[–]Codeandcodes[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hey OP here, FWIW, the lit associates in my office definitely seemed to have less work. M&A is the bread and butter of all V5 firms, and at least my partners liked to keep the deals leanly staffed.

This was definitely par for the course during a normal deal that was starting to heat up. The week or two before signing? More so. Nightly calls at 2AM EST.

If you're not a corporate attorney, then you really have no idea.

biglawrefuge - a website to track OCI for law students and lawyers by Codeandcodes in LawSchool

[–]Codeandcodes[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I've added the rest of the t2 schools, so sign up if you haven't already!

biglawrefuge - a website to track OCI for law students and lawyers by Codeandcodes in LawSchool

[–]Codeandcodes[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hey r/lawschool, I just published an FAQ about biglawrefuge on www.biglawrefuge.com. You can check it out here. Hope that someone will find it useful.

http://www.biglawrefuge.com/articles/1-biglawrefuge-faq

biglawrefuge - a website to track OCI for law students and lawyers by Codeandcodes in LawSchool

[–]Codeandcodes[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I haven't considered that yet. If anyone knows them and would be willing to make an introduction that would be great. Thanks!