Comments on: On Pursuing a Non-Legal Regulatory Job

By: seejanegetrich

seejanegetrich — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 04:59:38 +0000

@Ronnie,
Thank you for commenting. I want to do financial regulatory work so working as a regulatory analyst would be directly related to the type of law I wish to practice. I spoke to a chief recruiter for a govt’l regulatory agency and she told me that their experience attorney positions required at least 1 year of legal experience but most attorneys have 3 years. A state clerkship would not further my interest in anyway because it will be litigation not securities work.

@Kate,
I appreicate your thoughts. Thanks for commenting.

@Caity
I can go get an LLM but I am not interested in shelling out the money for that because that would leave me with student debt. Also, those degrees are specialized and I wouldn’t want to specialize since I am not 100% sure about the field I want to specialize in. Right now, its securities/financial regulatory work. I need to be doing it on a regular basis to decide if that is what I am interested in for sure.

@InvestingNewbie
I think just about any lawyer would kill to be an in house attorney for the hours and the wide ranging work. But, you need at least 3-4 years of large firm work experience under your belt to try for those positions and further you need at least 5+ years to be competitive candiate for some of the really good in house positions.

By: Investing Newbie

Investing Newbie — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 15:34:12 +0000

Thank goodness she picked up the check or this would have sounded like the worse meal ever! Anywho, are you considering in-house work? I actually picked up that term from a corporate lawyer I befriended since she sits on my floor. She prefers working in-house because of the wide array of perspectives she can get on her work. Just putting her two cents out there for you…
Investing Newbie´s last blog ..Net Worth Update – February 2010

By: Caity

Caity — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 04:02:31 +0000

Oh my, this sounds so stressful!

I know nothing about law as a profession, so take my meager advice for what it’s worth, but is there any way to take a “gap year” by getting another degree or some sort of program? (This is a fairly commons solution for my older friends who want to go into banking, entering an extra recruiting season with the added credentials of a Master’s degree)

Best of luck to you!
Caity´s last blog ..Crossing a Line

By: Kate

Kate — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 00:52:48 +0000

I’m really feeling for you with these posts. I work in the legal field (but not as an attorney, obviously) and I have to agree. It’s incredibly difficult to climb your way back in if you start out with a non-legal position. I’ve talked with a lot of people who have seen this happen. There’s nothing wrong with pursuing something outside of the legal field, but just make sure you do that with your eyes wide open.

Just keep pushing through though! It’s hard out there for EVERYONE. You’re smart and educated, I know that as soon as the right person interviews you you’ll be set. If you’re not getting the interviews you want, I would definitely take another look at your resume to see if there’s anything you can improve. Are you taking advantage of LinkedIn? It sounds like you have a lot of connected people who really like you from your previous positions, you might be able to get something through them.
Kate´s last blog ..Reading: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time

By: Ronnie

Ronnie — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 23:47:45 +0000

Jane,

What type of law are you interested in? I know not litigation, but what precisely do you want to do?

It didn’t take me 3 years to feel competent, but my boss made me take a deposition my first day on the job, and I handled my first trial 9 months in, so…but that’s the nature of litigation, especially in a small firm.

The type of law you eventually want to practice should guide what non-legal job you may want. If you want to be in a mid to large-size firm, I totally agree with the attorney. I think you really have to look at what you want to do long-term. You mentioned that you don’t want a state clerkship, but that’s going to give you more experience than non-legal work (and, quite frankly, if it’s in court, it’s litigation, so I don’t quite get the distinction between federal and state clerkships as a practical matter), and is much more likely to transfer skills over to a firm.

What particular skills, at this internship or another non-legal position, transfer over to what you want to do for a career? If you can’t readily answer that, because that’s the first question you’ll be asked, then I would seriously reconsider.