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Law thread, I have a question for you because I am shy and terrible at networking. I just graduated and am studying for the bar right now. Still unemployed (shocker? oh yeah). My boyfriend and I were out to dinner yesterday and because he is ridiculously outgoing, he struck up a conversation with the women at the table next to us and mentioned I was taking the bar soon. One of the women said, "Oh! I'm a lawyer," and asked me whether I had found a job yet. She ended up giving me her card and asking me to email her my resume with the caveat that her firm (about 50 people, she is a partner) had been considering trying to find someone with at least a year of experience for the spot. Still, I didn't even ask about a job opportunity, and she definitely didn't have to give me her card. I have nothing to lose by sending a resume even though I'm not really expecting anything to come of it. I'm just unsure of how formal to make the email--I feel like considering how I met her, a formal cover letter might be too much, but I don't want to be unprofessional or say the wrong thing... Also my grades are not great, but I've done really well at my internships (DA's office, judge's chambers) and all of my supervisors have been pleased with my work, and I know they have given me good references in the past. My boyfriend also suggested that I ask her if I could take her out to coffee and pick her brain about job hunting, but I'm afraid that would be overstepping the bounds? I am terrible at networking. 
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May 25, 2011 17:12
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Adar posted:Helpful stuff Awesome, thank you. That is basically what I was thinking in the first place, so good to know I was on the right track. That's what I was worried about. I think he was making the suggestion based on networking advice we've gotten from a friend who works at the local branch of a BigLaw firm (email a partner who went to my school, ask to take them out to coffee, because they love talking about the alma mater/giving advice etc.) but that's a totally different situation since there's no way in hell I could get hired there, no matter who I talked to, haha. I think right now I'll just concentrate on writing a good email and see how things for from there.
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May 25, 2011 17:42
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Adar--thank you again! I managed to write something that didn't sound too overeager and she responded almost immediately after I sent it, saying she'd let me know more about what was going on with the position tomorrow after getting in to work. I'm trying not to get my hopes up because it kind of seems too good to be true (I did some reading on their firm and it seems like a really nice place to work. A lot of emphasis on family and personal life stuff in their attorney profiles in addition to their practice areas and experience).
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May 26, 2011 05:18
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That's true, but at least they're TRYING to trick people. Most of the other firms I've seen don't even really seem to do that.
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May 26, 2011 12:04
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MoFauxHawk posted:Henry McGold enjoys racing motocross with his son to make up for almost two decades of indifference and estrangement. He and his wife live in Park Glen, in separate homes. Hah! Well, it is a smaller firm so maybe it is true, who knows. Not ALL of the profiles mentioned family or hobbies, so the ones that did seemed genuine to me. The woman I met specifically told me that she personally loves working there. And also that she was sad when one of their associates left for a BigLaw firm because "she won't get the kind of opportunities to DO things that she would here." Again, it does seem kind of too good to be true, but at this rate I wouldn't even mind if it was a ton of work and I was in the office at all hours. I just want a chance to pay back my loans and pick up the "3 to 4 years' experience" that all of the rest of the job postings I've seen seem to want.
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May 26, 2011 13:02
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Secret Asian Man posted:best part of torts was when he started describing his ultimate erotic dream and the first thing he saw fit to mention was that there was synthesizer music playing in the background. nothin fuels a boner like synthesizer music i guess And that the people were actually animals? BarBri needs less lecturers like the Property woman because her singing makes me too embarrassed for her to pay attention. Also I have an interview on Tuesday. I'm trying to think of a "what's your biggest weakness" that's not "I'm shy as gently caress."
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Jun 18, 2011 03:17
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Lilosh posted:When I was studying for my property final this past semester, I swear my IM log is full of times when I'd message classmates with poo poo like "OH GOD SHE IS SINGING AGAIN. WHY THE HELL IS SHE DOING THIS?!?" and "She's singing again. Please kill me" Hahaha, this is like peoples' Facebook wall posts after class. There were actually audible groans (and not of the springing executory interest sort) after a particularly bad one. hypocrite lecteur posted:I interviewed recentish for a position where instead of asking what your weakness was, they asked for a time when you responded positively to constructive criticism. I've decided that when asked that stupid question in the future ("what's your biggest weakness") I'm just going to pretend they asked me about something I used to not be good at that I'm good at now That's not a bad idea. I was considering something along the lines of "I used to be shy but I took all these trial advocacy classes and now I LOVE SPEAKING IN FRONT OF PEOPLE." Ugh I don't even know what to say. I hate this question and all of its variants. They have to know no one's going to answer honestly. They might as well just ask, "How good at bullshitting are you?" And they don't even really need to ask that. We're all lawyers here.
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Jun 18, 2011 15:42
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hypocrite lecteur posted:Go for honesty. "Well, I don't try really start working very hard until I have a crushing and nearly unmanageable workload." I am half-considering saying "I'm going to work TOO HARD because my boyfriend will be working long distance for a year and I'm not going to have a social life. I'll be in the office at all hours!" But I have a feeling that might come off the wrong way.
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Jun 18, 2011 17:05
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Ugh I didn't even think about it coming off like that. I was more worried about it sounding like a "But I care TOO much" BS 'good weakness' kind of answer. Back to square one on this thing, I guess.
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Jun 18, 2011 17:24
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I wasn't actually going to say exactly that in the first place (it was a lame joke, obviously I'm not going to spend all of my time in the office). I might just say something like "I tend to get tunnel vision and work too hard on things".
A Game of Chess fucked around with this message at 17:49 on Jun 18, 2011 |
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Jun 18, 2011 17:44
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I'm going to flip a coin to decide between those two answers. What could go wrong!
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Jun 18, 2011 17:57
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Hello, law thread. It's been a while. I just got an interview with the local PD's office. I'm trying not to get too excited because my grades are bad and my work experience since graduating last year hasn't been terribly impressive. But they already have my transcript and resume, and I still got the interview. This is my ideal job, and it's very competitive despite the low pay. I've been obsessively googling sample interview questions, but I was wondering if there are any other PDs here that had anything specific I should keep in mind? Especially PDs who had low GPAs? Besides calm the gently caress down, haha.
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Nov 20, 2012 21:59
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nm posted:Generally PDs (and DAs) care a lot less about GPA than private firms. Your work experience matters more. Guess I'll just talk it up as best I can. I have a response to give if they do ask directly about the GPA. The last interview I had never asked, but I also didn't get that job.
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Nov 21, 2012 05:13
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nm posted:I think maybe 2 or 3 PD offices in California (out of maybe 15) asked for GPA at all. I didn't have it on my resume either and I was hoping I'd be able to get an interview without having to show anyone, but they asked for it anyway. They can afford to do it and be picky here. It's a good office. Alaemon, I have to give three professional references as well, and what they wanted was a name, a phone number, and an address.
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Nov 21, 2012 12:35
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wacko_- posted:Now its becoming noticeable. Dying my hair seems wrong, but is this what I'm reduced to? The girlfriend has already noticed but that's a different thread. Accept your grey hair and stop being a baby. Or start drinking, since that seems to be the other one size fits all solution.
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Dec 14, 2012 06:11
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wacko_- posted:My thoughts exactly but WHAT IF IT COMES IN PATCHY?!?!? It's fine. No one will care, especially if you're a man. My little brother started going gray at 24 and no one's ever said anything to him about it except some girls who are really into it for some reason. On another note I have a huge interview today. I am feeling about 80% "I GOT THIS" and 20% sheer, pants-pissing terror. I really, really want this job.
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Dec 14, 2012 14:07
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Interview was a mixed bag. I know the interviewer liked me, but loving confidence issues, again. I think there is a chance of a second interview, but a small one.diospadre posted:Daddy issues! Also, gross. I hadn't thought of this and now I can't unsee it...
A Game of Chess fucked around with this message at 04:41 on Dec 15, 2012 |
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Dec 15, 2012 04:10
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Law thread, I need your advice. So I recently accepted an offer at a small plaintiffs firm. I was supposed to start on Monday. It pays almost nothing and has no benefits. But I would get litigation experience. I found two of their previous associates on LinkedIn -- one lasted seven months, the one I would be replacing lasted a year. I don't know if this is because of the low pay or other reasons. Before I got this job I was doing an unpaid fellowship for a judge who loves me/my work. She's in criminal state court. Today she offered me a law clerk's position when her current clerk leaves to have a baby. It would be a two year commitment, pays about the same, but comes with city benefits and paid vacation. Ideally I want to be a public defender one day. It's a competitive office here, though, so there is no guarantee it would work out. I don't know what to do. I really love working with this judge but I'm concerned about reneging on an offer I'd accepted and what is best in the long run. I spoke with an older lawyer mentor who thought I should take the clerkship, but I am agonizing over this. A Game of Chess fucked around with this message at 19:23 on May 31, 2013 |
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May 31, 2013 18:54
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They did send me on an all day CLE already but I would obviously offer to refund them the cost. I am also leaning towards the clerkship but I'm just super nervous about the future ... This isn't a position I thought I'd be in a few months ago. Thanks for your input, guys.
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May 31, 2013 19:18
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Thank you guys. I guess I just wasn't thinking clearly about it. It's been such a rough year struggling along that I was just so relieved to get anything at all. The judge has been really nice about this whole thing though, she just keeps telling me she wants what's best for me although she would be delighted to have me stay. I'm going to tell her after she gets off of the bench, I think.
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May 31, 2013 19:32
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I am! Don't worry. Thank y'all for knocking some sense into me.
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May 31, 2013 19:45
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Well my concern with that was that most of the job postings I see are for civil firms that want litigation experience and if for whatever reason I can't get hired with the pd's office (I interviewed once before a panel and choked during a cross exam though I don't think that would happen now) at least I'd have the experience to get some other kind of job afterward. I am going to take the clerkship though. The more I think about it the more it makes sense.
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May 31, 2013 19:56
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Okay okay I'm dumb. I know. I accepted though! I start Monday.
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May 31, 2013 21:53
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I'm sure there will be plenty of new graduating 3Ls to keep you in a steady supply of tears and binge drinking in the interim. And thanks, SP.
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May 31, 2013 22:30
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LordPants posted:Just sticking this here for posterity's stake. This was my favorite post in any Game of Thrones thread. Because it hit too close to home. 
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Jun 3, 2013 17:00
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nm posted:Crim law stories are normally funny. Family law stories are generally "holy gently caress!" Yeah, all of my stories from when I was practicing family law are just horrible and depressing. The criminal stories ... also occasionally horrible and depressing, but it's somehow easier to find the humor in it. Probably because only some of them involve children, as opposed to most of them.
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Jun 28, 2013 11:38
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I just had a case come through with a sex offender who also wasn't allowed to possess pornography. He goes to his first meeting with probation after sentencing and they find pornographic videos on his phone. His explanation: "I made it myself, so it's okay!" And I know what you mean about the kids not having a chance. There was this one awful home situation where I couldn't even do anything because my boss' client was technically the father, not the kid... That one still keeps me up at night sometimes.
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Jun 28, 2013 16:50
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echopapa posted:Time to post the Family Law practice videos again. This was... uncomfortably true to life.
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Jun 29, 2013 03:52
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I once had to explain the concept of a Facebook "like" in a footnote on an opinion ... and I thought that was bad.
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Sep 24, 2013 13:53
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My judge just got moved from a criminal major room to mass tort and I have never been so sad in my clerking life.
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Dec 6, 2013 03:30
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gvibes posted:Is "mass tort" code for "asbestos"? Because if so, that would suck. We are definitely getting some asbestos cases, luckily that won't be all that we're doing. It's basically any large complex tort case with multiple plaintiffs and generally a corporation for a defendant, there are a bunch of categories within it and I think we're getting assigned to an arbitration and appeals room. It's definitely considered a promotion for her but drat it, I LOVED my current job. I've only been here a few months and I've written like ten opinions already. Give me an aggravated assault any day. (I know it's ghoulish but I love criminal and was hoping to piggyback into the DA or PD's office from here after my commitment is over. )
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Dec 6, 2013 20:39
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It's not about whether your client is a good person or not. Even had people deserve quality representation and the safeguarding of their rights.
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Dec 7, 2013 16:56
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Cormack posted:Nah, ghoulish would be loving asbestos cases. (No love here, just a hollowed out soul.) Hah, true! I just have no idea what to expect, and neither does my judge, for all she did some civil litigation before her election. Once I've had some time to think about it I've calmed down a bit, because we have a really good working relationship and even though it's not what I wanted, it's still probably the best job I've ever had, and I guess I will be more well-rounded whenever I do leave (although honestly, if it paid just like $10k more I'd consider just being a career clerk). On that note, thank you again to everyone who knocked some sense into me regarding taking the clerkship as opposed to the offer I'd accepted from that small litigation firm.
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Dec 7, 2013 18:35
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I'm really hoping we get other kinds of cases too. I'm fairly sure we're going to.
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Dec 7, 2013 19:45
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That's fairly common here too. A lot of the judges use their assistant position to hire someone to act as a second clerk, even though they're paid slightly less and it's less prestigious. We also have a program where licensed attorneys are basically free interns while job hunting. It's demoralizing, but I'm also pretty sure it's the only reason I have my current job (which is great) so I can't knock it too much.
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Jan 30, 2014 03:55
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It's more for when you're applying afterward. That might not have been the best word to use.
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Jan 30, 2014 12:01
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My judge just got moved from arb appeals and some major jury trials (we've been here less than a month) to motions court. I have no idea what to expect except that it's a zoo, we're getting extra clerks to help keep up with the volume of work, and I want to go back to criminal.
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Feb 19, 2014 17:33
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My first appeal since my judge got moved to civil is from a sovereign citizen. I don't know what I did to deserve this stroke of luck.
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Apr 16, 2014 18:27
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olylifter posted:Is it this guy in his fine red suit? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0YN3he6cHhM Because that'd be awesome. Sadly, the appellant is not so sharply dressed. I hadn't heard of Moorish Law before yesterday either, but I did come across it while writing a little memo so my boss knows what we're dealing with. People never cease to amaze...
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Apr 17, 2014 11:26
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Soothing Vapors posted:Hahahaha. Being a clerk or whatever the hell it is you are sounds like a waking nightmare. I'm a law clerk for a trial judge too and personally I really love it. For every attorney I have to shut down (I had someone call chambers and ask if he could "brainstorm" for his case with me) I at least have interesting work and a good work/life balance. poo poo pay but I guess that's the trade off.
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Jun 6, 2014 00:44
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