Lateraled a few months ago but don’t really like the new firm. It’s not a good fit for me. Is it ok to start looking for different opportunities before the year is up?

like
Posting as :
works at
You are currently posting as works at

You are probably better off waiting a full year as you’ll be more marketable at that time. Leaving sooner may raise red flags with potential firms.

like

If you want to DM your practice area, city, and class year, I can give you a better assessment of how realistic it would be.

I believe it’s possible to know pretty quickly that the new firm is very unlikely to be a good fit. That said, anything less than a year at the firm is going to look really suspicious to new employers. Certainly something like a few few months there would be highly suspect.

Also, practically speaking, even a year and two or three months honestly just gets rounded down. Hopefully you could make it at least a year and five or six months or so. Even that isn’t great because it’ll look like you were just pushed out after your first review, but at least people tend to think of that as a more typical timeframe for moving on.

If your practice area is hot enough, you’ll still be able to get interviews, but this will always be important, potentially even in subsequent moves.

At my firm, for example, they started a new process in which when we interview any lateral candidates who have done anything resembling job hopping, which tends to be a “know it if you see it” thing, as determined by our recruiting team, they now require us to ask a lot of questions about those moves and why they happened. This is after a long stretch of some bad luck by a few groups at the firm with those who had job hopped in the past.

like

I agree with R1 and candidly would say stick it out for at least a year if not more. A few months is nowhere near enough time to assess whether a firm is truly a good fit. What about it makes you feel that way? If the work, make sure you are reaching out to the right people to make introductions, let them know you're available and interested in getting involved in their client matters, etc. If the people, focus on broadening your network. There are bound to be bad apples at every firm, so maybe you just need to get plugged in with others who are more like-minded. Firms are usually not the best about integrating, and a lot of the work to ensure a successful lateral experience falls on you. Lastly, as someone who has lateraled a few times, I can confidently say no firm is perfect and all have their level of skeletons, warts, etc. That's all to say, at least give it some time before you conclude the grass has to be greener.

Related Posts

What is the performance review cycle at Salesforce? Will someone hired in November/December be eligible to receive the annual bonus?

like

Hi Fishesh

Which one will be good to join for SAP technical consultant having 5.6yr experience?

Deloitte USI: 20 lpa fixed, 10% variable, 3lakh JB
Bristalcone, client: SAP Labs: 22 LPA fixed, 10% variable and 1 lakh JB.

I had worked with SAP Labs, work culture and Work life balance is good but I am not sure about Deloitte usi. Someone please help me

like

Any one from tata technologies? How is work life balance and job security in ER&D...

like

Are Colorado-specific salary ranges even close to what I can expect in Chicago in general? Or are those completely made up?

like

Recently got an offer for 80k at Morgan Stanley as a customer service associate. Can anyone provide some insight on where this offer lands (high low) in the entry level/csa marketplace? Located in a major city

like

Anyone here in large Automotive Tier 1 sales? What’s your position, sales/yr, base and bonus?

like

Experienced hires who have recently joined Big 4, how rough has the transition been?

like

I have offers from Capgemeni, LTI and Gartner, Yoe - 7. Which one should I choose ?

What does Hinshaw start at in its Florida offices? Or any info on its reputation generally?

like

Hello everyone,
Has anyone interviewed for buyer/purchasing Analyst role at Caterpillar? Any advice?

Can married couple (both husband and wife) work in EY GDS? I am an existing employee of GDS, my wife is in recruiting process. I need to know whether it is fine. Both are different domains, I’m in Development and she is in QA.

like

I have 3 years of experience working as a Salesforce Marketing Cloud Developer/Consultant. I am pretty burnt out and I would like to switch to part-time work. Do you know about any consulting company that offers part-time positions which are actually part-time (meaning you are not expected to check your email also on the days you are not working)? I am based in Canada but I would be open to working for an US company if they were willing to take me.

like

If some was promoted via requisition then how many months later can he/she get the next promotion?

like

Has anyone considered MBA at a state school ($25000/year) vs Stern or Columbia? Thinking of moving back in with my parents and attending Rutgers so I can afford the MBA. Thoughts?

like

Any Sloanies or Sloan Admit’s in this bowl who wouldn’t mind sharing some tips for the interview? Wondering how technical it may get or what general vibe/questions asked are. Thanks so much!

like

Any Asian guys got significant scholarship to t20 schools using the gre, if so what score did you have, I got a 330, worth retaking for a better score if I’m aiming for scholarships?

like

Is the ETS GRE-GMAT converter accurate? My GMAT is above medians everywhere but I don’t know how much it matters.

like

How is LTI in kolkata? Is it good for IT professionals specially UI developer. Can any one tell me in which building they allocate the associate

I have been interviewed in TCS and got selected. Uploaded all the documents in tcs portal. My current ctc is 11 lpa. How much offer can I expect from tcs ?

like

I’m a first year associate in an area of practice I really like. People at my firm are nice, but I’m not challenged. I’m thinking of finding new opportunities since my salary is below market, firm policies are unclear and I’m not challenged. Any advice on finding new positions while I’m so junior?

like

Additional Posts in Law

How long did you have to wait from last round interview until offer? (Public sector)

like

Has anyone here worked (or does anyone currently work) for Bernstein Litowitz (aka BLBG)? Very interested to learn what inside associates feel about the firm, its culture, work-life balance, billable hours, etc.

like

Do anyone know any legal admins or paralegals looking for contract/part-time work in California?

like

I have a partner that calls me multiple times a day to talk about updates on our cases. Sometimes just to ask “anything to update me on?” He’s known across all of the associates for doing this. Most of the calls repeat information I’ve already provided in emails to him or the client. I normally bill this time as “strategize on” or “consider XYZ in further of” and it keeps getting appealed. Any advice?

like

How do you recommend dealing with a partner senior to you trying to do anything possible to push you out, force you to quit, or get you fired for years? Owner knows my abilities and likes me (contd)

like

Advice Request: Started my career litigating. Switched to niche transactions (so about half and half at this point). Halfway through a year long sabbatical and reevaluating what I want to do (left before jumping to Senior associate). I’d like to get into litigation again in a practice group I don’t have experience in. Any suggestions on how to do this? How to approach firms and partners etc? Past 2 firms on my resume are top 30.

like

Anyone know anything about Kauffman borgees or Traub Lieberman? Reputations, working there, etc?

like

Career Sabbatical?

Can anyone who has taken a career sabbatical to travel/explore other interests share their experience with both leaving their jobs and returning to the legal field?
I really want to live in Asia for a year at least before I have to settle down and start a family. I’m not getting younger but don’t want to be reckless with my career.

like

I am concerned with fulfilling billable hours requirement. I’m required to hit 2100 hours yearly and I’m at ~1,500 hours and I think I’ll hit 150-180hours this month. What will happen if I don’t hit my targeted amount by the end of my year.

likehelpful

This is not my wheelhouse so I’m not sure of the answer. If someone is writing a “memoir” and is including me in it, and I DONT want to be in the book, do I have any legal recourse? I understand since it’s been published it doesn’t meet any invasion of privacy or potential defamation yet, but is there something I can do preliminarily to protect myself and stop my inclusion?

like

Any non-US lawyers who have been hired by an Am100 firm without having sat the bar? Looking for an opportunity in the US, if possible DC or NYC, and currently working for Big Law in Europe.

Would like some tips re hiring process + visa from those who have succeeded. Looking for a 1-2 year stay and open for longer term

like

I want to get out of ID so badly. I don’t mind the work but the hours are just killing me. I just started at a new firm less than 6 months ago and I am already desperate to get out. It is not the firm or the people. I just hate the high billables. I have been applying to other jobs but I think I may need a recruiter for help. Any recommendation for a great recruiter in NYC?

like

Does anyone work in a very volume based area of law (i.e. insurance defense, workers comp) but have partners who are perfectionists to an absurd degree? How do you manage to get your billing in when everything always has to be revised?

like

Can anyone provide any insight on what it's like working in Sidley Austin's London office? Culture, target hours, work life balance etc

like

Is it okay to ask the recruiter if the salary quoted for the position offered to me is the cap or if there is room to negotiate? Not wanting to risk the offer going away so maybe best to not ask/negotiate?

like

Any insight on working as a staff attorney at Sidley as far as pay, growth, hours, etc.? I had someone reach out to me about a staff attorney role there and just want to hear opinions.

like

I am looking for the post made by the junior associate with the voicemail from the female partner on a Friday night telling her how stupid she is. I didn’t bookmark the voicemail and I wanted to show it to a colleague to show her there are worse bosses than ours. Lol. It was circulating a couple of months ago. I believe it was a New York firm.

like

Any thoughts on Phillips Lytle? If you could please provide insight on culture/billable requirements? Thank you.

like

Negotiating a settlement. I’m at $10k, opposing counsel is at $20k. My client won’t go higher than $15k. OC has come down to 17.5k and says his client won’t budge from that. Do I offer 12.5k so we can hopefully meet in the middle at 15k? Is that how the settlement game is played? Seems dumb we can’t just say let’s meet in the middle now and be done with this. (I’m a first year, first time negotiating a settlement on my own and I don’t want to screw this up!)

like

Workout before (4:30 am) or after (6:30ish) work?

like

New to Fishbowl?

Download the Fishbowl app to
unlock all discussions on Fishbowl.
That was just a preview…
Sign Up to see all discussions
  • Discover what it’s like to work at companies from real professionals
  • Get candid advice from people in your field in a safe space
  • Chat and network with other professionals in your field
Sign up in seconds to unlock all discussions on Fishbowl.

Already a user?
Login here

Share

Embed this post

Copy and paste embed code on your site

Preview

Download the
Fishbowl app

See what’s happening in your industry
from the palm of your hand.

A phone with Fishbowl app

Scan your QR code to download
Fishbowl app on your mobile

Download app

Sign up for free to view this conversation on Fishbowl

By continuing you agree to Terms of Use and Privacy Policy

Already have an account? Log in

Sign up for free to continue using Fishbowl

By continuing you agree to Terms of Use(New) and Privacy Policy(New)
Messaging rates may apply

Already have an account? Log in

For account settings, visit Fishbowl on Desktop Browser or

General

Legal