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Rising Star
I'm in Silicon Valley. If a junior wore a suit for nearly anything but court or swearing-in, we'd laugh!
If you do good work, no one cares.
I think it’s naive to ignore the message that our clothes, good or bad, polished or unkempt, fitted or poorly cut sends to our colleagues, superiors and clients (presuming we meet them.) Imho, the most important element is fit, including sleeve length, and requires the help of a great dry cleaner or tailor. The next element is fabric quality, and I would suggest buying conservative solids or pinstripes and the quality you can afford without breaking the bank to extend the life of the suit. The third element, is accessories: jewelry/cuff links, scarves/pocket squares, ties, briefcases/handbags and shoes and in this area I would keep the luxury/expensive at home.
I wear an old John Bartlett I got back in 2012 that was like $100 on sale. It’s my only suit. It does the job just fine.
Agree with MP1. Just make sure it's the right fit.
Just don't go down the hole with the collar pins and fancy pocket squares - had an associate who looked like he was on the set of The Great Gatsby every week.
Rising Star
No one actually cares. I’m in big law and in my office we have every type of dresser, the women who wear low cut and short skirts, the women who are flowey hippy and no make up, the men who wear a suit everyday, the men who wear golf shirts and old navy cargos. If you are comfortable in your practice and abilities, no one cares. Your look is part of your personality. Own it and wear what makes you feel like your best lawyer self. (As long as you know what is expected when a client is around, that’s a different ballgame).
If you’re ever before a jury I’d recommend not dressing like a million bucks. But otherwise a junior associate wearing fancy clothes would probably get some teasing. Partly because most partners at most firms don’t dress that well and partly because it’s well, a junior associate dressy fancy. Like it or not law is an extremely hierarchical and tradition bound business.
I’ve been wearing pinstripes and nice suits since I was a legal intern. They make me feel good and I didn’t work my ass off to not look in the mirror and think ‘damn I look good.’ I’m sure through the years some people have judged this but my clients appreciate that I’m clean cut. It isss what it isss. Do you!
If you are doing transactional work, confirm the general vibe of your group before buying an expensive suit in the first place. We never go to court and can wear jeans any day in my office, so plenty of people prefer to spend their money on nice jeans, nice shoes, etc. Personally, if your suit fits you, I won't notice how expensive it is, but I do notice the junior associates who still wear suits half way through their first year and wonder when they are going to understand the office culture.
Chief
The thing with suits is that they have to be made of wool and they ABSOLUTELY have to fit you - not necessarily they have to be crazy expensive.
Pinstripe suits and the like do not scream “I’ve made it”, they scream “look at me” - in my opinion your suit has to be perfect in fit only, and then get out of the way because what you’re going to say is more important.
TLDR - get custom navy blue/black/dark grey/grey (if you’re not working until late) suits.
Agree with MP1. Dress matters, but not in a “look at me” way. You want to have an idea of what is “too far” because it does exist. You most probably do not want to be best known for your clothes.
Started to read this assuming it was a well deserved rant against Suits.
smh
A suit should not call attention to itself. Instead of peak lapels, I like subtler touches: pick stitched lapels and functional sleeve buttonholes.