Choosing Between Jobs Post-Clerkship Forum

[Anonymous User]

[Deleted]

Thanks for the insight, everyone.

[Rowinguy2009]

Sounds like you have two great options, and this should largely come down to your personal preference.

I would personally be more interested in the SG's office job, but I do wonder if starting with appellate work so early in your career might box you in so that, when you apply for federal jobs later on, you will only be a strong candidate for appellate jobs (which are themselves very hard to get). It might be difficult to land a spot as an AUSA trial attorney when you have almost no trial level experience (except for your clerkship, I assume).

In short - the biglaw job probably will have better exit options, and of course has better pay. The SG job will probably be more interesting and offer better QOL.

[flashdril]

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[hdivschool]

I doubt you could lateral easily into biglaw after a few years at a state SG's office. There are relatively few biglaw appellate jobs and I don't see much demand for midlevel appellate associates. You see more people starting in biglaw, leaving and coming back. There's a perception in biglaw (rightly or wrongly) that a lot of government work is not as sophisticated as biglaw work, and many in biglaw discount government experience unless it's highly specialized. If you did go the SG route, it might help to develop a subject-matter specialty.

[Anonymous User]

[Deleted]

[Anonymous User]

Former DCt/CoA clerk now in biglaw with similar career ambitions.

Doing biglaw first keeps more options open down the road. I don't think state SG's office is going to be shut off from you if you do biglaw first, but the opposite would be much tougher. Try to get some appellate work at your firm. It isn't always the easiest, but with a fed appellate clerkship you should be able to get some. Also, you can bank a clerkship bonus substantially higher salary for a few years, before deciding what you want to do.

[Rowinguy2009]

OP here. Thanks for the responses so far. For further information, I'm in an appellate clerkship (so I wouldn't have the trial court experience that Rowinguy suggested).

I think I'd really enjoy the SG's office, and think it's a unique opportunity. I would like to make it work if it doesn't hamstring me for the rest of my career (which would likely be general litigation if not the mentioned government work).

Is it ever possible to enter a big law firm at a lower level (think a third year) even if I have more experience? Would that help with the difficulty in lateraling?

I don't think the bolded is really a thing.

OP, given your most recent post, I think you should go to the SG's office. I, and a lot of people on this board, spend a lot of time thinking about exit options - this is appropriate and understandable, but to some degree you have to focus on the now. I agree that the SG's office will be a fun/unique opportunity, and most people think biglaw really, really sucks. I am one of those people.

If over the next couple years you decide that appellate isn't for you or you want to change paths, you will probably have to put in some work to pivot (maybe you could switch to the trial division of your state's attorney general's office?) but it seems like you are capable of doing so and you will still have a great, even if specialized, resume.

[Anonymous User]

Easy choice. Accept the big law job, pay off substantial debt, keep in contact with state SG hiring managers, if you don't like big law after one, two, three, four years, jump ship to state SG or to your preferred federal option.