No Offers

Nationwide No Offer Watch: Schulte Roth Summer 2009 Recap

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schulte logo.JPGJust the other day, we told you that things were looking pretty good for 2Ls who want to be part of Schulte Roth & Zabel’s 2010 summer program.
That positive report is of no consolation to participants in Schulte’s 2009 summer program. It looks like those kids had the bad fortune of going to law school a year too early. Their summer program was only eight weeks long, and yesterday Schulte finally got around to making offers. A tipster reports:

We’re all talking. Seems like Schulte was about 2/3rds [offer rate] or so … We had a listserv of everyone. Seems like a ton of no offers. They did no offers first.

The two-thirds of Schulte summers who received offers were not given a start date. But the benefit of having a listserv is that they are still pretty excited to have offers in comparison to their colleagues that were rejected by the firm.
Schulte declined to comment for this story. But we understand that it is full steam ahead for summer 2010.
Earlier: Schulte Roth Feeling Good About 2011

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Non-Sequiturs: 09.29.09

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Scalding hot coffee why.JPG* Can someone please explain to me why coffee needs to be roughly the temperature of fire when it is handed to me? I want something to drink, not something I can use to sanitize a bathroom. [Torts Prof Blog]
* Marin asked me if the good days of Biglaw were gone forever. My response can be summed up in one word: “outsourcing.” [Technolawyer]
* How should you handle a rude recruiter? I don’t know, sweep the leg? [Let's Talk Turkey]
* Do you ever lie in bed wondering if Biglaw would take you back? [Ivy League Insecurities]
* Tips on snagging a clerkship from NYU Law. [Blackbook Legal]
* Idle hands are the Devil’s playthings. [Litination]
* You might remember that I thought former law student of the day, Janero Marchand, got a raw deal from some ATL commenters. Still, it’s an important lesson every buppie should know. [True/Slant]

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Summer Associate Report: ‘The economic times suck.’

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Summer associate job market depressed.JPGAmerican Lawyer has released its annual summer associate survey. Not surprisingly, summer associates were generally terrified:

“The economic times suck,” one clerk at New York’s Skadden, Arps, Meagher, Slate & Flom wrote bluntly in response to our most recent summer associates survey. “The firm can’t change that. But the times have made for a difficult summer.” A Bryan Cave intern put it this way: “It is a scary time to be a law student.”
One indication of just how scary: The number of summer clerks who said they expected to receive full-time job offers was down sharply, according to our survey, while anecdotal evidence culled from respondents’ answers to open-ended questions suggested that stress and anxiety levels were up.

I had thought that many summers were stuck in the anger stage of grief. But this report suggests that many summers have actually jumped all the way ahead to stage four: depression. I guess that is progress?
As we suspected, 2009 summers took more of an “every man for himself” approach to this year’s summer experience. Details after the jump.

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Bingham’s Billing Battle
(Plus offer rate and real estate news.)

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Bingham logo.jpgAre billing disputes between law firms and their clients on the rise in the recession? We feel like we’ve seen a lot of them lately.
The most recent disagreement involves Bingham McCutchen. A Boston-area investment company, Tuckerbrook Alternative Investments, has sued Bingham, claiming it was overcharged for legal services provided in connection with preparing an SEC registration statement.
The case isn’t that exciting — it seems like a garden-variety fee dispute — but this aspect struck us as interesting. From Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly (subscription):

The Sept. 16 complaint accuses Bingham of stacking the case with young associates who had “inadequate” experience. “The billing statements reflect that these junior lawyers in essence were enjoying the benefits of on-the-job-training at Tuckerbrook’s expense,” the complaint states.

So the allegation is that young lawyers were being trained on the client’s dime. But is that an indictment of Bingham McCutchen, or of the billable hour?
Grumpy in-house lawyers regularly complain about paying for the training of Biglaw’s junior associates. This is why some corporate counsel explicitly refuse to pay for first- and second-year associates (and provide for that in their retainer agreements; presumably Tuckerbrook could have done that here).
More news about Bingham, including its summer associate offer rate and its real estate needs in New York, after the jump.

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(Plus offer rate and real estate news.)”

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Non-Sequiturs: 09.24.09

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The Future of Red Sox nation.JPG* David Lat, Tony Mauro, and Matt Welch discuss how the new media covers the law. [Legal Blog Watch]
* The 25 “most dangerous” colleges in America. Yes, of course Yale is on this list! [Tax Prof Blog]
* Muammar Gaddafi has some thoughts on international law. [Miss Trials]
* Ladies, “flaunting your curves” does get you noticed. I’m not sure if that is a good thing. [Adjunct Law Prof Blog]
* Complicated laws v. Simple laws. [The Volokh Conspiracy]
* A Red Sox fan was allowed to temporarily leave jail to see a Red Sox game. This bears repeating: post the second, 2007 championship, there is no difference between Sox fans and Yankee fans. None. You’ve become what you beheld and your children will never know the joy of rooting for an underdog. [Yahoo]

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Offer Day: Skadden Arps

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Skadden Arps Slate Meagher Flom new.jpgTuesday and Wednesday, offers went out to people who want to participate in Skadden’s summer program. We haven’t heard any solid numbers yet, but so far it appears that prospective summers are satisfied with the results.
No news is good news regarding Skadden. In August, Skadden announced that it would be cutting its summer hiring in half. This morning, Bloomberg News reminded everybody that Skadden will be trying to keep its summer numbers down:

The stark reality of the legal marketplace was illustrated by yesterday’s 2010 job offers by Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, the highest-grossing U.S. law firm. It projected a 50 percent cut in summer hiring, said Howard Ellin, the recruiting partner for Skadden. The firm hired 225 students this summer and plans to hire less than half that for summer 2010.

But just because Skadden plans to reduce hiring does not mean the firm intends to reduce its offer rate. If the firm planned this right — and based on the NALP forms it looks like it has — Skadden could have simply invited fewer people to be part of its 2010 summer program. Skadden could still give a robust offer rate to the summers that did commit to the firm.
Hopefully, everything will work out for prospective Skadden summers.
After the jump, Bloomberg has some interesting data on how this year’s fall recruiting is going at a couple of top law schools.

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Should 2Ls Accept All of Their Offers to The Detriment of Fellow Students

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Thumbnail image for handshake with fingers crossed behind back.jpgOn Friday, we mentioned that Harvard Law School took on Sullivan & Cromwell over how long to firm would hold open offers for summer associates. It was a good show by HLS.
But the question of what 2Ls should do if they get multiple summer associate offers remains open. Earlier, we suggested that instead of just holding open an offer while they mull it over, we suggested that 2Ls affirmatively accept all of the offers they receive. Later — once the 2Ls have had time to make a considered and wise decision based on relevant financial information about the law firms — 2Ls can call up their firms and revoke the agreement to summer with a particular firm. Hey what is good for the goose is good for the gander, right?
Apparently, bloggers out at U.C. Berkeley disagree. From the Nuts & Boalts blog:

Harvard’s Dean impressed me, and ATL’s advice disgusts me. Boalties: don’t hoard offers. If you have more than one opportunity at your door, it’s time to start making decisions, because the earlier you decline an offer the more likely it will redound to one of your peers.

Whoa. Above the Law-2008 just called, and they want their open thread back.

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No Offer Open Thread: Who Is Still Waiting to Hear About Offers

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no offer factories.jpgWe’re heading into the weekend and the autumnal equinox is not far off. It got us to thinking, who is still waiting on news about their offers from the summer? We know that some firms have already indicated that they would be making late decisions, but it occurred to us that some summers are honestly still in the dark.
Is there anybody out there in that situation? I feel we keep hearing about one firm in particular that hasn’t made offers yet, but gosh I just can’t remember which one. I think the first name starts with an M, and the last name rhymes with “frown.”
Are there other firms that aren’t even telling 2009 summers when a decision will be made?
Vent in the comments. We’re sure your firms haven’t completely forgotten about you. But you know what they say, the squeaky wheel gets the grease.
Earlier: Prior ATL coverage of no offers

Nationwide No Offer Watch: Finishing Up The Philly Circuit

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no offer factories.jpgWe have reported extensively on the difficult offer situation for people who summered at Philadelphia area firms in 2009. Morgan Lewis & Bockius had an offer rate below 28%. Pepper Hamilton offered about 63% of its summers. Dechert told half of its summers that the firm would wait until January to make a decision offers, yet continues to interview 3Ls this recruiting season.
Let’s close the loop on the Philadelphia market with two other well known firms: Drinker Biddle and Cozen O’Connor. The Legal Intelligencer reports that Drinker Biddle did slightly better than its area competition:

The firm gave offers to about 68 percent, or 25, of the 37 2L summer associates it had firmwide in 2009. The offer rate was about the same in Philadelphia, where 13 of the 19 2Ls received offers, the firm confirmed.

After the jump, Drinker Biddle chairman, Alfy Putnam, explains the firm’s decision.

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Alston & Bird: Sit Tight Summers Your Offer is Still Being Considered

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alston bird logo.JPGSummer associates with Alston & Bird in 2009 are starting to get a little anxious. We know that so far, none of you have received offers. But that is going to change. Alston & Bird will make offers to some people. The firm is just still trying to figure out how many offers to extend. This email was sent from Alston & Bird to its summers on Friday:

Hi everyone -
Just wanted to give you a quick update regarding the timing of offers. You may recall that we’re coordinating our decisions as a Firm this year rather than by office (though offers will be office specific). Unfortunately, not all of our offices are ready with their decisions and as a result, we won’t be able to communicate our decisions this week. We apologize for the delay, and assure you that we will be in touch as soon as possible. Please don’t hesitate to give me a call if you need anything. Many thanks.

One tipster doesn’t think Alston is wondering what its summers need:

She knows what we need…f****** job offers. Hate to say it, but this is definitely bringing the morale of the summer class down. Also seems really sketchy–there are rumors they were interviewing 3L’s. Wonder if that is what the delay is about?

Patience dear 3Ls, patience. Morale is irrelevant. Stick to your 3L interviewing schedule. Alston will get back to you when it is ready.
Earlier: Nationwide Salary Cut Watch: Alston & Bird Makes ‘Temporary’ Cuts
Prior ATL coverage of No Offers

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