Fired summer associate Forum

[dabigchina]

Guys, let's not try to out the OP. career services is def the right call here. As for salvaging your career, the economy is good and you should hit the pavement for 3l oci. Biglaw might be out, but you can probably get something legal or jd advantage, even if it's not something you would have considered otherwise.

You should probably leave out you 3 week stint on your resume.

[rowingmyboat]

In addition to the advice about career services, maybe reach out to small solo practitioners to see if they'd mind you shadowing them/helping out for the rest of the summer. You really need something on your resume this summer or else that will be a red flag to employers for a long, long time.

[cavalier1138]

Guys, let's not try to out the OP.

I agree, but this is eventually going to hit ATL and at least partially out the OP.

[dabigchina]

Guys, let's not try to out the OP.

I agree, but this is eventually going to hit ATL and at least partially out the OP.

ok, but let's not do ATL's legwork for them.

[Johnnybgoode92]

Why everyone assume he made a slur or sexually harassed when he could’ve done something else? Like bring hard drugs to work

[Dunnkirk85]

I think bringing hard drugs out at a social firm event or perhaps even bringing those hard drugs out after hours, at a bar, in the bathroom, when young associates were around are possibilities. I know the latter happened to someone in a non major market. But I also think that this person already would have outed themselves to the rest of their summer class by this post alone, so this could be flame

[icansortofmath]

I mean it could be something as “innocent” as sleeping with a partner... who’s married to another partner.

Just trying to imagine a situation where everyone involved wants to keep it on the down low.

[Npret]

Why everyone assume he made a slur or sexually harassed when he could’ve done something else? Like bring hard drugs to work

I only put those out as possibilities of reasons for immediate termination which wouldn’t be criminal offenses. I was thinking of hard and fast code of conduct rules..

Didn’t mean to accuse OP of any specific offense.

[impactplayer]

My favorite fired summer associate story was a guy who accepted two clerkships with two firms in the same building. The guy would go to firm #1, take off his jacket and put it on the back of his chair. His screensaver was a picture of his desktop with outlook open. Then he would go to firm #2, pull out a jacket from his drawer and put it on the back of that chair. Do a little work for 20-30 min, activate outlook screensaver and then go back to firm #1. Rinse and repeat all day long. The guy pulled it off for a few weeks until partner at one of the firms can't get a hold of him and goes into his office to see if he received any of the many emails the partner had been sending the guy. Partner moves the dude's mouse, screensaver disappears and it's just an empty desktop. Partner gets suspicious and decides to wait around for the guy to come back to his office. He ends up waiting a couple of hours until the summer gets back and asks him where the hell he's been. Summer was caught completely off guard and didn't have a good answer, so he fessed up to the whole thing. Ended up getting fired from both firms.

[UnfrozenCaveman]

My favorite fired summer associate story was a guy who accepted two clerkships with two firms in the same building. The guy would go to firm #1, take off his jacket and put it on the back of his chair. His screensaver was a picture of his desktop with outlook open. Then he would go to firm #2, pull out a jacket from his drawer and put it on the back of that chair. Do a little work for 20-30 min, activate outlook screensaver and then go back to firm #1. Rinse and repeat all day long. The guy pulled it off for a few weeks until partner at one of the firms can't get a hold of him and goes into his office to see if he received any of the many emails the partner had been sending the guy. Partner moves the dude's mouse, screensaver disappears and it's just an empty desktop. Partner gets suspicious and decides to wait around for the guy to come back to his office. He ends up waiting a couple of hours until the summer gets back and asks him where the hell he's been. Summer was caught completely off guard and didn't have a good answer, so he fessed up to the whole thing. Ended up getting fired from both firms.

Most unbelievable part of the story is that the partner waited for hours in the office.

[impactplayer]

My favorite fired summer associate story was a guy who accepted two clerkships with two firms in the same building. The guy would go to firm #1, take off his jacket and put it on the back of his chair. His screensaver was a picture of his desktop with outlook open. Then he would go to firm #2, pull out a jacket from his drawer and put it on the back of that chair. Do a little work for 20-30 min, activate outlook screensaver and then go back to firm #1. Rinse and repeat all day long. The guy pulled it off for a few weeks until partner at one of the firms can't get a hold of him and goes into his office to see if he received any of the many emails the partner had been sending the guy. Partner moves the dude's mouse, screensaver disappears and it's just an empty desktop. Partner gets suspicious and decides to wait around for the guy to come back to his office. He ends up waiting a couple of hours until the summer gets back and asks him where the hell he's been. Summer was caught completely off guard and didn't have a good answer, so he fessed up to the whole thing. Ended up getting fired from both firms.

Most unbelievable part of the story is that the partner waited for hours in the office.

Yeah, that part is probably bullshit. But good story nonetheless. You could imagine someone pulling this off 12-15 years ago which is when I heard about it.

[inter-associate]

Yeah, that part is probably bullshit. But good story nonetheless. You could imagine someone pulling this off 12-15 years ago which is when I heard about it.

Almost easier to pull off today - just bring your laptop to the second firm and hello $7200 a week...

[impactplayer]

Yeah, that part is probably bullshit. But good story nonetheless. You could imagine someone pulling this off 12-15 years ago which is when I heard about it.

Almost easier to pull off today - just bring your laptop to the second firm and hello $7200 a week...

Haha, fair point. And with firm email on your phone, you'd never get caught out of pocket for very long.

[Johnnybgoode92]

I mean it could be something as “innocent” as sleeping with a partner... who’s married to another partner.

Just trying to imagine a situation where everyone involved wants to keep it on the down low.

How much jerry or world star is everyone watching?

[icansortofmath]

I ain’t got no time for TV.

[Anonymous User]

Try your best to get something for the remainder of this summer. Reach out to career services and ask if anyone is looking for interns, even unpaid positions. Having a gap on your resume for your 2L summer will not be good. If the economy stays hot, you will have a chance of getting big law as a 3L or post-grad (like I did), but you can't have a gap on your resume. Employers will get suspicious.

[Npret]

Try your best to get something for the remainder of this summer. Reach out to career services and ask if anyone is looking for interns, even unpaid positions. Having a gap on your resume for your 2L summer will not be good. If the economy stays hot, you will have a chance of getting big law as a 3L or post-grad (like I did), but you can't have a gap on your resume. Employers will get suspicious.

This is the best advice. Do something positive to improve your current situation and help prepare for the future.

[albanach]

Getting drunk and dropping a slur would do it as would any type of harassment of another attorney.

Yeah, that or an ethics issue around client confidentiality. Maybe they traded on an upcoming deal? Or mentioned a deal they're working on to a classmate who happens to be summering at a firm on the other side? If not harassment related, those would be my call.

Either way, I think the only fortunate thing is this happening early. OP still has time to summer somewhere, though likely not at a firm. Career services are going to be important - I hope they're competent at OPs school.

[Monochromatic Oeuvre]

What's the outing risk of OP describing what he did? Either (a) people at the firm know what he did, and therefore the only people who could connect the act to OP already know that he was fired, or (b) his ex-workers know he got fired but not why, and rightfully assumed the worst. The only information being revealed is his ex-coworkers knowing he's asking for career advice, which seems like it would actually boost his reputation, if only because it's something else to know about him besides being the guy who managed to get fired in two weeks.

If you want the cold truth, OP, yeah, your Biglaw career is probably over before it began. Actually getting fired usually takes a pretty colossal fuckup. The reason I ask is wondering whether your side of the story might actually be sympathetic when you would inevitably be asked about it, but, seeing as how you raised no objections, it sounds like you aren't disputing their interpretation. Sorry man; best of luck in whatever comes next.

[really12]

The sympathy for OP in this thread is odd. I have only heard of associates getting no offered like this (in the middle of the program) for sexual harassment and/or being racist/making racist comments. I'm sure its possible something less offensive occurred, but if it did OP should be responsible for saying so, it's odd to assume this was a simple mistake on OP's part and offer help and condolences. We all know how hard it is to get no offered in general, and getting fired in the middle of the program only happens when someone seriously messes up. If OP was fired for sexual harassment, racism, or other serious issue (which is the most likely case) then I hope they take this moment as a time to understand the issues they have going on and change for the better, but in my honest opinion, it's good they were fired and they shouldn't be in the legal profession until they work out their issues.

[abiglawyer]

The sympathy for OP in this thread is odd.

Maybe these posters have a greater capacity for empathy than you do.

[really12]

The sympathy for OP in this thread is odd.

Maybe these posters have a greater capacity for empathy than you do.

I'm sure they do, but empathy isn't a good excuse for naivete.

[abiglawyer]

The sympathy for OP in this thread is odd.

Maybe these posters have a greater capacity for empathy than you do.

I'm sure they do, but empathy isn't a good excuse for naivete.

None of the advice I’ve seen strikes me as particularly naive. On the contrary, I think people have been sober and forthright about OP’s chances. But they haven’t been cruel and punitive enough for you, I suppose.

[cavalier1138]

Are we still assuming this is real?

I have a hard time believing that this story would be contained to TLS for this long.

[really12]

The sympathy for OP in this thread is odd.

Maybe these posters have a greater capacity for empathy than you do.

I'm sure they do, but empathy isn't a good excuse for naivete.

None of the advice I’ve seen strikes me as particularly naive. On the contrary, I think people have been sober and forthright about OP’s chances. But they haven’t been cruel and punitive enough for you, I suppose.

The advice is not naive in the terms of how to get a job in the situation. The advice is naive because it assumes that OP is someone we want to get another similar job in the situation. OP was just fired for what was most likely a serious violation, the type of which generally society would deem should invalidate that individual from being in a position of power or prestige.