I will be graduating in 2022 and I am looking to join a corporate law firm thereafter. I keep reading on LI and also hearing from seniors about the extremely long working hours at almost every tier 1 law firm. I wanted to know whether the working environment is same at tier 2 law firms? I know tier 2 firms won't pay as well as tier 1, but I am willing to forego some money for better mental and physical health.
Hi, you may want to consider niche practices such as direct and indirect tax, employment, competition law (not at Trilegal), funds, private client etc. which may provide a sustainable work life balance at the tier-1 firms as well. Unfortunately this is also a bit tenuous since there could be painful partners in these practices as well. But, overall, my experience has been that the above practices tend to allow for at least some balance and predictability of hours, as opposed to the larger practices of M&A, banking, capital markets etc.
I am the OP. I have considered this option a lot but a few seniors have warned me against starting my career from a niche area. Rather, they advise me that I should start my career with a larger practice area and gravitate to niche areas later if I want. Could you give me some advice on this? Any way we could connect with each other on some platform like LinkedIn? I have to decide soon as Day Zero is approaching quickly.
Hey, what I've seen is that switching practice areas at a later stage might affect career progression slightly (although I would definitely and strongly advice in favor of making any switch that allows a happier and more balanced life). And practice areas which I had mentioned in my post above are fairly mainstream ones which would not be seen as niche or limit your career prospects at all. For day zero, I would recommend prioritising firms such as CAM and SAM, if you can, since they allow you to rotate with a few teams in the first year or year and a half. This way you can see for yourself how working in these practices would be like without committing to just one. In any case, the stage of submitting practice preferences would be at least a year from day zero, so you should focus on just presenting your best self for the interview(s). Good luck!
Advice noted. Thank you so much! I will try for CAM and SAM but most people this year including myself are not going to be very picky as we are not expecting a bumper Day Zero like the pre-pandemic years. The competition is gonna be intense! Anyways thank you once again!
I'm personally aware of the IDT and direct tax teams at KCO. IDT: absolutely amazing life balance (rarely any stress of impossible timelines, everyone leaving before 8 on most days and a v friendly and welcoming setup which is difficult to find), career progression maybe delayed by a year, fixed compensation is comparable to corp practices but variable would be much lesser.
Direct Tax (not my lived experience, have only spoken to people while working in the IDT practice): intense work during work hours at times, but everyone keen to leave at 8 to keep the balance alive, career progression, fixed+variable comp. all comparable to corp.
Depends on what you call Tier 2. Firms with less than 25-30 lawyers generally have better working condition. Likes of JSA and Induslaw have same toxic traits of Tier 1.
No! Indus masquerades as "business minded", when they're spewing nonsense - anyone with access to the internet and google search skills can expose the lie.
Surely you have to work, nobody would pay you to sleep your ass off.
but a fair and reasonable amount of working hours of 10-12 hr is way better than 15+ hrs at a tier-one firm. and there is a HUGE Impact difference. you would say it's only 4 hours more, NO, you won't feel it unless you endure it. it is make and break. though it always breaks you down. a few extra lakhs do not justify at all. rather I have made my annual overall income almost equivalent by inventing in share market. don't be a slave donkey to these tier-1 firms.
If you can, please accept a Tier 1. It's a no brainer. Don't be put off by the work hours. I moved to a tier 1 with a lucky break after a few years in a tier 2. I found myself at sea. My peers were way ahead in transactions and were able to handle much more than I was. They are also more confident and exposed to lot more work and have more technical knowledge also as there is formal training etc here.
Even if money is not higher, take a tier 1 any day as otherwise you will never rise to the top
This isn't true for all Tier 2 firms. I started out at a Tier 1 under a partner who believed in getting things done and leaving by 7 or 8 pm max as he had a young kid. He wasted not a single second during the day, was most efficient. He didn't mind me leaving at the same time as long as work was handled. I later moved to a Tier 2, where the Corp team hardly had work and they just wanted face timing. The whole team was inefficient!
So my advice would be to opt for a right team or partner, if you have a choice.
Thanks!
Direct Tax (not my lived experience, have only spoken to people while working in the IDT practice): intense work during work hours at times, but everyone keen to leave at 8 to keep the balance alive, career progression, fixed+variable comp. all comparable to corp.
Kal bolega Khaitan is Tier 3. Stand up join karlo bhai / behen.
Surely you have to work, nobody would pay you to sleep your ass off.
but a fair and reasonable amount of working hours of 10-12 hr is way better than 15+ hrs at a tier-one firm.
and there is a HUGE Impact difference.
you would say it's only 4 hours more, NO, you won't feel it unless you endure it.
it is make and break. though it always breaks you down.
a few extra lakhs do not justify at all.
rather I have made my annual overall income almost equivalent by inventing in share market.
don't be a slave donkey to these tier-1 firms.
Even if money is not higher, take a tier 1 any day as otherwise you will never rise to the top
So my advice would be to opt for a right team or partner, if you have a choice.