In-house at tech company, taking questions Forum

[Anonymous User]

2013 grad, now in-house at tech company (level of Amazon, Google, Microsoft, Apple, Facebook). Graduated from T30, bottom 1/3, no journal.

I was not a good law student, but found a speciality and stuck with it. I also got lucky along the way.

Happy to answer any questions!

[DildaMan]

2013 grad, now in-house at tech company (level of Amazon, Google, Microsoft, Apple, Facebook). Graduated from T30, bottom 1/3, no journal.

I was not a good law student, but found a speciality and stuck with it. I also got lucky along the way.

Happy to answer any questions!

Hi,

1. What type of law did you practice prior to moving in-house?
2. Any advice for going in-house at a tech company?

Thanks!

[gchatbrah]

Approximate salary? Structure of that salary?

[Anonymous User]

OP here.

1. I don't want to say my practice area, because it is a very niche field. I worked at a large first before moving in-house. My current company has a massive legal department, and I am still practicing exclusively in the same field.

2. Gain experience at a firm for a few years and specialize in something. If you want to move in-house for a tech company, know that the interview process and culture is much different than a law firm. They want to know how you think, not just how well you know the law. In particular, how you can contribute to process improvements for the business.

[Anonymous User]

OP here.

Base salary is $140-150k range, I took a small paycut moving in-house. Annual bonus is 10-20% of base salary, plus stock. Good 401k contributions and healthplan.

Hours are typically 9-6/6:30pm. I don't work/check emails when I get home on weekdays and never on weekends.

[Anonymous User]

OP here.

1. I don't want to say my practice area, because it is a very niche field. I worked at a large first before moving in-house. My current company has a massive legal department, and I am still practicing exclusively in the same field.

2. Gain experience at a firm for a few years and specialize in something. If you want to move in-house for a tech company, know that the interview process and culture is much different than a law firm. They want to know how you think, not just how well you know the law. In particular, how you can contribute to process improvements for the business.

Thanks OP!

[Anonymous User]

OP here.

Base salary is $140-150k range, I took a small paycut moving in-house. Annual bonus is 10-20% of base salary, plus stock. Good 401k contributions and healthplan.

Hours are typically 9-6/6:30pm. I don't work/check emails when I get home on weekdays and never on weekends.

What is "plus stock"? I've heard of offers ranging from 5k a year to 40k a year. It's a huge part of compensation.

I interviewed at a company you listed or at the level of the companies you listed. I was on the lower end of my stock numbers above and thought I was getting lowballed.

[sanzgo]

2013 grad, now in-house at tech company (level of Amazon, Google, Microsoft, Apple, Facebook). Graduated from T30, bottom 1/3, no journal.

I was not a good law student, but found a speciality and stuck with it. I also got lucky along the way.

Happy to answer any questions!

1. did you work in biglaw before transitioning?

2. are most tech in-house positions corporate? how hard would it be for a biglaw lit associate to work at tech in-house?

3. what's the advancement structure like (in terms of both pay and position)?

[ballouttacontrol]

are you in patent law? if not patent law, do you know the patent attys? and if so, as far as you know, does their job materially differ (other than substantively, i.e., in terms of pay/QOL/etc) from yours?

how many years did you do in biglaw have?

do you wish you moved from your firm sooner than you did, or later?

How does your in house counsel job compare to those of your competitors (ie the other Co's you named and similarly situated Cos.)

Do you see this as a stepping stone or somewhere you'll sit for a good while?



BTW, thanks. I have worked extensively with one of the co's you listed. The thought of trying to make the jump has crossed my mind..

[Anonymous User]

Initial offer included signing bonus of $15-20k, plus $15-20k in stock. Additional stock granted as part of annual review, but that can vary.

[Anonymous User]

1. I was not in big law, but worked at a large firm.
2. The legal department is so large that, unfortunately, I do not personally know anyone in lit. Most work seems to be transactional, and there are some policy roles.
3. Job itself is stable, but raises and promotions are a bit stagnant. Annual raise is less than 5%, and promotion to a higher internal level can be difficult.

[Anonymous User]

I am not a patent attorney, not sure about their comp structure.

My field is pretty unique, and most companies do not have attorney-level internal positions for my practice area (most companies use outside counsel). So, I do not have data points on comparable roles at different tech companies. Overall, I am happy with the compensation and work/life balance, and planning on staying put for at least a few years.

I am glad I worked at a law firm first, the experience gave me a higher appreciation for the current job. I was at a small firm for less than a year after graduation, then remainder of time was at a large firm (not technically biglaw).

[Anonymous User]

Thanks for taking questions, OP! I graduated at the bottom third of my class as well and am a junior at a relatively reputable biglaw firm in the Bay Area. How much do you think grades matter for the quality of exit options? Also, outside of tech trans, what are the best practice areas for going in house at tech companies? Ideally I'd like to get to where you are. Thanks!

[Anonymous User]

Do you have a big antitrust inhouse group? I'm going into DOJ Antitrust in the fall, and am hoping to go to one of my section's industries after a couple years, especially if congress reduces PSLF

[Alive97]

.

[thecatgoesmeow]

OP, when did you move in house?

[Anonymous User]

.

[Anonymous User]

Bumping this thread as another In-house tech company lawyer. Similar to OP except prior practice area was in general corporate, not niche. Thought I'd help out any others who are looking to transition in-house someday, as that was my goal and I trawled these forums hoping for any advice that would get me there.

Background:

Law school T50, graduated 2011 near median - bottom 1/2 of class
Practiced at boutique firm for 2.5 years and moved in-house early at a mid-sized company with a small legal department. Spent 2 years there before moving to a bigger company with a small legal department. Had lots of responsibility and rose up quickly. I would say the combo of high responsibility+range of experience I had at that company really helped strengthen my resume. A few years in, was contacted by recruiter at a Apple/Amazon/Netflix/Google/Facebook tier company for an equivalent in-house role. Made the switch last year.

Comp:
$215k base + $35k stock + 15% bonus. Annual stock refresher.

AMA.

Thanks!

What area of law were you in while at the firm?
What did you do at your first in-house role and did you have to pivot at all? If so, how did you sell yourself?
How was comp in the first in-house role?

Appreciate the help!

[totesTheGoat]

Practiced at boutique firm for 2.5 years and moved in-house early at a mid-sized company with a small legal department. Spent 2 years there before moving to a bigger company with a small legal department. Had lots of responsibility and rose up quickly. I would say the combo of high responsibility+range of experience I had at that company really helped strengthen my resume. A few years in, was contacted by recruiter at a Apple/Amazon/Netflix/Google/Facebook tier company for an equivalent in-house role. Made the switch last year.

What sorts of projects/habits/behaviors did you have at your previous in-house jobs that put you in a good position to climb the in-house ladder like you did?

[boredtodeath]

Bumping this thread as another In-house tech company lawyer. Similar to OP except prior practice area was in general corporate, not niche. Thought I'd help out any others who are looking to transition in-house someday, as that was my goal and I trawled these forums hoping for any advice that would get me there.

Background:

Law school T50, graduated 2011 near median - bottom 1/2 of class
Practiced at boutique firm for 2.5 years and moved in-house early at a mid-sized company with a small legal department. Spent 2 years there before moving to a bigger company with a small legal department. Had lots of responsibility and rose up quickly. I would say the combo of high responsibility+range of experience I had at that company really helped strengthen my resume. A few years in, was contacted by recruiter at a Apple/Amazon/Netflix/Google/Facebook tier company for an equivalent in-house role. Made the switch last year.

Comp:
$215k base + $35k stock + 15% bonus. Annual stock refresher.

AMA.

Was the first in-house move a client of the firm you worked at? If not, how did you go about finding that position?

[totesTheGoat]

Also, being in SV physically no doubt played a huge part.

That's my fear. I work for one of those huge SV companies, but I have zero interest in moving to SV. I could probably get 3 promotions at this company before they started pressuring me to move to SV, but if I ever wanted to leave, it seems that most other tech companies are more SV-centric when it comes to legal.

[Anonymous User]

Does holding a JD/MBA help for in house lateraling?

[Anonymous User]

Thanks for doing this.

Suppose straight from law school you go in-house as a corporate counsel at a non-public tech company in SF/PA, working on commercial contracts, etc. How hard would it be to lateral to big law? And how soon can this be done? Assume T14 grad with above avg. grades and valued internships (no biglaw summer). Thanks.

[Anonymous User]

Thanks for doing this.

Suppose straight from law school you go in-house as a corporate counsel at a non-public tech company in SF/PA, working on commercial contracts, etc. How hard would it be to lateral to big law? And how soon can this be done? Assume T14 grad with above avg. grades and valued internships (no biglaw summer). Thanks.

It would be very difficult to get back to biglaw if you go straight to in-house. I think if you start in biglaw and go in-house, the move back to biglaw is extremely easy. But going from in-house only experience to biglaw can be very challenging. It really doesn't make sense, especially if you are doing relevant work, firms just will think you missed the early 2 years of training where you learn how biglaw works and initial training.

[totesTheGoat]

It would be very difficult to get back to biglaw if you go straight to in-house.

In my experience, this isn't accurate. I know a few people in that position that have gotten unsolicited BigLaw offers, but most BigLaw partners know better than to ask. I have good enough of a relationship with my OC and with a few of the firms I worked at during law school that I'd be able to find a landing spot if I decided in-house wasn't for me, even though I haven't stepped foot in a law firm since passing the bar.

The question is why the heck would anybody want to do that? Frankly, my OC couldn't afford me, accounting for all of the lifestyle and quality of culture sacrifices I'd price into my salary. The only people I've seen go back to BigLaw were laterals who were living high on the hog and couldn't get their lifestyle in check for the in-house pay cut. Most people who leave end up going to other companies.