Applying for staff attorney position at big law. How much do they care about my transcript ?

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Are you sure you want this role? The skill development for staff attorneys is pretty poor (lots of rote doc review and boring chronologies). You might be better off working for a smaller firm where you actually develop skills like taking depositions, etc.

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Thanks for the insight! I wanted to do something different so was thinking to tough it out as staff attorney! But that’s helpful to hear!

If you can avoid staff attorney role, do. You will be trapped there with lateraling being the only recourse for upward mobility.

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This^

It's very hard to progress as a staff attorney. You're mostly tasked with repetitive, organizational tasks or doc review, plus you're given fewer training resources than the associates.

If you're going to do it you need to find mentors who will give you substantive work, train you, and really advocate for you. Most partners won't take the time.

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Why staff attorney and not associate? At my big law firm staff attorneys make almost half - do similar work - and will never be associates. Diversity is super important and as long as you have a litigation background they don’t weigh grades as much for a great associate of color.

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Happy to chat If you like. I lateraled into big law as a 3rd year with mediocre grades from a tier 2 school. There are ways…that being said at my firm most of our staff attorneys come from the same law schools as the associates but with lower grades so does the firm you are applying to have alumni at it? That’s what I would look at

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LA1, I assume it’s because OP doesn’t think he or she has the credentials to be an associate in biglaw. OP, firms don’t care as much for staff attorneys, but at my firm, many staff attorneys have honors distinctions from tier 3 and tier 4 schools.

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Got it! Thanks!! I’m a good attorney but just shitty transcript! Have a lot of good experiences.

It's not a deal breaker, but you'll need to find other ways of standing out.

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Post Photo
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