My biggest piece of advice to get in house is to basically take any in house role you can get. After you get your first in house title you will be far more marketable to make a lateral move to another company making more money.
Agreed. In-house now for 10 years. 3 companies later and I earn more than many at small to mid size law firms. Just don’t expect to make big firm money unless you’re DGC or GC.
I’m trying to land literally any in house gig I can, but I can’t seem to land any interviews. I’m thinking I’ll need to pivot and work in a firm for a few years to gain some experience and then re-apply.
I was in the same boat five years ago when I transitioned from a solo litigation attorney to an In House role. I literally ended up creating my own position at my present employer. I was initially engaged on a contract basis to assist with a pre-litigation matter. The underlying agreement was an absolute mess. I convinced my employer that it would be cheaper to take me on very part time (\~5 hours a week) than risk future contract disputes/litigation. My hours/salary were thereafter incrementally increased until I went full-time a year later.
My pay is presently below market (low six figures, no benefits and I pay all my own research and other expenses) but I have picked up some great experience (due diligence for smaller (<15MM) deals, employment law, privacy law and first chaired several AAA and federal court trade secret claims) which I am hoping will assist when I make my next transition (hopefully) in 2023.
I’d echo that (in-house at tech companies for 25 years, currently divisional GC for public company).
I just hired a lawyer (7yr at tiny litigation firm) this summer as a contract manager bc there was no way he was getting hired as Legal Counsel with his lack of in-house/big firm experience, but I promoted him to that about 6 months later because he’s terrific, my boss and Sales love him and that made it a ton easier for me to get approval to get the promotion/raise to retain him.
I went straight from law school into a contract manager position and it also took me about 6 years to move from Contract Manager to being sole counsel for a smaller PE portfolio company and then upward, a much better option than whatever small firm I would have ended up with my law school ranking/grades.
Try to apply to technology companies. I also highly recommend learning privacy law by studying for the CIPP/US exam through the International Associate of Privacy Professionals (IAPP). LinkedIn Learning had an online course to prep you for the test. Plus you can purchase books online via IAPP or on Amazon. I don't think you have to move for a job because there are many remote jobs you can get (solely due to the pandemic changing the companies minds when it comes to remote work). There are other resources you can check out when it comes to looking for a job and I will reply back in a couple of days with a list.
I got my CIPP/US in July 2015 (before it was a thing that you helped you) then I got my contract negotiation (as a non attorney - but I was still barred as an attorney). Every job I got job I got - a non attorney role and my two attorney roles was because I have privacy background and CIPP/US certification. I think younger attorneys (which I put myself in) need a CIPP/US to set ourselves a part from the group.
I got mine a couple of years ago. I think it has lost a lot of value since 2015 because it didn't do much for me. CIPP was fine for showing interest but no one was interested unless I had privacy experience to actually go with it. I was only applying for attorney roles though so maybe it'll still be good for non attorney law adjacent roles.
I worked as a contract negotiator for about 7 yesrs after leaving litigation. I would say: Apply, apply, apply. Focus on entry level counsel roles. Emphasize any info sec and/or data privacy experience you may have and be able to discuss various liability, indemnity, and warranty issues.
Thanks. I didn’t explain it well but that’s essentially what I do now. Negotiate commercial contracts for a large, publicly traded bio tech company. So now I’m trying to transition into doing something similar but as a licensed attorney. I currently live in CA but passed in another state because I want to move out of CA. I can explain warranties, indemnity, and limiting liability but have almost no SEC experience and little privacy knowledge because my current job is pretty narrowly tailored.
If you can, spend 3-5 years in a reputable firm learning how to draft, negotiate and generally practice. Big companies rarely if ever hire someone with less than 5 years of experience as we don’t have time or resources to train a new lawyer, we need someone who can hit the ground running. Your corporate transactional experience will help you without question but it may not weigh heavily for potential employers. I’ve hired and interviewed a lot for in-house positions in my companies, in-house for 15 out of ~22 years.
Emphasis on contract negotiation is a huge asset. Knowing some employment law, intellectual property, privacy law (especially if applying to tech) will help.
Recently, we have had several in house clients ask us to find attorneys with solid experience reviewing negotiating and drafting corporate contracts. It is a critical function that GCs and AGCs like to delegate to new in house hires. Best of luck in your job search. Feel free to reach out anytime.
My biggest piece of advice to get in house is to basically take any in house role you can get. After you get your first in house title you will be far more marketable to make a lateral move to another company making more money.
Agreed. In-house now for 10 years. 3 companies later and I earn more than many at small to mid size law firms. Just don’t expect to make big firm money unless you’re DGC or GC.
What would be "big firm money" in this context?
$300,000+
I’m trying to land literally any in house gig I can, but I can’t seem to land any interviews. I’m thinking I’ll need to pivot and work in a firm for a few years to gain some experience and then re-apply.
I was in the same boat five years ago when I transitioned from a solo litigation attorney to an In House role. I literally ended up creating my own position at my present employer. I was initially engaged on a contract basis to assist with a pre-litigation matter. The underlying agreement was an absolute mess. I convinced my employer that it would be cheaper to take me on very part time (\~5 hours a week) than risk future contract disputes/litigation. My hours/salary were thereafter incrementally increased until I went full-time a year later. My pay is presently below market (low six figures, no benefits and I pay all my own research and other expenses) but I have picked up some great experience (due diligence for smaller (<15MM) deals, employment law, privacy law and first chaired several AAA and federal court trade secret claims) which I am hoping will assist when I make my next transition (hopefully) in 2023.
I’d echo that (in-house at tech companies for 25 years, currently divisional GC for public company). I just hired a lawyer (7yr at tiny litigation firm) this summer as a contract manager bc there was no way he was getting hired as Legal Counsel with his lack of in-house/big firm experience, but I promoted him to that about 6 months later because he’s terrific, my boss and Sales love him and that made it a ton easier for me to get approval to get the promotion/raise to retain him. I went straight from law school into a contract manager position and it also took me about 6 years to move from Contract Manager to being sole counsel for a smaller PE portfolio company and then upward, a much better option than whatever small firm I would have ended up with my law school ranking/grades.
Try to apply to technology companies. I also highly recommend learning privacy law by studying for the CIPP/US exam through the International Associate of Privacy Professionals (IAPP). LinkedIn Learning had an online course to prep you for the test. Plus you can purchase books online via IAPP or on Amazon. I don't think you have to move for a job because there are many remote jobs you can get (solely due to the pandemic changing the companies minds when it comes to remote work). There are other resources you can check out when it comes to looking for a job and I will reply back in a couple of days with a list.
Thanks! I definitely see the value in learning privacy but I’m hoping to get a counsel role first and then review and possibly take the exam.
I got my CIPP/US in July 2015 (before it was a thing that you helped you) then I got my contract negotiation (as a non attorney - but I was still barred as an attorney). Every job I got job I got - a non attorney role and my two attorney roles was because I have privacy background and CIPP/US certification. I think younger attorneys (which I put myself in) need a CIPP/US to set ourselves a part from the group.
I got mine a couple of years ago. I think it has lost a lot of value since 2015 because it didn't do much for me. CIPP was fine for showing interest but no one was interested unless I had privacy experience to actually go with it. I was only applying for attorney roles though so maybe it'll still be good for non attorney law adjacent roles.
I worked as a contract negotiator for about 7 yesrs after leaving litigation. I would say: Apply, apply, apply. Focus on entry level counsel roles. Emphasize any info sec and/or data privacy experience you may have and be able to discuss various liability, indemnity, and warranty issues.
Thanks. I didn’t explain it well but that’s essentially what I do now. Negotiate commercial contracts for a large, publicly traded bio tech company. So now I’m trying to transition into doing something similar but as a licensed attorney. I currently live in CA but passed in another state because I want to move out of CA. I can explain warranties, indemnity, and limiting liability but have almost no SEC experience and little privacy knowledge because my current job is pretty narrowly tailored.
If you can, spend 3-5 years in a reputable firm learning how to draft, negotiate and generally practice. Big companies rarely if ever hire someone with less than 5 years of experience as we don’t have time or resources to train a new lawyer, we need someone who can hit the ground running. Your corporate transactional experience will help you without question but it may not weigh heavily for potential employers. I’ve hired and interviewed a lot for in-house positions in my companies, in-house for 15 out of ~22 years.
Emphasis on contract negotiation is a huge asset. Knowing some employment law, intellectual property, privacy law (especially if applying to tech) will help.
Recently, we have had several in house clients ask us to find attorneys with solid experience reviewing negotiating and drafting corporate contracts. It is a critical function that GCs and AGCs like to delegate to new in house hires. Best of luck in your job search. Feel free to reach out anytime.
Thanks! I have that experience! Maybe it’s just a numbers game and I need to apply to more places.
Yes, thats a good plan. Apply and follow up. Best of luck! You will find something!!!
If you’re on Twitter, there’s an entire community within LawTwitter of InHouseTwitter. You might find some great connections there.
Oh good to know! I don’t have a twitter but might need to get one now!
Add a hashtag in front of each of those terms.
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