The Standard in Attorney Search and PlacementTM About Us  |   Associate Resources  |   Partner Resources  |   Employer Resources  |   Job Listings In the News Fall 2008 is upon us. The last few months have seen drastic changes in the legal market place. Law firms are acutely aware of the slow down, and they continue to be mindful of headcounts and operate strategically in their hiring decisions. + Read more Profile Top 20 Questions Law Firm Partners Should Ask Themselves When Considering a Lateral Move By Harrison Barnes These are challenging times for law firms. There is great uncertainty in our financial markets. This in turn is making it much more difficult for business and individuals to obtain credit. If this continues for a protracted period of time, law firms ar... + Read more Profile Interviewing a Law Firm: Distinctions that Make the Difference By Harrison Barnes For the World’s Largest Collection of Law Firm Interview Resources Click Here I recently asked a managing partner (who is actively in t... + Read more BCG Q&A For the World’s Largest Collection of Law Firm Interview Resources Click Here Question: I was recently laid off from my position for economic reasons. The partners in my practice area where not generating enough business to keep our hours high enough and there were cuts throughout the firm. I received several months of severance pay and my biography is still on the firm's website, at least for a couple more months. Should I tell prospective employers the truth or try to find a job before my profile is removed?''- Anonymous + Click here for the answer Job Openings New York - New York City New York firm currently has several openings for banking or corporate associates. Candidates must be... + Click here to find more District of Columbia Washington, DC firm is seeking to add an associate to its Tax group. One to five years of tax experi... + Click here to find more Fall 2008 News from BCG Attorney Search Recently Laid-off Associate Unsure How to Handle Job Status in Interviews By Harrison Barnes For the World’s Largest Collection of Law Firm Interview Resources Click Here Question: I was recently laid off from my position for economic reasons. The partners in my practice area where not generating enough business to keep our hours high enough and there were cuts throughout the firm. I received several months of severance pay and my biography is still on the firm's website, at least for a couple more months. Should I tell prospective employers the truth or try to find a job before my profile is removed?''- Anonymous Answer: Your credibility is one of your most valuable assets. I advise you to be honest with potential employers from the outset. There are many attorneys in the market now who have lost their jobs due to economic reductions in force or their firms dissolving. The average job search is taking between four and six months these days and over the past month more attorneys have entered the ranks of the unemployed. We may be about to turn the corner on that, but the duration of searches is likely to increase slightly before it begins to improve.   See Top Ten Interview Questions for more information Do your homework, preferably while you are still on the firm's payroll:   Ask for copies of any written evaluations that are in your file Speak to the people that supervised you and ask them if they will be references for you and what they plan to say. If they are willing to write a letter of recommendation that you can provide to employers who are interested in you, that can give you an added measure of comfort. Find out what the human resources department intends to say when called for a reference. Most likely they will only give dates of employment, but you should get as much information as possible so that there are no surprises. Times have changed and with the number of talented attorneys who have lost their jobs it is no longer the stigma it once was in the eyes of potential employers so long as you tell the truth and present yourself as favorably as possible. See the following articles for more information:   Top 23 Law Firm Interview Tips: How to Excel in Law Firm Interviews 21 Major Interview Mistakes to Avoid at All Costs The Best Way to Prepare for a Job Search and Interviews How to Talk About Other Interviews in Your Interviews How to Answer the Tell Me About Yourself Interview Question How to Answer the Do You Have Any Questions for Me Interview Question Had a Great Interview But Have Got No Response to My Thank-You Emails What Does It Mean if I Haven't Heard Anything Back from an Application/Interview in a Couple Weeks? What to Wear to a Lunch Interview? How to Effectively Interview Lateral Candidates: Pointers for Law Firms The Interview Post-Mortem: Don't Forget Your Thank You Notes! The Secret to Effectively Sharing Concerns about Your Current Employer without Committing the Most Common Interview Blunder How to Conduct Yourself During a Lunch Interview   Click Here to Let Us Answer Your Legal Career Question If you no longer wish to receive this mail in future: Unsubscribe Here Office: 175 South Lake Avenue, Suite 200, Pasadena, CA 91101 | © 2024 BCG Attorney Search. All rights reserved.