Law Students

MoFo Further Delays Start Date, Will Pay $5K Per Month + Medical Insurance Cost

In the latest announcement of yet another BigLaw firm delaying the start date for incoming first-year associates, Morrison & Foerster has pushed it back from November 2009 to April 2010 for an unspecified number of attorneys. But even then the firm won’t need all of the new associates it has…

May 5, 2009 12:43 AM CDT

Judicial Clerkships Becoming More Scarce and More Difficult to Attain

New law grads who think they can find refuge in a government job in a tight employment market may be in for disappointment, according to a career services official at the University of Kansas School of Law. Todd Rogers, assistant dean of career services, told the Kansas City Star that…

May 4, 2009 6:14 PM CDT

Blog Questions ‘Rankings Malpractice’ by Law Schools

Sixty-four law schools didn’t disclose the percentage of their 2007 class employed at graduation for a ranking done by U.S. News & World Report, opting instead for an automatic calculation. Another 23 law schools that did report the employment-at-graduation numbers likely would have been better off keeping them secret, TaxProf…

May 4, 2009 11:49 AM CDT

To Defer or Not to Defer? Like a Day Off, Late Job Start May Not Be a Career Plus

The disastrous economy is creating new career issues for fledgling legal eagles seeking to soar as law firm associates. But the overall problem is still the same: How to look out for one’s own interests yet score points with the firm as a dedicated young attorney ready, willing and able…

Apr 30, 2009 5:31 PM CDT

O’Melveny Associate & UCLA Student Win 9th Circuit Immigration Appeal

Finding that a legal United States resident who served four years in the Navy had exhausted her administrative remedies, the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has derailed a government effort to deport her over a California criminal conviction. The appellate ruling (PDF) in favor for Maria Gemma…

Apr 29, 2009 9:28 PM CDT

Number of Students Applying to Law School Jumps 3.8 Percent

Are more college grads planning to take refuge at law schools while riding out the economic downturn? Apparently so, according to new data from the Law School Admission Council. The number of students applying to law schools is up 3.8 percent for fall 2009, and the number of applications filed…

Apr 29, 2009 5:22 PM CDT

Are Law Schools Like Automakers? Dean Says Some Educators Will Fail

The law school dean in the news earlier this year for his charge that some law schools are “exploiting” unsuccessful students is getting more press attention for his predictions about the future of legal education. This time, Dean Richard Matasar of New York Law School was responding to an audience…

Apr 29, 2009 1:03 PM CDT

Summer Associates Advised to Lose the Sense of Entitlement

Summer associate jobs have traditionally been filled with parties and perks designed to lure the students into full-time employment. No more. As law firms adjust their programs, taking a no-frills approach, students need to adjust as well, law school career counselors say. At a seminar at Stanford Law School, students…

Apr 28, 2009 11:46 AM CDT

Summer Offers Career Opportunities Even for the Unemployed

As a growing number of law firms curtail their summer programs, even law students lucky enough to have landed jobs as summer associates can’t be sure they’ll still have them in June. But both those with summer jobs and those without can make the most of career training opportunities during…

Apr 27, 2009 6:27 PM CDT

40% of Law School Applicants Riding Out Recession

Despite layoffs, deferrals, depressing U.S. job stats and anecdotal complaints about a lousy legal employment economy, students consider law school a good option for waiting out the financial crisis. Kaplan Test Prep and Admissions surveyed more than 1,000 prelaw students who took the LSAT in February and found that 2…

Apr 24, 2009 5:39 PM CDT

Former Gambian Lawyer Awaits Bar Results and Drives a Cab

The economic downturn has produced a record number of cab drivers in New York, and one of them is a former Gambian lawyer who is hoping to get his U.S. law license. The number of cab drivers in the city reached a high of 47,000 in April, the New York…

Apr 24, 2009 3:26 PM CDT

Dechert to Stagger Start Dates of its Incoming Class

Dechert announced in an internal memo on Wednesday that its 63-member associate class will be split into three groups and be assigned one of three start dates. The first group will start in fall 2009, the second group will start in March 2010, and the third group will start in…

Apr 23, 2009 8:29 PM CDT

New Online Legal Magazine Is Launched By Big-Name Law Reviews

A new legal publication is being launched today by a group of influential law reviews. But, unlike traditional law reviews, the Legal Workshop isn’t intended to speak only to a small circle of academics. “We think this project will significantly help bridge the gap between the legal world and the…

Apr 22, 2009 12:36 AM CDT

Role-Playing Game Suggests Lower-Paid Future for BigLaw Lawyers

A sort of Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game at a law school last weekend shed light on a possible future for BigLaw that includes lower salaries and more training for associates. The game was led by Indiana University law professor Bill Henderson and Anthony Kearns, the lead risk manager for…

Apr 21, 2009 12:02 PM CDT

How Uninsured Law Student, 25, Gets Treatment via Girlfriend & Pal’s Mom

An e-mail by an anonymous self-described second-year law student at a first-tier New York law school tells the story of his life without medical coverage. In it, under the headline “Uninsured,” a 25-year-old explains what he does to get at least some of the treatment he needs. Posted by the…

Apr 20, 2009 8:14 PM CDT