Much is written about what goes onto a winning résumé. Equally important, however, is what to leave off of your résumé. Because you have very limited space to make the maximum impact, don’t waste valuable real estate with unnecessary information. Objective. It’s assumed you’re applying for an attorney position, so you don’t need to craft…
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Women lawyers often have the added challenge of balancing significant responsibilities at home in addition to those at work. As the saying goes, “Law is a jealous mistress.” The profession is demanding of all of its participants, but the burden seems especially heavy for women lawyers. In 1989, for the first time, the plight of…
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The traditional law firm pyramid model is under pressure. Historically, to support partner salaries at the top, firms continually added increasing number of associates at the bottom. Every year, big law firms hired troops of new associates and assigned them to high-volume but relatively low skilled projects to gain experience. Although contract lawyers, or, in…
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Gender stereotypes and expectations play a role in negotiation, and can be used to your advantage. This is especially true in compensation negotiations where the parties on opposite sides of the table ultimately hope to end up on the same team. Stereotypically, women see negotiation as an opportunity to build relationships or community. Men, on the…
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In the current economic environment, especially, General Counsel resist paying high fees for routine, repetitive functions. They realize that some tasks don’t require lawyers, or at least high priced lawyers in traditional law firms, to complete them. Therefore, in order to hang onto as much business as possible, smart law firms minimize the cost of…
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Over the past few decades, law firms transitioned from the traditional partner/associate firm structure towards the model of the large international accounting and consulting firms, with multiple tiers of positions with different titles, duties, and pay levels. Now, there are all sorts of categories of law firm lawyers. In addition to equity and non-equity partners,…
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Regardless of the quality of your work product, how often you’re seen at the office impacts what your superiors and colleagues think of you. With technological advances constantly increasing connectivity, there’s a growing expectation that lawyers are available to work 24/7, with a decreased need to spend time in the office to do so. As…
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The Great Recession sparked radical changes in the legal marketplace, including drastically reduced entry-level and junior associate hiring and the rise of core competency systems for their evaluation, compensation, and advancement. As part of this trend, there is a movement to reevaluate traditional criteria for hiring lawyers at all levels of seniority and possibly to…
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Prospective employers constantly look for ways to save time and money in the recruitment process while ensuring they hire the best possible candidate; hence, the popularity of telephone and videoconference interviews, especially at the screening stage. Skype and other online chat services offer another option for reducing recruitment costs. Law firm and corporate recruiters may…
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When evaluating an offer, determine what is and is not negotiable. Find out whether your target employer has a lock step or merit-based compensation system and where you might fall within their scheme. Many law firms have an established base or narrow range of compensation for each class year within their associate ranks, while others…
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