Tag Archives: career

Michael_Lord_Lord Gurman & Lewis

Legal Recruiter Q&A: Job Seeker Advice from Michael Lord, Lord Gurman & Lewis

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This post is part of our recruiter series where we ask legal recruiters for their insider tips and job seeker advice.

This Q&A is with Michael Lord of Lord Gurman & Lewis, a boutique attorney recruiting firm focusing on placing attorneys in New York City and Connecticut.

What skills are most in demand in the legal industry right now?

Business and finance lawyers and litigators focusing on securities are in demand.

Partner level attorneys with books of business are always in demand.

Where are the biggest growth areas?

Cybersecurity and privacy law are growing practice areas. Tax lawyers, too, with recent changes to the tax code.

What traits are your clients looking for in candidates?

Good writing skills; self-starter; reliability.

What’s the biggest mistake candidates make in the recruitment process?

Candidates pass on good opportunities because they think a better job will come along. More often than not, they are wrong and have to settle. Another mistake is failing to plan a clear career path.

What’s the coolest job you ever recruited for?

We recently placed a partner to start from scratch a patent litigation practice at a law firm. And, we placed a counsel at a major New York City cooperative apartment complex.

Do you have any career advice for our readers? 

If you are an attorney in the private practice of law, you must develop a client base. The first step is building a book of relationships with other people, who will serve as a source of referrals. Separately, if you practice in-house, you should plan to relocate to different regions of the country in order to advance your career.

 

See the latest job postings from Lord Gurman & Lewis and start your job search with Lawjobs.com today.

David Block_Hertner Block and Bowser

Legal Recruiter Q&A: Job Seeker Advice from David Block, Hertner, Block & Bowser

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This post is part of our recruiter series where we ask legal recruiters for their insider tips and job seeker advice.

This Q&A is with David Block of Hertner, Block & Bowser. Based in Florida, they service the legal staffing needs for partners, associates and mergers of law firms as well as placing general counsel and staff counsel for corporations.

What skills are most in demand in the legal industry right now?

For the past year, the market in Florida for real estate attorneys has been strong and the usual commercial litigation has seen an uptick.

Where are the biggest growth areas?

In my eyes, the biggest growth area has been in regulatory & compliance.  Europe has changed their compliance laws and most companies are hiring in this area over the past couple years.

What traits are your clients looking for in candidates?

It depends on what your client is looking for but generally, we want candidates to have strong credentials from top schools, training with top firms or well-regarded mentors and longevity at a position.  If someone is jumping from one position to the next, every year or every other year, they will not be as “in demand” as those who have a stable work history.

What’s the biggest mistake candidates make in the recruitment process?

They don’t do their homework/research when interviewing at a firm or Company – meaning, the candidate doesn’t research the partners (at a law firm) or attorneys within the legal department at a Company.  Not only will the candidate learn more about the specific firm or Company but the candidate may have an easier time “breaking the ice” at that interview – which always helps.

Do you have any career advice for our readers? 

If you are going to practice at a law firm, try and be a rainmaker.  Get a mentor who will show you the ropes as to originating business because when you are a rainmaker, you have many more choices than service attorneys.  So always have your eye on the prize of how can I generate business, because then firms don’t really care where you went to school or who you were trained by – they will see that you can bring in business to the firm.  Remember law is a business.

 

Start your job search with Lawjobs.com today.

David Pedreira_MillerBlowers

Legal Recruiter Q&A: Job Seeker Advice from David Pedreira, MillerBlowers

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This post is part of our recruiter series where we ask legal recruiters for their insider tips and job seeker advice.

This Q&A is with David Pedreira of MillerBlowers, a legal recruiting firm that places law firm associates, partners and executives, and corporate counsel across every major business vertical.

What skills are most in demand in the legal industry right now? Continue reading Legal Recruiter Q&A: Job Seeker Advice from David Pedreira, MillerBlowers →

Chris Batz_The Lion Group

Legal Recruiter Q&A: Job Seeker Advice from Chris Batz, The Lion Group

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This post is part of our recruiter series where we ask legal recruiters for their insider tips and job seeker advice.

This Q&A is with Chris Batz of The Lion Group– they place law partners, groups and corporate counsel around the United States.

What skills are most in demand in the legal industry right now?

Soft skills.

For law firms: sales. To be a good lawyer and trusted advisor is understood but the future of the law firm profession will continue to be determined by those with the ability to sell and retain client business. This is not a gift people are born with but a skill that is learned.

For in-house: team oriented longterm attorneys. Again, lawyering skills are a given. Then many corporate legal departments are inherently flat and looking for committed longterm team oriented attorneys who are content with increasing compensation but rarely titles.

Where are the biggest growth areas?

Corporate legal departments are growing right now and relying less on law firms for regular work.

If readers what to know how to land an in-house role, on my podcast I interviewed the general counsel of Toyota Material Handling on How she Landed an In-House Job. It’s very practical and encouraging.

For law firms, there’s always demand for litigation, corporate and IP patent attorneys. What’s also in demand is cybersecurity attorneys.

And always, if you learn to develop your own business at a law firm, it greatly increases your chances for being a free agent and lateraling to a law firm of choice.

I wrote a book about this called Lateral Moves: a Guide for Partners and Law Firms.

What traits are your clients looking for in candidates?

Dependable hard working attorneys – there is an opportunity for attorneys who are not afraid to put in the time and hard work to shine and stand out to law partners.

I can’t over emphasize this. The ability to sell and having a history will make you stand out to other candidates for law firm opportunities.

What’s the biggest mistake candidates make in the recruitment process?

The biggest mistake job hunters make are doing the same things all the other job hunters do which typically are submitting a resume via the employer website and sitting. I explain what you should do and much more in my step-by-step process called the Job Hunting System on my blog where I show attorneys how to land the job they want.

What’s the coolest job you ever recruited for?

I placed a law partner group of 20+ attorneys at a client where we opened 3 offices and added to existing offices. This group came from two different large law firms at the same time. It was a tremendous and exciting undertaking.

Do you have any career advice for our readers? 

Never stop learning and most importantly learn sales skills regardless of your age.

Don’t approach job hunting like everyone else. You have to approach an employer different to get a different result.

Don’t jump around. Get skills, experience and make rare strategic moves.

Be mindful of the rapidly changing legal industry landscape. Much will change in the next 10 years. (hoyoskitchen.com)

 

Start your job search with Lawjobs.com today.

 

Links to Chris’s work

The Law Firm Leadership Podcast Main Page & iTunes

The Lion Group website

LinkedIn

 

Legal Recruiter Q&A: Job Seeker Advice from Gay Rineberg Schreiber

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This is the second post in our recruiter series where we ask legal recruiters for their insider tips and job seeker advice.

This Q&A is with Gay Rineberg Schreiber of McCormack Schreiber.  McCormackSchreiber is a longtime leader in the Chicago legal market and is proud to have made nearly 1000 law firm and in-house placements.

What skills are most in demand in the legal industry right now?

The skills most in demand in the legal industry right now are demonstrated business acumen and the ability to develop clients/business.  As for substantive practice area skills, the transactional areas are most active and transactional skills are particularly in demand.

Where are the biggest growth areas?

As noted above, the biggest growth is in the transactional areas, including real estate, M&A and private equity, and other growth areas include privacy and information technology, as well as healthcare.  Litigation has remained fairly steady, though we have seen an increased demand recently.

What traits are your clients looking for in candidates?

Our clients are always seeking strong legal skills, a great attitude and motivation to succeed.  For our more junior candidates, our clients want to see excellent writing and strong communication skills.  For our more experienced candidates, our clients are looking for people with great client relations/people skills, the desire and ability to develop business, and the ability to work well with others and collaborate as a team.

What’s the biggest mistake candidates make in the recruitment process?

The biggest mistakes that lateral candidates make in the recruitment process are failing to tailor their message (including resumes and interviews) to a particular client’s needs; being indecisive or projecting a lack of interest to the client, which can be the case when a candidate drags his/her feet and waits too long to follow through with next steps in an interview process; and not being open and honest with the recruiter so as to better allow the recruiter to assist the candidate through the search and interview process.

What’s the coolest job you ever recruited for?

We have been in business for close to 20 years (in June!) so it is difficult to select just one “coolest” job!  That said, while people outside of law may not believe it, many of our jobs have a “cool” element to them.  Some of our law firm clients are boutiques/spin offs with particularly unique and cohesive cultures that have more of an entrepreneurial feel to them.  In the in-house arena, in addition to our more traditional large public company searches, our searches have included new and dynamic companies in the start-up process, and tech companies with pool tables in their offices – many of which offer “cool” options for our candidates.

Do you have any career advice for our readers? 

My career advice for attorneys – even at the junior-level – is to decide the area of practice you enjoy most and best utilizes your skills, and to focus your career accordingly, trying to make yourself a “go-to” for this area.  Further, as business development is becoming more and more important, attorneys should start networking early and often in their career, staying in touch with law school classmates, former colleagues, etc., all of which should pay off when it comes to developing your own business and clients, giving you more career options in the future.

Finally, keep a working document of your resume (and as you get more experienced, representative transactions and engagements lists).  If you learn of a new position that could be a great career move, you want to be prepared to move quickly with the best and most accurate presentation of your experience and skills.

 

Start your job search with Lawjobs.com today.

 

More about McCormack Schreiber

McCormack Schreiber Legal Search is Chicago’s premier attorney search firm, and with 8 attorney recruiters we are also one of Chicago’s largest search firms.  Since 1998, we have successfully placed experienced attorneys of all levels and practice areas at top large, midsize and boutique law firms, and at national and international corporations.  Our affiliate company, McCormack Schreiber Legal Solutions, assists our law firm and corporate clients with paralegal hiring as well as contract attorney and other legal staffing needs.   McCormack Schreiber is a longtime leader in the Chicago legal market, and we are proud to have made nearly 1000 law firm and in-house placements.

McCormack Schreiber Legal Search Logo

 

Legal Recruiter Q&A: Job Seeker Advice from Keith Fall, Walker Associates

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In our new series for Lawjobs.com, we’re asking legal recruiters for their insider tips about where the biggest job seeker opportunities are, and for advice on how candidates can best position themselves to get them.

This Q&A is with Keith Fall of Walker Associates, a legal recruitment firm based in New York city.  He specializes in working with Partners and groups as an expert matchmaker and trusted advisor.  He has been in the field since 2005.

What skills are most in demand in the legal industry right now?

Corporate and transactional attorneys continue to be the highest in demand, with virtually every law firm seeking to proactively grow with both revenue producing partners and very talented 3-5 year associates. Firms continue to hire litigators opportunistically, but there seems to be less of a strategic emphasis on lateral growth in that area with any kind of urgency.

Where are the biggest growth areas?

FinTech is a burgeoning area of growth that law firms are just beginning to wrap their heads around. The world of financial services is being upended by new technologies – from virtual currencies and blockchain to peer-to-peer lending and enhanced mobile banking – and it’s affecting an increasing amount of existing law firm clients, all while new potential clients open up every day. FinTech is an interesting industry in that it touches upon a large variety of more traditional practice areas within a law firm, including corporate, regulatory, tax, cybersecurity, securities litigation, banking/finance, amongst others, and the industry is asking new legal questions in a space that has yet to be fully defined. For those reasons, we’ll continue to see an increased focus on growth with legal expertise that touches on all areas of FinTech.

What traits are your clients looking for in candidates?

Clients want a clear understanding of why a candidate is considering a change, and what they’re hoping to accomplish with a move. If as a law firm they’re not going to be able to solve whatever platform deficiencies the attorney is presently experiencing, the likelihood of the match lasting is minimal. Naturally, the business case has to be there as well, so it’s critical to them that almost any Partner level candidate demonstrate a client following, and an ability to develop further client relationships with upside. Lastly, law firms are taking their cultures increasingly seriously, and tend to have less and less tolerance for someone they think will be a problem for them in the future. We’ve seen many situations where someone is viewed as ‘difficult’, and despite having a large book of business, they get passed on routinely.

What’s the biggest mistake candidates make in the recruitment process?

The worst thing a Partner-level candidate can do when interviewing with another firm is to inflate their portable business expectations. It paints a target on their back, and when the practice doesn’t materialize, there is a lot of tension between themselves and the leadership of the firm, in what otherwise should be a harmonious relationship.

What’s the coolest job you ever recruited for?

I love working with different kinds of individuals and groups, and getting to know their personalities and what makes them tick. The people I get to work with are always overwhelmingly more interesting than the job they’re interviewing for.

Do you have any career advice for our readers? 

You’ll never have more leverage in your career than when you have a client following. Whether you’re a big-time producer or are just starting to develop a book of business, you should be spending time every day thinking about how you’re going to market yourself and the firm, and pounding the pavement to get new client relationships in the door. Second, and this may sound counterintuitive coming from a recruiter, but the grass is not always greener on the other side of the fence. Before deciding to conduct what potentially could be a time-consuming search, talk to some resources you trust to get other input on whether a move could truly be worthwhile. Finally, when you’ve decided it’s time for a change, work with a recruiter that takes the time to get to know you and your practice, and is able to make good suggestions about what firms and opportunities you should be aware of. Making a career change is a big deal, and you want to work with someone who will take it as seriously as you will.

 

Start your job search with Lawjobs.com today.

A New Path to Clerkship, and Improved Diversity in Federal Law

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Law school deans have spoken, and it’s paid off!  In February 2018 a group of federal judges agreed to a plan that pushes law clerk hiring to after law students’ second year in school.

In addition to easing the pressure on first-year law school students, the open process is expected to increase diversity among law clerks in federal law.

You can read more about how this plan came about in the original article from our colleagues at The National Law Journal, and the open letter from over 100 law school deans.  See more details on the  Federal Law Clerk Hiring Pilot here.

 

Big Law Insights: The Latest Law Student Recruiting Trends

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Our colleagues at The American Lawyer report that entry-level recruitment efforts across law firms remain steady and robust .  Big Law recruiting volume and practices are now on par with pre-recession levels, according to the data collected by the National Association for Law Placement.

What has changed though is the size of summer program classes, with the average falling from 22 in 2016 to 20 in 2017.  The good news for those who get through is that 95% of participants in summer programs go onto to receive offers for an associate position.

Read more about the NALP survey in the article here and let us know how this compares with your experience!

Fast Forward: A 2018 Lawyer Life Strategy Guide in 4 Simple Steps

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The following guest post is written by Joseph E. Ankus of Ankus Consulting, and does not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of Lawjobs.com and ALM Media.  Visit Lawjobs.com to start your job search.

Welcome to the end of 2017! As we wind down a rather eventful year, our thoughts naturally wander to what we want to accomplish in 2018.

January 1st will be here before we blink – so let’s get ready NOW.

The reality is that many well intentioned New Year’s plans are made in late December and summarily discarded by mid-January. This blog gives you a workable (and attainable) formula to maximize your personal productivity.

These four simple steps are all you need to get started:

1. Be Honest: Do a “head to toe” assessment of your 2017 overall performance. This is meant to be global in scope and brutally honest in appraisal- critically review your professional performance (quality of your work, your hours billed, your base compensation, your bonus compensation, your business development, your relationships with your colleagues, your professional development, and your charitable/pro bono work). At the same time, critically review your personal performance (physical health, mental health, spiritual health, financial health and relationship health). Use a simple A-F “grading” system to have a uniform basis for comparison for each category listed above. Anything under a “B” deserves priority attention in 2018.

2. Identify Areas For Improvement: If you faithfully complete your assessment, you will have areas that you want to, or will need to, improve in 2018. None of us are exempt from betterment and there is no “wrong time” to start. Be realistic- if you aren’t satisfied with your career then consider making changes (by either improving circumstances in your current position or leaving for another opportunity) and if you aren’t satisfied with your personal performance then consider making changes that will have lasting and elevating effects. It has been proven that professional performance correlates directly to personal performance. If you aren’t doing well outside of work, you will not be able to do as well at work. Success starts with YOU and your own well being. It sounds callous to say that the world owes you nothing but It’s the truth. You, and only you, can take the steps necessary to improve. No one else will do it for you.

3. Commit To A Plan: For this step, you MUST write down ALL of your REALISTIC AND ATTAINABLE goals. You can’t just have random goals or half-made plans existing only in the ether of your mind. You must have a clearly worded and written “contract” with yourself that you promise to enforce. Keep a copy on your desk at work and another one taped to the mirror in your bathroom. Start modestly- success is best achieved incrementally and small, measurable steps are the way to start. Reward yourself as you make progress and don’t berate yourself if you slip up. Both will happen to you.

4. Share Your Plan: After you create your plan, please don’t put it on Facebook or tweet it on Twitter.  Oversharing creates unnecessary stress. On the other hand, I recommend confiding in one or two close people you sincerely trust and who will support you. To this end, I am a proponent of “measured accountability”. Encourage your supporters to keep tabs on your progress and to gently remind you to “pick up the pace” if is necessary. Remember that the primary reason some people don’t accomplish their New Year’s goals is because they set unrealistic targets and lack adequate support. I don’t want that to be you!

Best of luck as we all enter 2018.

AUTHOR:
Joseph E. Ankus, Esq.
President/Founder
954.862.1738
Ankus Consulting, Inc.
[email protected]
www.ankusconsulting.com

From Law Firm To In-House Counsel: The Right Move?

From Law Firm To In-House: The Right Move?

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The following guest post is written by Joseph E. Ankus of Ankus Consulting, and does not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of Lawjobs.com and ALM Media.  To view the latest in-house roles on Lawjobs.com, click here.

Nothing in life or law is perfect. Setting aside how glaringly obvious this statement is, let it sink in for a moment. If you are reading this article, you may be thinking about leaving a private law firm to join an in-house legal team. This article presents, in a balanced way, the pros and cons associated with such a career change.  In sum, I urge you to “know before you go.”  There are more things to consider in undertaking such a move than you might imagine.

– Here’s the good news. Historically, most lawyers are happier in-house than in law firms. This is because there are NO BILLABLES. Although there are some trends suggesting companies may adopt timekeeping style metrics, I have always found that in-house lawyers work on projects that are not tracked in microscopic time increments. The lawyers repeatedly tell me this freedom is incredibly liberating.

– The ability to work without having to worry about “shifting gears” to a different client or taking an extra hour for research allows the attorney to fully immerse themselves in a particular matter without fear of overbilling a client or “being ground to death” minute-by-minute.

– Here’s more good news. Many companies, whether private or public, offer stock or options that, over time, can be worth exponentially more than traditional base compensation or bonuses. Law firms simply cannot offer these incentives due to their intrinsic organizational structure. I have known a considerable number of attorneys who have earned life-changing retirement size packages from stock options. This must be considered in the calculus to go in-house.

But consider the risks.

Once you make the move, it’s almost always an irrevocable one-way street. There are exceptions, but rarely, if ever, have I seen an in-house attorney voluntarily choose to go back to private law practice. There are two primary reasons for this:

  1. 1. They don’t want to EVER bill hours again
  2. 2. They don’t have any portable clients they can bring with them to a firm. As a general observation, most lawyers with more than 8-10 years of experience need to have portable business to move up in the law firm hierarchy. If they don’t, it is difficult, if not impossible, to “get back in” and “get back on” the elusive partnership track. There are exceptions but I wouldn’t count on them unless you are a top tier candidate in fast moving and sophisticated legal market.

With this cautionary tale in mind, here’s why a Law Firm career may still be the one for you.

  •  – Law firms tend to offer more job security. Corporations are notorious for their less than humane downsizing practices. Many times, especially in larger companies, decisions of “who lives and who dies” are made thousands of miles from where the lawyer may be physically working. Law firms are no stranger to layoffs, however, companies collectively earn first prize for frequently slashing hundreds of positions with the stroke of a pen. Combine this with ruthless internal corporate politics plus a multitude of corporate mergers and takeovers and you have the recipe for a professional environment that can be unstable. Overall, law firms are no stranger to parting ways BUT my experience reflects a bit more humanity.

 

  •  – More Law Firm Roles Available. Generally speaking, there are considerably more law firm roles available than in house opportunities. Because of this, there is a relative amount of “job (in)security” that exists based on pure numbers. That said, the golden rule remains- have a large client following- and be open to non-partnership track roles (ie: senior counsel, “of counsel”, and senior associate)

 

  •  – Clearer Career Path.  For better or worse, almost 100% of attorneys “know where they stand” in their law firm’s hierarchy. You are either a summer associate, an associate, a partner or “ of counsel”.  As discussed above, there are gradations in these categories but, overall, your law firm career path is more well defined than inside a corporation.

So having looked at some key pros and cons of in house life, I recommend doing the following before you make the leap:

  •  – Research the potential employer carefully. With the advent of the Internet, it is inexcusable that a candidate seeking a new position does not do full scale review of all relevant information that is publicly available. Obvious starting points are LinkedIn to see “who knows who” and “who worked where” and, a review of the company’s own website (and public securities filings) and a basic Google search to get a general lay of the land. The Internet is like a neon billboard full of information; you just have to drive by it and take a look.

 

  •  – Speak to attorneys who have worked at the company you are considering and speaking to those attorneys who are gone – there is no substitute for this. You must speak to both in order to get a fair and balanced view. Don’t be jaundiced by opinions offered by those who left and don’t fall in love with the lawyers who are there. Be objective. Ask tough, focused, critical questions about the organization, the environment and the job itself. You can’t let emotions guide the whole process. Remember- an interview is only a snapshot; working there daily is a video.

 

  •  – Strategize your exit plan pre-emptively from your current job, BEFORE you start your search. Most law firms are 100% supportive of your move to a company. Why? It’s simple. They hope to get your new employer as a client. Don’t be naïve about this. Manage expectations up front. If you believe you can have a cooperative working relationship between the two of you, that’s great; if not, discuss it with them too. At the same time, it wouldn’t hurt for you to have a frank discussion about returning to your firm (assuming you wanted to) in case in house life is not what you expected it to be.

 

In sum, and on balance, most lawyers who transition from a law firm to an in house position are collectively happier with their new lifestyle. At the same time, I trust that this article will give you a more well rounded perspective about the pros and cons associated with your future goals. Good luck!

 

AUTHOR:
Joseph E. Ankus, Esq.
President/Founder
954.862.1738
Ankus Consulting, Inc.
[email protected]
www.ankusconsulting.com