How to Break Into Finance as a Lawyer
“The first thing we do, let’s kill all the lawyers.”
-William Shakespeare, Henry VI Part 2, Act IV
Lawyers don’t get much respect – whether it’s from investment bankers or Shakespeare.
But if you’re a lawyer and you want to break into finance – investment banking, private equity, hedge funds, and so on – there is good news: you have it easier than some professions.
And in some ways you have it harder – so let’s get started with what you’re up against, what your strengths are, and how to network like a ninja and dominate your interviews until you land an offer.
What You’re Up Against
Each profession faces its own set of challenges when breaking into finance:
- Engineers: They’re great with numbers, but can they talk to real people and work far more than they would at tech companies?
- Accountants: They might be accounting wizards, but can they work without sleep for days at a time?
- Consultants: They understand how to work with clients and how the corporate world works, but can they work banker hours and avoid using the mouse in Excel?
Here’s your challenge as a lawyer:
“I know you can burn the midnight oil and deal with crazy people all day, but can you count? Do you know how to use Excel? And are you ready to throw away your investment in law school and your career up until now?”
In Your Favor
On the other hand, you do have a few things working in your favor:
- You “get it” – you understand how the corporate world works, what you’ll have to put up with, and how to deal with psychopaths all day long.
- You’re hopefully at a prestigious law firm that everyone knows – that’s huge.
- You can get better networking opportunities by going through clients, former clients, and even Partners and ex-Partners at your firm (yes, discretion is required).
All things considered, you don’t have it so bad next to the engineers and liberal arts majors out there that want to move into business.
Just as with universities and business schools, the prestige of your law school and law firm matters a lot – so make sure you get into a top law school and get a top corporate law job and you’ll have a much easier time moving into finance.
Telling Your Story
First, refer to the “how to tell your story” template and tutorial – this is also known as the “Walk me through your resume” or “Tell me about yourself” question (yes, they’re all the same).
You should say that originally you were interested in law, but then got exposed to M&A/IPO/Debt/Other deals and that those drew you to the finance side – you wanted to be the one driving transactions as opposed to just checking the paperwork afterward.
Here’s a quick sketch:
“In law school I was always interested in corporate finance and mergers & acquisitions. I took a lot of classes in the field and went to work in M&A at [BIGLAW] firm after graduation.
I enjoyed the work at first, but after a few years I was envious of the bankers on these deals – they actually got to see everything from beginning to end and could directly influence whether or not a company was sold.
All I could do was sit on the sidelines and comment on specific issues in contracts and agreements. I want to be the deal-maker, or at least be close to the dealmaker, rather than just drafting contracts.”
If you’re not in corporate or securities law, you will face a challenge here telling a convincing story: your best bet is to move into one of those, or to focus on a very specific area within finance if you can’t make the transition (e.g. if you do real estate law, focusing on real estate banking groups or real estate investments).
Other fields like antitrust, civil, copyright, criminal, litigation, and so on are just not that relevant: you need corporate/securities (ideal) or an industry-specific practice (less than ideal).
You don’t have to say that you got more interested in finance after you already began working as a lawyer, but it’s harder to tell your story if you claim that you were interested before that and still went into law.
So apply all those spinning skills you learned in law school and on the job and make your story “creative non-fiction” if necessary.
Networking Like a Ninja
I’m not going to repeat everything related to networking here: go to the Recruiting page to learn all about it and get dozens of tips and case studies on breaking into finance.
Everything in there still applies if you’re a lawyer – the key differences are:
- Cold-calling won’t work as well – it’s more appropriate for students.
- You have more ways to find names and contact information – your law firm’s “alumni network,” current and former Partners, current and former clients, and so on.
- You can be more direct – while informational interviews are a fine strategy for students and recent graduates, you don’t have the time to “develop relationships” and move through a slow process if you’re working in law right now. Ask for what you want at the end of the first phone call or meeting.
I’ve gotten a lot of questions on how to go through clients and Partners, and the key principle is simple: only ask people you know well and trust completely.
So if you have firsthand knowledge that a Partner is about to leave the firm, or you’re very close and you know he would help you out, go ahead and ask.
But avoid bringing it up with random people CC’d on emails, other Associates or Partners you don’t know as well, and anyone who could potentially ruin your career.
You’re safest asking former Partners and former clients because the risk is greatly reduced, but there are never any guarantees: it’s a calculated risk.
I’ve mentioned before that you stand a better chance at boutiques (small banks) rather than bulge brackets (Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, JP Morgan, etc.) if you come from a non-traditional background, and that holds true as a lawyer as well.
But don’t rule out big banks completely – if your law firm is prestigious and well-known for corporate law (Latham & Watkins, Skadden, etc.) chances are that they’ve sent Associates to banks before.
Spinning Your Resume/CV
First, download and use the “Experienced” resume template here.
Focus on your 3-4 best cases and separate them into separate “projects” as you see on that template (label it “Case Experience” or “Client Experience” of course).
The standard advice is to spin what you’ve done and make it sound more quantitative and related to business – that works for engineers and consultants, but it’s harder to pull off as a lawyer because there isn’t much quantitative work.
If you’ve done anything that involves numbers, even remotely – even if it’s just looking at an Excel file or a series of calculations, definitely include that:
“Reviewed flow-of-funds calculation for $500 million purchase price allocation to ensure that sources and uses of funds and individual investor allocations matched up with terms stipulated in definitive agreement.”
That sounds much better than writing about more legal-related aspects of the deal such as reviewing the reps and warranties.
You’ll have to adjust the focus quite a bit and focus on smaller tasks that didn’t take up as much time as the bigger ones if you want to spin your resume successfully.
If you don’t have any examples of quantitative experience like this, use anything that can be related to deals or investments in any way – whether it’s a tax issue, a contractual one in stock purchase or asset purchase agreements, or even something like employee contracts.
Dominating Your Interviews
As a lawyer, you’ll have to answer 2 key questions in interviews:
- Can you count?
- Are you prepared to throw away your career and investment in law school?
They’ll still ask the usual “fit” questions and your “story” is still critical, but most questions will feature the 2 themes above as the subtext.
To answer #1 successfully, use everything at your disposal: undergraduate courses in finance, self-study, classes outside of work, and anything you learned in law school.
Self-study financial modeling training programs like Breaking Into Wall Street will be helpful, and even the CFA – which I am normally not a fan of – could help prove your aptitude for numbers.
The CFA is not the most efficient use of your time if you’re just preparing for interviews, so stick to self-study and investment banking interview guides unless you have a surplus of free time.
For proving #2, you will make a much more compelling case if you’ve been working for at least a few years in corporate or securities law first – if you’re just out of law school you have an uphill battle.
You need to emphasize how much research (bonus points if you call this “due diligence”) you’ve done on your own, how many bankers/investors you’ve spoken with, and how you’re certain, after working on dozens of cases, that finance is a better fit for you.
You don’t view this career change as “throwing away” anything but rather as a way to apply the skills you’ve gained in a different context, and to learn new ones along the way.
Technical Questions
Anything is fair game when it comes to technical interview questions – and the fact that you don’t have a finance background means that they really want to test how much you’ve learned on your own.
They won’t necessarily focus on a specific type of technical question (with accountants they would obviously lean toward asking more accounting-focused questions), but bankers will expect you to know as much as a new Analyst or Associate fresh out of a finance undergraduate program or MBA.
Check out the free investment banking superday interview guide offered on this site to get an idea of the questions you need to know.
If you’ve had absolutely no finance background, you may need to go beyond the interview guide: while the CFA is good preparation, it also requires hundreds of hours of study.
Since you don’t have that kind of time as a lawyer, think about books such as Investment Banking: Valuation, Leveraged Buyouts, and Mergers and Acquisitions (highly recommended) or the video-based Breaking Into Wall Street Financial Modeling Program.
Don’t bother with other certifications: they’re useless and knowing how to use Bloomberg has no correlation with being able to answer valuation and modeling questions in interviews.
So, Which Field of Finance?
I’ve assumed so far that you’ve been working as a lawyer for a few years and that you’re moving into investment banking.
It’s possible to get into other fields of finance as well, but whether or not they’re viable depends on your background and the firm you’re targeting:
Private Equity
It’s tough because there’s no overlap with the skill sets you use as a PE Associate and the ones you gain as a Law Associate – consultants have operational experience, while bankers know accounting and finance.
Here you’re better off going for a highly specialized firm that only hires people from legal backgrounds, or advancing to the Partner-level and moving in like that (it’s been done before).
Hedge Funds
These are also difficult and you don’t stand a good chance unless they do something that has serious overlap with the law – such as Distressed Investing.
Otherwise, most hedge funds are looking for traders or bankers depending on the fund’s strategy, so you’re not in a great position to move in directly here.
Real Estate Finance
Real estate also has more overlap with the law because complex contracts are required to begin construction, and you need legal approval and permits throughout the process.
But it depends on the types of investments they make, and how much real estate you have in your own background – overall this one is still tougher than banking.
Within Investment Banking, More Specifically
Your best bets are M&A or Restructuring – with Restructuring and Distressed M&A there’s a ton of overlap with the legal code, so experience there is almost required.
Plain-vanilla M&A may also work, but again it depends on your background – moving from corporate law to M&A at a bank happens, but going from copyright law to M&A at a bank is wishful thinking.
Venture Capital
This is almost impossible because early-stage companies do not have to deal with complex legal issues, and early-stage investments have very simple contracts.
VCs are usually looking for industry experts or former bankers who have worked in industry groups like technology or healthcare, so you don’t stand a good chance.
Plan B Options
So what should you do if you can’t make the move into finance?
1. Move to a More Prestigious Law Firm or a Different Group
You have the best chance of breaking in at the top law firms in the world – smaller places don’t have the brand-name recognition and don’t have as many contacts at large banks.
If you’re not in corporate or securities law, do whatever you can to transfer into one of those – learn how to land corporate law jobs right here.
2. Go to Business School
This one is controversial because more time in school won’t necessarily help you: especially since you already have a JD, you may also run into a branding problem if you get an MBA as well.
But it is an option, albeit an expensive and time-consuming one, that may or may not help you re-brand yourself.
Master’s in Finance programs are also possible but their usefulness is questionable: they help more if you don’t already have an advanced degree.
3. Accept a Non-IB/PE/HF Field
You could move to a normal company and transition into finance or business development there, for example – but if you’re reading this, you probably don’t want to settle.
Kill All the Lawyers?
Bad idea – we need them for deals to close and for bankers to get paid.
So as much as bankers dislike lawyers, they’ll probably let them live for now.
But if you want to kill your own career in law and move into finance, now you know how.
Series: Career Transitions
- How to Break Into Finance as a Consultant
- How to Break Into Investment Banking as an Accountant
- How to Break Into Finance as an Engineer
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I am a former real estate attorney an I am enrolled in a real estate finance program through an MBA program. I have completed multiple MBA courses in corporate finance, real estate finance, and capital marketss. The program is almost entirely quantitative, and I now realize that all of the analysis we do translates into investment banking (DCF analysis, projecting cash flows, valuation equations, lots of modeling in excel, etc). I just learned that my new next door neighbor is a founder and MD of a new boutique investment bank, and also a former attorney.
After doing lots of research, I think I might want try this as a career. My neighbors bank is hiring an “Associate” but the posting requires an MBA. What is your best advice for getting in? I am worried they will see real estate law all over my resume and trash it. I hate real estate law. Help.
Contact him directly, set up a 10-15 minute chat to introduce yourself, ask about his background, and then at the end ask directly about how to interview for his firm. Read everything on this site under Recruiting –> Networking sub-category at the top.
Thank you for this forum. I am entering my first year of education, in the pursuit of an MBA/JD degree from a great institution. I’d like to know how the dual experience is viewed in the P.E./I-Bank world and what areas should I focus on to obtain a position with a PE Firm?
JD is not relevant except for maybe some restructuring or distressed positions, so if you want to leverage the dual degree focus on those. http://www.mergersandinquisitions.com/restructuring-hottest-group-cooling-economy/
Hi Brian,
I will be moving to london for 6 months and think this is a great opportunity to network into IB.
I have question though.
You say, and rightfully in my opinion, that we should be careful whilst contacting clients.
How should we approach them? Is it ok to email someone who was just copied in emails in a specific deal? Or to contact people where I was just copied in an email they sent regarding a transaction?
One of my main concerns is if the partners at the firm I work at find out about me contacting their clients (especially if they don’t know I’m doing it for carear purposes…).
Thanks in advance
Generally only email people you’ve spoken with personally… not just randoms you’ve seen copied on emails. and probably ask for a call rather than sending anything via email (can be easily forwarded etc.).
Hey M&I, thanks for all the great responses.
Two questions:
(1) Can you provide more information on which level of banking a lawyer might transition into? Would the following estimates be broadly accurate (assuming a very high quality CV and/or very good networking):
(a) 5/6 years experience as a law associate –> beginning of 2nd year IB associate
(b) 3/4 years experience as a law associate –> beginning of 1st year IB associate
(c) 2 years experience as a law associate –> beginning of 3rd year analyst?
(2) When during the year do promotions occur? Is it September or January, or some other time?
Thanks again
Yes those estimates are accurate but with 2 years experience as an associate they would probably make you 1st year IB associate anyway. Promotions for associate positions and up occur in Jan/Feb
Thanks for the input. If possible, could you offer some insight on what time of year, if any, would be best suited to seeking a transition from law (or any other non-traditional background) to IB?
Intuitively, I would imagine that the worst time of year would be recruiting season and shortly after (say September-January), as the banks are focused on more traditional recruitment processes. This would be especially true for a lawyer seeking to enter as a 1Y associate (so he/she would effectively be competing with MBA students during recruiting season). Accordingly, the best time to seek a transition would be February-August?
However, perhaps the opposite is true and the best time to transition would be recruiting season, when the banks are actively looking to take on new people?
(Of course, I understand that actually making a transition is likely to be primarily driven by networking and job availability, rather than precise timing, but some insight on this issue would still be appreciated.)
There’s no really ideal time but what you said is probably true, most associates leave in the beginning of the year after bonuses are awarded.
Hi Brian,
Would studying law + accounting at an undergraduate level increase my chances of landing an entry-level interview at a BB as opposed to studying accounting + finance?
Thanks
No
I’ve decided after a little over four years at my current law firm that’s it’s time to switch into i-banking. A handful of people have left my firm for banking; one associate got hired by GS. My firm is generally regarded as one of the top two or three firms in NYC and is widely regarded as having the best FIG practice, which is where I work
1. How much does it matter in terms of compensation and exit opportunities whether you work at the bank generally viewed as one of the most “prestigious” or the bank that’s (to pick an arbitrary number) the tenth most “prestigious”? Although I’m generally a prestige whore, I primarily care about making as much money as possible in as little time as possible in order to retire as soon as possible. In law, the more prestigious firms generally pay their partners more. (Everyone pays his associates more or less the same.) I’m not sure whether the same holds true for i-banks.
2. I think I’m pretty well qualified to move into banking; I’m senior enough that I basically run M&A deals and I know a substantial amount about banking law, investing in depository institutions, dealing with regulators, etc. to boot. I went to the best law school in the nation and did well. I went to a forgettable university for undergrad but was likely the best student who ever went there, or at least my friends used to joke that I was. I minored in math, so I can count. Do you think I should just call headhunters and get my resume and transcript out there, or do I really need to “network”? I (arrogantly and perhaps wrongly) feel like I shouldn’t have to put much effort in to at least land an interview but I’m a pompous jerk and need a reality check from time to time. Also law spoils you because it’s so, so easy to get an offer at basically any firm in the country if you went to my law school and did reasonably well.
3. Given my background in FIG – which comprises a substantial amount of advisory and deal work – would I be better off trying to transfer into a FIG group at an i-bank, even if it’s at a less prestigious bank than one that I could get hired at if I didn’t limit myself to FIG departments? As mentioned above, I primarily care about maximizing my earnings. (I promise to be more charitable and less self-centered once I’m extremely wealthy and retired:)
4. I think the answer is that you don’t do so but – do you give career counseling advice? I’d like to discuss the best way to transition into finance and what to do from there with someone who’s intelligent and knowledgeable about the industry. If you have any recommendations, please let me know.
I realize you don’t have enough info to give meaningful answers to questions 1-3. I’m more or less just looking for your gut reaction.
Many thanks
1. http://www.mergersandinquisitions.com/finance-investment-banking-jobs-tradeoffs/
2. Um you still need to network especially given that the economy is still questionable. Reality check: they would still much rather hire bankers than you. Finance and law are completely different and finance is much more “hustle”-driven.
3. Yes.
4. I don’t offer one-on-one consulting but you can check with Management Consulted or WallStreetOasis.
Thanks for the quick reply.
1. Ha. Nice article. To be defensive: I don’t think I have any misconceptions about what it takes to make big money. Gunner law associates work just as much as i-bankers (and billable hours are very different from time spent in the office) yet make a fraction of what their peers in banking are making. I once “worked” (ie, I was in the office, but was billing slightly less than all of my time in the office) 110 – 120 hours a week for eight straight weeks, because law firms suck and that’s the way almost all of them roll at the top — lockstep compensation for associates. I received rave reviews for my stamina, effort and work product but did not receive any additional compensation for my hard work. If you’re willing to bear the downside risks of banking, you think law is shit and you have no illusions that a career in banking / PE will be anything but generally terrible, I say you need to make the switch. The shit you take is about equal but your upside is far greater. About prestige: prestige for law firms drives exit opportunities. I should be clear that I mean “prestige” in the sense that such an such [law firm/bank] is “prestigious” if an informed recruiter or hiring partner/MD would view that [law firm/bank] as superior to some other [law firm/bank], not whether some random bum on the street, or hot chick at Pink Elephant, would view it as “prestigious”. Also my GF is super hot and I’m probably not going to do much better than her looks-wise even if I’m pulling in seven figures, so “models and bottles” isn’t a selling point for me. (Not sure why I’m so defensive today, sheesh).
2. Thanks for the reality check. I have a couple friends, former class mates and a few acquaintances who probably can get me an introduction. I’m also going to check with some recruiters. Banks used to, but appear not to do so much any more, occasionally recruit lawyers.
3. Makes sense.
4. Checked it out. I might have them take a look at my resume. It doesn’t seem like there are a lot of good resources. The bright side of law is that unless your firm is doing poorly you’ll never get fired and even if you leave, most firms will give you a standing offer to return, unelss you sucked.
Somehow “, because law firms suck and that’s the way almost all of them roll at the top — lockstep compensation for associates” ended up at the end of the wrong sentence; it should be at the end of the immediately following sentence. oops
Wow… are you sure you went to the top law school in the country (I’m assuming you mean Yale). You’d think somewhere in your experience rubbing shoulders with the best and the brightest you would have become less small-minded and shallow. I wonder what your peers at your law firm would think if they could read this post (even if they somehow ignored the part about you wanting to switch careers). Just goes to show, you can’t buy or teach class.
Any experience with lawyers attending top business schools after having practicing corporate/securities law for several years? Is this a good move if you have been accepted into a top school?
I have not seen it much before – if you have corporate law experience it is generally easier/cheaper to network your way in rather than paying $150K+ for an MBA.
I have been a practicing tax lawyer for a little over three years (no M&A experience). I graduated second in my class from a top 50 law school (to all the prestige whores, obviously that’s not Yale). I worked for a large, fairly well known firm (not Skadden) doing tax planning and controversy in DC for a little less than two years. I have been at the IRS ever since. I tried cases in Tax Court for my first year at the IRS. Now I work at our National Office and specialize in the taxation of partnerships.
Does that translate into banking at all? As anyone who reads the newspaper knows, the government has become a hostile work environment, and I think I just want to try something different.
Also, do you have to move to NY to work in banking, or can you do it in DC?
There’s little banking in DC so moving to NYC is probably necessary. Tax work usually doesn’t translate well to generalist banking positions so I would look for more niche roles like special situations or restructuring groups where knowledge of tax law is more useful.
Hello Brian,
I must say I find this site incredible and instructive – I only just stumbled upon it today and have read quite a number of articles.
I graduated from the Nigerian Law School in 2009, after spending five years at the university studying law; and after a year of compulsory national service — which lasted till last Oct — I’ve been unable to tie down a well paying and rewarding job in legal practice.
Only recently, I made the acquaintance of an executive of one of Nigeria’s top banks; and during our discussion, he asked about my primary interests. I was specific about Intellectual Property (patents, trademarks, anti-competition and all), corporate law & commercial law practice. I also indicated that I had secured admission for my LL.M (in IP, but I’m now considering Int’l Commercial law) in England this Sept. He offered to help out with securing a position at the bank and promptly asked me to email my c.v, which I have since done.
However, I intend to email a customised c.v for the banking industry to him. I don’t have any prior banking experience or knowledge (and really little experience in legal practice too), neither did I take finance classes back in school. I’m in my mid-twenties and trying to have an open mind about career paths.
I intend to take up the bank job if offered one, but I don’t know if I want it long term (then again, I am not making any concrete decisions yet). Can you possibly offer an advice? I have no clue as to what the next line of action should be; the kind of career objective that should be on the c.v, interests and the likes.
Thank you.
Please do a search for “resume template” on this site to see a few examples of what to include. After you email him you have to follow-up every week or so until you get a response one way or the other.
Hey ibanj,
I’m Nigerian too. It’d be great to connect.
Drop me a few lines at Laajman@yahoo.ca
Great article. Was wondering if you had any opinion on the ease with which a corporate lawyer at a firm could switch to the the in-house counsel of a bank (GS, Citi, etc) and what their compensation is like?
In-house counsel is always lower pay than what you make at a law firm but probably still higher than other industries since it’s finance; you definitely have a better shot doing that vs. moving into finance directly
Brian,
I am a recent law school graduate with a tax LLM. I am currently litigating tax assessments of real estate transactions in circuit court and volunteering at a tax clinic. I am pursuing my CPA with two sections remaining to sit for. I was a finance and accounting double major in undergrad. My interest is mergers and acquisitions. Can you provide any advice on opportunities or experience that could get me into one of the M&A groups at a Big 4 accounting firm or another corporate tax group within the Big 4? My career outlook would be to get experience at the Big 4 in M&A or a related field and then transition over.
Best regards,
Jason
I’m not sure about law –> Big 4 but generally you would have to focus on groups with direct overlap (i.e. Big 4 ones that do just real estate transactions or TAS groups where taxes are more important, sort of industry-dependent). Beyond the usual co-worker/alumni networking think about joining professional groups for accountants, CPAs, and so on and seeing if those turn up any leads, even ones further astray may help.
I read your other article if you can’t get paid work for free, and in particular I’m curious about where you cite increased M & A activity among non-profits. I would like to look into this angle because I can qualify to be paid through a fellowship grant independently of the non-profit org. Are certain types of 501(c)(3)’s utilizing M & A more heavily to focus on cold calling? I would greatly appreciate any further advice you would have on this angle. I have work experience in both tax and law. The biggest barrier to transitioning to a special situations practice will be for me to get experience in capital financing and valuation modeling.
Honestly not sure about that one – I don’t remember writing it but then this site was written over many years so I don’t remember every detail. I don’t think non-profit M&A is really that common due to lack of funds. If you already have experience in tax and law I don’t think a nonprofit would add that much, you’re better off getting more relevant experience.
Thanks a ton for the article, very helpful.
I’m about to enter a well known law firm’s corporate group in NYC and just graduated near the top of my class from a top ten law school. I’ll be doing capital markets and/or M&A work after starting at my firm. I majored in a quantitative major (think math/physics/etc.) from a ‘target’ undergrad but didn’t have my stuff together and missed the boat on finance out of college.
After spending a couple summer internships at law firms and working on a dozen or so deals, taking accounting and finance classes during law school, and doing a fair amount of self study on business valuation over the past couple years, I am absolutely sure I would rather do banking than law. I thought law was a good fit for my skill set but now realize I would rather focus on quantitative/sales issues as opposed to contractual ones.
My question is: what is the minimum amount of time I should spend at my firm before it becomes appropriate to start aggressively networking for a job in finance? I know you say a few years of experience makes it easier to transition in the article above, but does my story make an early transition sound like a reasonable goal or should I just put my head down and focus on editing prospectuses for a couple years?
I would stay there for at least a year or two to get the experience and the network.
Thank you for the response, I guess there’s no way out of putting in a couple years. I feel a little bit rushed since I’m a little older than the average law grad. Does transitioning into an associate position at a bank at 32/33 seem possible?
Also, one other question, would it be easier to transition if I’m willing to live outside the U.S., in Asia for instance?
Yes you could still do it at that age, if anything it would probably be harder outside the US
I’m curious why it would be harder outside the U.S.? Is it just a networking issue or something? Does this hold true even with solid language ability (not bilingual but advanced enough to have no problems interviewing in the target language)?
Thanks again for your responses and everything else on this site. Even though I was focusing on law at the time the general advice for networking/interviewing you give is way better than anything my school’s office of career services had to say when I was going through recruiting a few years ago.
Yes, networking is just not as accepted in other regions.
I am due to start a Training Contract at a magic circle law firm in London in the next few months. However, I have been working at an investment fund for the past 6 months (during my “gap year” after university) and have developed an interest in private equity.
My question is: what steps should I be taking at this early stage to guide my career towards working in private equity? More specifically, when it comes to choosing which department in my firm to qualify in to which one to you recommend? Finally, which type of PE firm would a candidate from a legal background be most suited to?
Thanks for your help
“If you’re not in corporate or securities law, you will face a challenge here telling a convincing story: your best bet is to move into one of those, or to focus on a very specific area within finance if you can’t make the transition (e.g. if you do real estate law, focusing on real estate banking groups or real estate investments).
Other fields like antitrust, civil, copyright, criminal, litigation, and so on are just not that relevant: you need corporate/securities (ideal) or an industry-specific practice (less than ideal).”
PE firms – smaller and more overlap with your law focus the better
Hey Brian, love the site man.
I’m 26 and currently a 2L at Rutgers Law school. They offer the dual Mba/Jd degree which I’m considering since I’ve now realized i hate law after my 1st summer internship. Even though I held a Series 7 and came from a finance background, i think its a smart move to get joint degree bc it would give me more time in school to 1st get an IB internship and move from there. Also I dont want to be labeled solely as a lawyer. thoughts?
Secondly you mentioned going to other schools’ career fairs (NYU/Columbia). Are there any tricks on how to get in? I would assume they’d check student ids coming through the door
Degree alone will not help but if you can use to get more time for internship it makes sense. http://www.mergersandinquisitions.com/degrees-certifications/
Borrowing an ID from a friend is the easiest method for other career fairs.
Hey Brian
Thanks for writing an amazing article. I just wanted your opinion on my situation. I am currently a 2nd year litigation attorney. However, I’m specifically interested in M&A field. In law school I concentrated in finance transactions. But I did not have much of a choice in where I was placed in my firm. As far as experience, I only did a summer intership in their corporate department. I am about to start my M.S. in Finance program this September and I am contemplating the recruiting season. Would it be better for me to apply to the summer positions at the BB firms or should I try for the Full-time positions? You help is greatly appreciated!
If you have a summer in b school in which you can apply for internships I’d say go for the summer positions at BB firms. If you’re talking about post grad of course try the full time ones though banks right now might prefer contract workers given the economy. Don’t think your previous experience matters much as to whether you shd apply for summer positions or full time roles; i think banks’ hiring needs determine whether you would be given a full time or contract role/internship
Really love this site, thanks for taking the time to gather all this information.
I know this is an older post, but I had a question related to this topic. I have an MS in chemistry and I’m currently working at a biotech startup. I have a long term goal of getting into VC in the life sciences and am planning on attending b-school in the near future. I may have an opportunity for a role at an IP-focused law firm as a technology specialist and I wouldn’t need a JD or take the bar. I’m looking to position myself in the best way possible for vc and I’m curious if this route would benefit me for having a better understanding of the IP space/process that startups face. I’m not all that passionate about patent law for the long term, but I’m wondering would having a small amount of patent experience, albeit as a scientific advisor, help in landing a vc job post-mba since I would be that much more well-rounded? Or would you consider it a waste of time (or worse, a hindrance) for that end?
To be honest, I’m not quite sure either. I think having a small amount of such experience might help though I’d presume your current experience is more important. Have you been networking w VCs in the life science industry? I’d suggest you to do so if you haven’t already. http://www.altapartners.com/index.php
I’ve really started to dig in to networking recently, I have an informational meeting lined up with a local vc in jan and I am curious what his take on it is. I just thought I should get as many perspectives as possible. Thanks for the lead about Alta, I’m in the northeast at the moment, but my goal is b-school out west, so I’ll check them out.
As an aside, I find it funny, at least from experience, that we’re told to “go to college” and then, especially if you’re in the sciences, to “just go to grad school.” Once you’re off of the trodden path, there’s really no one telling you this is the correct route to take to get to x goal. So thanks for putting this site together, it’s a big help to clarify and organize a career path.
Thanks for your insight!
I am a Kenyan Lawyer and have just enrolled in an MBA program. Currently, i work as a legal officer in a development finance corporation where i deal mostly in conveyancing, security documentation and commercial law. I am looking into majoring in finance. Please advice on my career and employment prospects in finance
I’d suggest you to speak to finance professionals in your area because they will have a better understanding than we do given we have no background in Kenyan law
Hi Brian,
Many thanks for this amazing web and for this post. I have been practicing M&A in a Magic Circle law firm for some years now and would like to switch to IB. For this purpose I was thinking about going for an MBA at a top American school, also because I think it’s just an amazing experience. Do you think it’s a feasible option?
Many thanks in advance!
MBA seems like a waste, why not move to corporate / securities law first?
I have been doing corporate law, but thought that the MBA would offset the lack of financial modelling skills. In addition, I read somewhere in your blog that getting into banking through networking is much harder in Europe than in the US. Given that I deal with I-bankers on a daily basis (I-banks and PEs are our main clients…)I thought that networking before leaving to Business School gould be an option…
….again, you are not a lawyer
there’s an old saying, the lawyers who like law become litigators
the ones that don’t go into corporate, and wish they had done business