Biglaw’s
recruitment
of
law
students
is
well
and
truly
broken.
That’s
not
a
shock
—
in
2018,
when
NALP
announced
it
was
eliminating
the
recruitment
guardrails,
the
race
to
the
bottom
was
on.
Seven
years
later,
it’s
awful
out
there.
Major
law
firms
are
peace-ing
out
of
on-campus
recruitment.
1Ls
are
securing
their
2L
summer
jobs
*before*
their
1L
summer
jobs.
Offers
for
summer
associate
jobs
that
explode
before
the
first
year
of
law
school
is
even
over
have
become
a
thing.
It’s
madness
—
and
it
uniquely
disadvantages
law
students
without
a
built-in
network
of
Biglaw
contacts,
those
that
think
a
Cravath
is
just
a
misspelling
of
an
Ascot-style
tie.
But
it’s
also
a
struggle
for
Biglaw
firms
trying
to
stack
their
summer
associate
classes
with
the
best
and
brightest.
At
least
two
Biglaw
firms
have
struck
upon
a
rather…
interesting
method
to
attract
talent.
According
to
Above
the
Law
tipsters
Sullivan
&
Cromwell
and
Paul
Weiss
have
tapped
law
students
to
handle
some
key
recruiting
functions
for
the
firms.
Upperclass
students
at
top
law
schools
(ATL
hasn’t
heard
of
the
practice
outside
of
the
T14)
that
already
accepted
offers
at
the
firms
have
been
given
the
authority
to
wine
and
dine
1Ls
as
part
of
the
firm’s
recruitment.
It’s
walking
around
money
for
3Ls
who
aren’t
yet
full
fledged
attorneys
to
treat
their
friends
to
the
benefits
of
a
Biglaw
expense
account.
Above
the
Law
reached
out
to
Paul
Weiss
and
Sullivan
&
Cromwell
for
a
comment,
but
have
not
heard
back.
It’s
a
bold
move
that,
on
the
one
hand,
frees
up
full-time
associates
to
continue
billing,
but
puts
the
important
screening
function
on
students
with
a
fundamentally
limited
experience
with
the
firm.
It’s
also
fascinating
that
the
firms
ATL
has
heard
of
participating
in
the
practice
are
ones
on
the
receiving
end
of
a
lot
of
MAGA-related
negative
publicity
(Paul
Weiss
was
the
first
Biglaw
firm
to
capitulate
to
Donald
Trump
and
ink
a
deal
providing
him
with
millions
in
pro
bono
payola
for
conservative
causes
and
clients,
S&C
is
representing
Trump
in
his
criminal
case
and
was
reportedly
involved
in
the
negotiation
of
Paul
Weiss’s
deal
with
Trump).
1Ls
don’t
have
the
most
experience
with
Biglaw,
but
the
Paul
Weiss
and
S&C
stories
have
crossed
over
into
mainstream
news.
Throwing
money
around
probably
helps
to
negate
some
of
those
negative
associations.
But
Biglaw
recruiting
is
cutthroat,
and
I
have
to
imagine
the
practice
will
spread…
if
it
hasn’t
already.
Do
you
have
experience
with
law
students
recruiting
on
behalf
of
Biglaw?
If
so,
email
ATL
with
your
story
or
info
on
other
firms
doing
the
same.
All
tipsters
are
kept
strictly
confidential.
Kathryn
Rubino
is
a
Senior
Editor
at
Above
the
Law,
host
of
The
Jabot
podcast,
and
co-host
of
Thinking
Like
A
Lawyer.
AtL
tipsters
are
the
best,
so
please
connect
with
her.
Feel
free
to
email
her
with
any
tips,
questions,
or
comments
and
follow
her
on
Twitter
@Kathryn1 or
Mastodon
@[email protected].