Looking for an entry-level law job in D.C. - Leads, Advice, Criticisms appreciated

[JermynStreet]

Good Evening, SF Members:

My name is Jon. I'm 27, a licensed attorney, and living in D.C. I'm unemployed.

I am posting on here because I feel a rapport with most SF members and believe the community can offer sage advice. SF members tend to pay attention to what is important in products; we all have a surgical attention to details in clothing, and I imagine that this translates to other parts of our life, as well. In my own sartorial experience, one of the reasons that I so prefer certain shoemakers is due to the higher standards of craftsmanship to which certain makers adhere; in my own legal work, I, too, try to treat legal writing as a craft. As forum member DWFII's signature states "Without 'good,' there is no 'better,' without 'better,' no 'best.'" I too often see awful legal writing - indiscernible legalese is used where simple, well-crafted, and elegant English can be used. Indeed, to borrow an analogy from shoemaking, too few legal writers employ "tight stitches" in their writing; I try to always craft each piece of with economy, coherence, and wit, where appropriate.

While I generally feel that self-promotion can be gauche, I hope that the Forum will forgive me since I am seeking a job and soliciting advice as well as criticisms. I attended a top-12 undergrad school, a top-20 law school, was on law review, have three publications to my name, and substantively worked on a Supreme Court case. I am a clear, persuasive, and engaging writer. I have a short employment history (I graduated in May, 2012), but since then I clerked for an ALJ for 7 months on a contract and then worked as a lobbyist. I did not particularly enjoy the lobbying stint, so I left in June to focus full time on finding gainful employment. I have been searching since.

As I said above, I welcome and appreciate any advice you can offer. I respect the opinions of forum members, and believe that you can provide useful and promising advice. Thank you in advance for your time and consideration.

 

[Rumpelstiltskin]

When neither my cousin's dream political job nor his dream firm job came through after graduating and passing the bar, he decided to a 3 year stint in army J.A.G. for the experience. He was a Montgomery County ADA for a few years, then went from State Dept to Justice Department. He seems to have done better than the plethora of associate lawyers in DC on a non-partner track

 

[Griffindork]

What job are you looking for? Are you looking for traditional firm jobs and if so, have you gone through the tried-and-true path of of going through their recruiting offices? How long have you been looking and what have you done? Did you work as a summer associate when you were in law school?

 

[JermynStreet]

Thanks for the replies. My background is in environmental law, and I'd like to continue in that track - whether it is public interest or private sector. I suppose a job in the private sector would be most appealing because of the different parties you would get to work with. I have zero interest in making or shaping policy, so I am steering away from jobs on the Hill. I have pursued the traditional recruiting route, but it seems most, if not all, firms are currently looking for associates with 2-3 years of experience. As far as my background goes, I graduated last year. I clerked for an ALJ for a period of time and then had a stint as a lobbyist for about 5 months. In law school I did not work as a summer associate for a law firm.

 

[Griffindork]

You haven't been out of school that long. I would try to get back into the traditional law firm hiring paradigm. You should contact your law school's placement department and ask them if you can take part in on-campus interviews (which I'm assuming you didn't do when you were in school). Those are taking place right now and they are the simplest way for new lawyers to get placed. The law firms in DC are hiring hundreds of people just like you for summer positions. It will be tougher to get a permanent slot without the summer experience, but your credentials are good. You should have a crisp, pithy explanation as to why you didn't do a few years ago what you are doing now and why when you graduated you ventured away from the law firm route. You will be asked.

 

[clee1982]

Not a lawyer, so no real advice for you, though I would agree with agjiffy about having a strong reason for what you did (i.e. come back to law firm track after all that).

 

[Joffrey]

Have you reached out to alumni from your law school and undergrad? Since you're in DC there should be plenty nearby.

 

[JermynStreet]

Thanks for the comments. I have reached out to alumni and met with a fair number of them. Yielded leads, but not anything firm.

 

[yerfdog]



I have zero interest in making or shaping policy, so I am steering away from jobs on the Hill.

I wouldn't close off these opportunities at the moment, they can probably make you connections, and you have only been out of school a year and a half, so it's not going to look weird if you try lots of different things. I'm not that familiar with environmental law private practice, but in other highly regulated areas these (and regulatory agency jobs) are pretty good jobs to have on one's resume.

I'm not familiar with the DC market, but I'd say you missed your shot at having much help from your career services office, unless they happen to have a job ad from a firm looking for an environmental lawyer. At my school, there were no on-campus interviews for full-time jobs. The firms looking for summers aren't looking for first-years with those interviews.

You have a great background, with the ALJ clerkship, SC case, articles, law review. Was the ALJ in the environmental area? If so, this really shows you're serious about the area.

One thing to think about is you're in an area with more lawyers per capita than anywhere else on the planet. There are probably more environmental law jobs there than anywhere else in the country, but also more competition for them. Do you have a connection to anywhere else in the country that you would consider moving ?

 

[TheFoo]

It will be very difficult to land a gig at a big firm in DC with your background, particularly if you did not go to a T14 school. No summer associate position during law school suggests to firms you couldn't get one, whether or not that is the truth. On top of that, DC is the most competitive legal market in the country (a magnitude tougher than NYC). It attracts the absolute top talent (T6 school, law review, appellate clerkship, etc.). From my law school, almost anybody with a pulse could land a BigLaw gig in New York. DC was a totally separate matter. Essentially, you needed to at least be on law review to have a shot, and it gets exponentially harder (if not impossible) outside the top tier schools.

Mid-sized and smaller firms are a better bet--and frankly, may turn out to be far more lucrative in the long run. Most of the alum from my class have either exited BigLaw or are in the process of exiting, only five years out.

 

[JermynStreet]

Thanks for the info, mafoofan. I actually just got a job today at a BigLaw firm in St. Louis, Missouri, my home town. Unfortunately, this means I'll be leaving the District, but choices must be made. Thanks for all who contributed to this thread.

Jon

 

[yerfdog]



Thanks for the info, mafoofan. I actually just got a job today at a BigLaw firm in St. Louis, Missouri, my home town. Unfortunately, this means I'll be leaving the District, but choices must be made. Thanks for all who contributed to this thread.

Jon

That's great news, and congratulations. It will be far easier to move to a firm doing environmental law in DC once you have a few years of experience under your belt, especially BigLaw experience. It's always easier to get a job when you have a job. DC is one of those towns like LA or NY that you never need to do much explaining about why you want to move halfway across the country to get a job there (compared to smaller markets, like even St. Louis, where if you had never lived there or at least in a neighboring state, or had some other good non-job reason to move there, it would be a lot harder to convince hiring managers that you want to get a job and stay there)

 

[weishengwu]

From my law school, almost anybody with a pulse could land a BigLaw gig in New York. DC was a totally separate matter. Essentially, you needed to at least be on law review to have a shot, and it gets exponentially harder (if not impossible) outside the top tier schools.

 

[ben1234]

At the same time, you somehow managed to use a semicolon three times in one paragraph....

Congrats on getting the job.