No 2L Job - What do I do?

[HowardHamlinofHHM]

Hello there, 

I have no 2L job as of right now. I just got back my marks and did well on my classes which have papers, moots and presentations but did pretty bad in my classes that are exam based (which is most of them, I'm just pretty bad at exams). I did an absolute ton of extra-curricular law schools stuff but have hit a wall. 

Any advice for someone in my position going forward into the future? (Whether you've been hear or not) 

Some basic stuff about me: I genuinely worry about the articling recruit everyday, I want to stay in Toronto, I go to a pretty good law school, my work experience is sub-par, my volunteer experience is pretty good, my money and debt is better than most, I want to go into PI Law, Labour or employment but at this point I'll probably take anything for a 2l job. 

Thanks in advance. 

[bebebebebe]

By PI you mean personal injury? Or did you mistype and say IP? 

[cherrytree]

If the papers that you did well in are connected to your practice areas of interest, that could be a starting point to ask your professors/career office to introduce you to lawyers who practice in those areas, that way you can start building connections ahead of the articling recruit.

Hopefully you will have more certainty in the coming weeks as to what you are gonna do during the summer, as long as it's something interesting and law-related to talk about at your articling interviews. There are other ways to demonstrate a genuine interest in a particular practice area even if you don't work in it as a student.

[Ramesses]

Recruit is not the only way to get jobs. I know people who researched lawyers with practices they are interested in and obtained jobs that way. It is not easy, takes a lot of time and effort, and requires a lot of waiting but it work. 

Also, have you asked for feedback from the firms you interviewed with during formal recruit. It can help to know where you went wrong or what concerns the firms have. I know a couple people who reached out for feedback post-recruit and were offered jobs (they had really good grades though). 

Good luck!

[HowardHamlinofHHM]

On 5/13/2022 at 9:19 AM, bebebebebe said:

By PI you mean personal injury? Or did you mistype and say IP? 

Yeah I actually meant Personal Injury. 

On 5/13/2022 at 2:00 PM, cherrytree said:

If the papers that you did well in are connected to your practice areas of interest, that could be a starting point to ask your professors/career office to introduce you to lawyers who practice in those areas, that way you can start building connections ahead of the articling recruit.

Hopefully you will have more certainty in the coming weeks as to what you are gonna do during the summer, as long as it's something interesting and law-related to talk about at your articling interviews. There are other ways to demonstrate a genuine interest in a particular practice area even if you don't work in it as a student.

Yeah that is a great point, I'll be sure to look into it. 

 

On 5/13/2022 at 2:18 PM, Ramesses said:

Recruit is not the only way to get jobs. I know people who researched lawyers with practices they are interested in and obtained jobs that way. It is not easy, takes a lot of time and effort, and requires a lot of waiting but it work. 

Also, have you asked for feedback from the firms you interviewed with during formal recruit. It can help to know where you went wrong or what concerns the firms have. I know a couple people who reached out for feedback post-recruit and were offered jobs (they had really good grades though). 

Good luck!

Thanks for the advice, I usually have done pretty well during the interviews but I can tell my grades have held me back. I'll try doing that in the next couple of weeks if people are interested and I will post my results because I'm sure I'm not the only one in this boat and it can be really frustrating and augment how you view law school. 

[Rusty Iron Ring]

I spent 2L summer working in construction.  You're at a disadvantage, but it's not insurmountable, especially given the practice areas you are interested in. Be flexible about where you apply (what cities, etc.) and get yourself called to the bar. If you can, try to get some advocacy experience in 3L, at a legal clinic or moot or something, so you have additional experience to lean on for your next job search after articling, if you have one. 

[Ramesses]

2 hours ago, HowardHamlinofHHM said:

Thanks for the advice, I usually have done pretty well during the interviews but I can tell my grades have held me back. I'll try doing that in the next couple of weeks if people are interested and I will post my results because I'm sure I'm not the only one in this boat and it can be really frustrating and augment how you view law school. 

Grades can be overcome with networking! It is hardwork but it can be done. I know someone who got a 2L job at a top regional firm with a 2.9 GPA through networking. 

Worse comes to worst, you can change your name, move to Albuquerque, and do criminal defence or elder law /s

[bebebebebe]

You don't need a 2L job to get articling or a good position with a PI firm - a lot of the best don't even do summer students. I would focus your summer on networking and doing PI-related things. I find that these types of firms are very suspicious of people who go to "good" and more corporate-leaning schools and might think your interest is not genuine if you do not have relevant experiences that show interest on your resume. So I would network.