ATL Summer Associate Event Contest: The Winner!!!

Times are tough, but firms are still treating their summer associates to some fun, even if it’s cheaper fun than in years past. Last week, we brought you the finalists in our 2010 Summer Associates Event Contest. Some of them are not scrimping:

  • Quinn Emanuel: Firm-sponsored hiking trip up Mount St. Helens. (Bonus: If you make it back down the mountain, you get an offer.)
  • Paul Hastings: Dinner at a partner’s house in a posh neighborhood, with different street food trucks parked in the driveway, dispensing delicacies and blasting music. (Negative: Summer associates aren’t deemed respectable enough to be served dinner inside the house.)
  • Schulte Roth & Zabel: DJ School, where they teach you to mix and be a DJ. (Bonus: If you don’t get an offer, you can work house parties.)
  • Irell & Manella: Firm-sponsored weekend trip to Catalina Island off the southern California coast, including hotel rooms, food, drink, kayaking, biking, glass-bottom boat tours, zip-lining, mini golf, arcade tokens. (Bonus: Some summers scored an invite to a partner’s yacht that he keeps docked near Catalina. Potential Negative: Seeing colleagues in bathing suits.)
  • Davis Polk & Wardwell: Trapeze School and rock climbing. (Hidden agenda: The firm can make sure their prospective associates’ bodies are well-toned and live up to DPW’s hottie standards.)

One commenter suggested that SRZ had another musical event: a luxury suite at a Lady Gaga concert. But even if someone had submitted that event to the contest, it would have been hard to beat our winner.

Which firm had the best summer associate event of 2010?

Congratulations to Irell & Manella for winning the contest with a whopping 74% of the votes. We reached out to the firm to congratulate them on their hard-earned victory.

Ellisen Turner, the hottie chair of Irell’s summer associate program this year, tells us:

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We moved our summer event to Catalina Island last year and it has been well received. Our summer associate classes have always been top notch and the group this year is no exception. We give them demanding and meaningful legal projects, and they also work on a mock trial before a retired federal judge as well as various pro bono activities, so this retreat is our way of showing how much we appreciate their efforts. As for the “yacht,” all the summer associates were invited — we didn’t want a few of them getting all Andy Samberg and T-Pain on us.

Sounds like being on a boat at Irell is a good place to be.

Earlier: ATL Summer Associate Event Contest: The Finalists

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