- Current & Upcoming NALP Events
- Future Annual Education Conference Dates
- Conference Handouts
- Making the Best Case for NALP Conference Attendance
- Requests for Proposals
- The Future of Lawyer Hiring, Development & Advancement
- About NALP's Conferences
- 2011 PDI Supplemental Materials
- 2011 Diversity Summit
- Forms
- Career Services
- Recruitment
- Recruiting Section
- Lateral Hiring Best Practices Guide
- Fall OCI Scheduling Master Schedule
- Career Fairs
- Open Letter to Law Students
- Sample Legal Recruiting Job Description
- Ranking or Rating of Law Schools, Legal Employment and Candidates for Employment
- The LL.M. Toolkit -- Hidden Talent: How Hiring Internationally Trained Lawyers with U.S. LL.M. Degrees Can Add Value to Your Firm's Business
- Alternative Hiring Evaluation Models
- Professional Development
- Law Students/Graduates
- Prelaw
- Links
- Reviewed Resources
- Shared Resource Pool (login required)
- Weekly News Digest for Legal Career Professionals
- Webinars
    |
Career Transitions - Directories & Professional References Career Transitions — From Student to Lawyer
Excellence in the Workplace: Legal and Life Skills in a Nutshell, Kay Kavanagh and Paula Nailon Thomson/West, 2007. Inspired by a course on "Practices in Professionalism" taught by active NALP member Paula Nailon and her colleague Kay Kavanagh at the University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law, this book addresses fundamental lawyering skills in an accessible, quick-read format. Skills addressed include research, analysis, writing, oral communication, managing assignments, supervising, working with support staff, and putting feedback to good use. Just as important, the book emphasizes the importance of emotional intelligence, effective interpersonal relationships, professionalism, conflict and stress management, and the awareness of generational differences in the workplace. Nailon and Kavanagh also offer practical advice for building a successful career (such as maximizing the law school experience, creating a career plan, assessing a job offer, negotiating salaries, money management, and work-life balance). Descriptions of numerous real-life situations keep the book engaging and down to earth.
Managing Your Legal Career, Richard L. Hermann ABA, 2010. To compete today, you need up-to-date, reliable information on how to establish and manage your legal career. This thorough guide is divided into short, specific sections that touch on what you'll need to do before a job hunt, while you're looking, as you're sitting in the interview, once you've gotten an offer, and all the steps in between. Hermann addresses both private and public sector and both the publicized and "hidden" job market. His concise yet comprehensive advice addresses discerning what employers really want, understanding the market, expanding your legal career horizons, dissecting and responding to a job ad, identifying hidden skill sets and matching them with opportunities, keeping up with application technology, online networking, and negotiating the terms of employment. Extensive appendices are also featured, with checklists and exercises to ensure you're ready for your job search or transition.
The Lawyer's Career Management Handbook: Your Bridge to a Satisfying Career, Marcia Pennington Shannon, Editor West, 2010. This 600+ page guide offers comprehensive career management advice for lawyers considering a transition and for law students, beginning with 10 chapters asking "Who am I" and then continuing with 19 chapters on job searching in challenging times (including chapters on resumes, cover letters, interviews, and search strategies and on various types of job searches, from private sector to public service to academia, in-house jobs, and alternative career job searches). Seventeen chapters then address aspects of success on the job, and three closing chapters address the broader topic of success in life. Extensive resource lists are included. Most of this book's chapters were contributed by Shannon & Manch staffers, many of whom had former experience as NALP members.
From Law School to Law Practice, 3rd Edition, Suzanne O'Neill and Catherine Gerhauser Sparkman ALI-ABA, 2008. This book offers tips and suggestions on how to go about relating to clients, managing assignments, handling record-keeping, communicating with supervisors, learning about and adapting to life as a practicing attorney, and working toward long-term career and business opportunities.
What Law School Doesn't Teach You . . . But You REALLY Need to Know, Kimm Walton BarBri,
2000. Walton is popular for her lively writing style, and here she
dispenses advice on everything from handling social events gracefully
to working with support staff. The book includes a chapter focusing on
success as a summer associate ("The 1,640-Hour Interview: What Every
Summer Clerk Should Know")
Maximize Your Lawyer Potential: Professionalism and Business Etiquette for Law Students and Lawyers, Amee McKim Thomson
West,
2009. NALP member Amee McKim, who has extensive experience both within
a law firm and in law school career counseling, is the author of this
book addressing a wide array of issues including succeeding in law
school (including debt issues), networking, business etiquette,
technology pitfalls, professionalism in the job search and interview
savvy; succeeding in a summer job or internship; succeeding in one's
first legal job; pro bono and community service; and work/life balance.
Thomson West, 2008. Law students and new associates will find a
wealth of advice in this book, including advice from rainmakers, public
relations experts, marketing masters, in-house counsel, business
executives, career advisers, and associates. Each chapter addresses
genuine strategies for achieving success, with how-to information on
defining your personal brand, leveraging creativity, mentoring,
networking, getting published, and other techniques for maximizing your
success.
The Lawyer's Guide to Mentoring, Ida O. Abbott NALP, 2000. To be successful, lawyers today need multiple mentors at every stage of their careers; Abbott's book offers advice on finding mentors, initiating (and ending) a mentoring relationship, and making the mentoring experience more meaningful.
The Curmudgeon's Guide to Practicing Law, Mark Hermann American Bar Association, 2006. For new associates and law students headed toward a career as a litigator, The Curmudgeon's Guide
provides highly readable, to-the-point advice from a law firm insider.
This slim volume is a quick read — well-designed for busy law students
and lawyers. Chapters are included on writing briefs, how to fail as an
associate, what they didn't tell you in law school, support staff,
depositions, preparing to argue a case, how to enter time so clients
will pay for it, building a practice, relating to clients, and even the
curmudgeon's advice "on couth."
Work, Life & the High Calling of the Law: A Managing Partner's Perspective, Ralph G. Wrobley Lawyer Avenue Press, 2010. A number of law firm partners have written books offering advice to would-be lawyers and new associates, but Wrobley's book is a cut above most of the books in this field. Wrobley is currently Of Counsel with Husch Blackwell LLP, was an equity partner in three Am Law 200 firms, and was a managing partner in two of these firms. Where many advice books focus on such issues as business etiquette and work assignments, Wrobley's book is about the larger picture of achieving an extraordinary career -- and life -- in the law. He addresses understanding the lawyer personality; how to select a law school; what law school won't teach you that you really need to know; the pros, cons, and realities of BigLaw practice; eight ways to make a lasting impression after you get hired; common areas of legal practice; and how to know if you're living the high calling of the law. In an appendix, Wrobley discusses efforts to increase diversity in the legal profession and special issues for women and minorities.
ABA, 2007. Students and entry-level lawyers often wish for an all-knowing senior mentor to guide their entry into the legal profession. In truth, such guidance must come from multiple sources, but Rouse's reflections on his legal career will fill some of that need for words of wisdom. Rouse, a British lawyer, focuses not only on lawyering skills but also on being a healthy, fulfilled human being. Relationships are the common thread that lead him to explore issues of integrity, behavior with clients, collaboration, valuing others, responsibility, alignment and coherence of values, conditions for change, and managing one's own health.
Begin with a Successful Summer NALP, 2002. This tri-fold brochure offers a host of tips for succeeding as a summer associate.
A Successful Transition from Law Student to Lawyer NALP, 2003. This 12-page brochure available for bulk purchase offers tips for getting off to a good start as a lawyer — from developing good management practices and putting client service first to demonstrating professional ethical behavior.
The Right Moves: Job Search and Career Development Strategies for Lawyers, Valerie Fontaine NALP, 2006. Author Valerie Fontaine presents an experienced headhunter's inside view as she tells lawyers at all stages of their careers how to increase their marketability - whether to land their ideal job or to position themselves for success with their current organizations. Fontaine tells lawyers how to conduct an effective self-assessment and design a personalized career plan; stay abreast of trends in the legal marketplace; determine where to look for opportunities; maximize their marketability; write effective cover letters and resumes; ace all types of interviews; handle offer negotiations; choose the right work environment; make smooth career transitions; work smarter, not harder; and position themselves to springboard ahead.
The Lawyer's Career Management Handbook: Your Bridge to a Satisfying Career, Marcia Pennington Shannon, Editor West, 2010. This 600+ page guide offers comprehensive career
management advice for lawyers considering a transition and for law
students, beginning with 10 chapters asking "Who am I" and then
continuing with 19 chapters on job searching in challenging times
(including chapters on resumes, cover letters, interviews, and search
strategies and on various types of job searches, from private sector to
public service to academia, in-house jobs, and alternative career job
searches). Seventeen chapters then address aspects of success on the
job, and three closing chapters address the broader topic of success in
life. Extensive resource lists are included. Most of this book's
chapters were contributed by Shannon & Manch staffers, many of whom
had former experience as NALP members.
Managing Your Legal Career, Richard L. Hermann ABA, 2010. To compete today, you need up-to-date, reliable
information on how to establish and manage your legal career. This
thorough guide is divided into short, specific sections that touch on
what you'll need to do before a job hunt, while you're looking, as
you're sitting in the interview, once you've gotten an offer, and all
the steps in between. Hermann addresses both private and public sector
and both the publicized and "hidden" job market. His concise yet
comprehensive advice addresses discerning what employers really want,
understanding the market, expanding your legal career horizons,
dissecting and responding to a job ad, identifying hidden skill sets and
matching them with opportunities, keeping up with application
technology, online networking, and negotiating the terms of employment.
Extensive appendices are also featured, with checklists and exercises to
ensure you're ready for your job search or transition.
The Lawyer's Career Change Handbook: More Than 300 Things You Can Do with a Law Degree, Hindi Greenberg Avon, 2002. For lawyers considering a career change, this book is a good overall guide with helpful self-assessment exercises; Greenberg addresses career choices in and out of law, job search techniques, and ways to increase career satisfaction.
Lessons from a Headhunter...with Heart, Patricia A. Comeford, J.D., with Gina Sauer, J.D. The Esquire Group/Beaver's Pond Press, 2006. Subtitled "Spiritual and Practical Keys to Navigating (and Surviving!) Job Change," this book's focus is on the inner life of the job seeker who is in seach of a job where his or her interests, skills, and passions are in line with the "soul of the job."
Navigating Detours on the Road to Success: A Lawyer's Guide to Career Management, Kathleen Brady Inkwater Press, 2005. Navigating Detours offers a simple, five-step career planning process enabling lawyers to manage their professional lives and enhance their personal lives. Whether a lawyer is looking to advance in a current positionor find a new job, Brady's insights and practical advice will help to plot a course that ensures swift arrival at the final career destination.
What Can You Do with a Law Degree? 5th Edition, Deborah Arron DecisionBooks, 2004. Author Deborah Arron offers self-assessment tools, job search advice, and extensive resource listings to help law students and lawyers determine which alternative career paths might be right for them.
Preparing for Reentry: What Lawyers Need to Know to Navigate the Road Ahead After a Career Break, M. Diane Vogt ABA Publishing, 2009. How does one achieve not only success but also work-life balance and career fulfillment when transitioning back into the field of law after a career break? This book offers some suggested strategies. It is available from the online bookstore at www.abanet.org.
Lawyers at Midlife: Laying the Groundwork for the Road Ahead, Michael Long, John Clyde, and Pat Funk DecisionBooks/LawyerAvenue Press, 2009. The career transition that claims the most attention from NALP members is the transition from law school to lawyer. This book is directed instead toward lawyers who are considering the transition to retirement. While the authors begin with the self-assessment necessary to develop a vision of retirement, much of the book is focused on strategies for the many practical aspects of the transition, from building retirement assets to developing an estate plan to closing a practice. This book can be purchased from www.lawyeravenue.com. Directories & Professional References
NALP Directory of Legal Employers NALP, published annually in mid-April. NALP's most widely used Directory features information on more than 1,800 employers. Published annually in print and available online at www.nalpdirectory.com. Primary representatives at NALP member organizations receive a complimentary copy of the print edition.
NALP Directory of Law Schools Through 2009, NALP has published this directory annually in April in both print and online versions. Beginning in 2010, this will become an online directory only, allowing recruiters to search on a variety of fields as they plan on-campus interviewing or seek to interpret student resumes. The NALP Directory of Law Schools is online at www.nalplawschoolsonline.org.
NALP, annual. All members receive one free copy of this annual directory, published in August. Members can also access an updated membership directory at members.nalp.org (login required).
ABA/LSAC, annual. This guide features not only individual profiles of schools but also a series of charts that allow recruiters or pre-law students to compare enrollment demographics or employment statistics of law schools at a glance.
The web site of the ABA Section on Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar (http://www.abanet.org/legaled) includes links for ABA approved law schools that can be accessed in multiple ways — through an alphabetical list, a list by location (featuring a "clickable" map), lists of private and public law schools, and/or a list by date of ABA accreditation.
ABA Section on Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar, updated annually. A free guide to state bar admission requirements can be accessed online (or printed out in PDF form) from the web site of the ABA Section on Legal Admissions to the Bar at http://www.abanet.org/legaled/baradmissions/bar.html.   
|
National Association for
Law Placement, Inc.® (NALP)
1220 19th Street NW
Suite 401
Washington, DC 20036-2405
Phone: (202) 835-1001
Fax: (202) 835-1112
Email: info@nalp.org