Student Edition
Chill in the Air
Smaller classes, shorter stints, and slimmer job prospects made it hard for this summer's associates to completely enjoy their time in the sun.
For this year's summer law clerks, 2010 is likely to go down as the year of the even leaner, meaner summer program. Like their predecessors last year, this year's summer class got a stark reminder of the heavy toll the recession has taken on the legal business, as many top law firms continued to cut back the length of their summer programs, from 12 weeks to ten or, in some cases, ten weeks to eight—if they had summer programs at all.
And in 2010, the size of summer classes was also down significantly from last year, as many firms scaled back their recruiting efforts, knowing they'd have far fewer full-time associate jobs to fill. On the bright side, firms were generally better able than they were last year to assure the summer clerks they did hire that they would get full-time job offers, provided they did good work. In the end, almost three-quarters of those who answered The American Lawyer's 2010 Summer Associates Survey said they had either already gotten or expected to get an offer from their firms.
That's an improvement over 2009, when only about half of the associates surveyed were expected to receive full-time offers. Yet this year's numbers are still down sharply from 2006, when 87 percent of those surveyed said they expected a job offer—and when nearly all but the most lackadaisical summer associates were almost guaranteed to get offers.
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From Minority Law Journal
Lost in the Shuffle
The results of this year's Minority Experience Study offer more evidence that the recession is hitting some lawyers-especially African American and Asian American associates–harder than others.
Exhibit A
Challenging a Student Lender Head-on
The results of this year's Minority Experience Study offer more evidence that the recession is hitting some lawyers-especially African American and Asian American associates–harder than others.
Shining a Light on Law School Employment Data
The results of this year's Minority Experience Study offer more evidence that the recession is hitting some lawyers-especially African American and Asian American associates–harder than others.
Apprentice: Big Law Edition
The results of this year's Minority Experience Study offer more evidence that the recession is hitting some lawyers-especially African American and Asian American associates–harder than others.
Study: Don't Sweat Your School's Status
The results of this year's Minority Experience Study offer more evidence that the recession is hitting some lawyers-especially African American and Asian American associates–harder than others.
Closing Argument
Hiring Partner Confidential
The results of this year's Minority Experience Study offer more evidence that the recession is hitting some lawyers-especially African American and Asian American associates–harder than others.
