I’m Tony Jones, the hiring partner here at RDB. As you know, summer associate positions often are the gateway to full-time associate positions after graduation. Hopefully, the firm you choose to work for during the summer will be the firm you work for after graduation, making this choice an important one. I suspect you’ve spent a great deal of time browsing firm websites and sorting through career message boards as well as those insiders’ guides to major firms. You’ve probably considered factors such as the firms’ practice areas, salary ranges, location, and size. Finding the right fit for you should rest on a combination of these factors, but it also should include the “intangibles” that go into making you a happy and satisfied attorney.
We’ve all heard the stories of firms that treat their associates like fungible billing units, imposing mind-boggling billable hours targets (or misleadingly low false targets), with a galley labor, “row ’til you drop” mentality that leaves young lawyers alienated, untrained, and desperate for a way out. At RDB we understand the negative impact this has on both the individual and the overall work environment. While the firm expects its attorneys to work hard and meet our 1900 hour billable target, this is an honest requirement and expectation. We want and expect our associates to come here, thrive and eventually develop into partners of the firm. Such development is good for the firm and the individual attorney.