Summary: Harrison Barnes explains how attorneys can strengthen their resumes and skillsets to move to a new law firm.
In a new article, Top 10 Ways Attorneys Can Move to a Better Firm and Get a Better Attorney Job, Harrison Barnes offers valuable advice for attorneys interested in moving to a new law firm and enhancing their careers. So how does it happen?
First, it helps to have a special skill and practice area. Specialization in certain fields will increase an attorney’s value and increase the chances of being hired in a new firm. For example, patent attorneys often make the move to big law firms with no issues.
Next, the more experience you have, the more likely you are to move into a better firm. Large law firms want attorneys who are motivated, ambitious, and willing to work their way up. Law firms welcome attorneys who are ready to be challenged.
A large book of business is essential to a successful transition. If word spreads that an attorney has a substantial list of clients, and that attorney is ready to change firms, many law offices will immediately offer that attorney employment.
How you work with other lawyers is also essential. Even if you are on opposing sides of a case, an attorney from a big law firm may be impressed with how you conduct yourself and handle the case and offer you a job down the road.
You must also be mindful of your writing and speaking outside the law firm. Do you participate in speaking engagements? Have you been published? The more prominent your name becomes in a certain type of law, the easier it will be for you to move to a better law firm.
Timing is very important. If your experience is in a type of law that is in high demand, you will easily be able to move firms. Barnes provides examples of several areas that are booming right now.
Additional education, such as an LLM in tax law, will also increase the odds of transferring to a new firm.
Fostering a strong relationship with the partners in your law firm is another route to a new job. If the partner decides to leave the firm and start his own practice, you may be invited to work there as well.
Joining a firm that is growing may also help you land a job at a new firm, because many of the country’s growing firms are merging with other law firms. Often, attorneys from the firm being acquired will be asked to join the new firm.
If you work in a strong job market, it will be easier to move to a new firm. It will be much easier to make the move if you practice in New York than if you practice in a small town in Kansas, for example. You have to be comfortable working anywhere in the United States if you want to work your way up as an attorney.
The above information is just a fraction of what Barnes divulges in his article. Be sure to read the article in its entirety at BCGSearch.com.
Source: BCG Search
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