The summer’s coming to an end on the east coast, and the summer offers aren’t rolling in as they have in the past (law.com subscription required). In California, our summer nights are in full swing for at least another month, but the news, I’m certain, isn’t heart warming for the summer associates.

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Having worked in the legal industry for 13 years (11 in legal marketing), I cannot allow this new “trend” to take hold without shining the bright light of WARNING – CAUTION – BEWARE – CHANGE COURSE – HAVE AN ALTERNATIVE PLAN – BE FLEXIBLE.

When coupled with the summer associate classes being considerable smaller this year, the job offer rate looks downright frightening. Here in California, we’re talking 60-80%, down from the prior 90% averages.

In another blow to the job prospects of top law students, summer associate offer rates are down significantly at many big California firms.

While some firms are still compiling numbers, most offer rates are in the range of 60 to 85 percent, but one firm, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, offered jobs to only 30 percent of summer associates.

That’s down from an average of more than 90 percent in recent years at most firms. The National Association for Law Placement reported in February that in 2008, the summer offer rate dipped to its lowest rate since 2003 — to 90 percent.

Firms that were still in the 90s this year include Latham & Watkins and Morrison & Foerster, while Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe; Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker; and Nixon Peabody dipped below 80 percent.

The trend is a double blow to students, after a summer in which firms invited 30 to 50 percent fewer students to join their programs.

Let’s be honest. In years past, you had to be a total loser, a-hole or made a complete fool of yourself when drunk to not get an offer letter.

Robert Depew, managing director of Major, Lindsey & Africa’s San Francisco office, said in the past, the major hurdle for law students was obtaining a summer associate offer with a reputable firm, not getting an offer of full-time employment at the end of the summer. This year, firms have raised the bar, and even smart and polished associates won’t make the cut.

“In years past, every summer associate was essentially guaranteed an offer unless he or she completely dropped the ball on work projects or totally shocked decision makers with abhorrent social behavior,” Depew said. “In fact, most firms maintained a tradition of going to extraordinary lengths to ensure 100 percent offer rates wherever possible. And the failure to obtain an offer at the end of the summer was a professional ‘kiss of death’ for law students.”

Times they are a changing, and new trends, they are a brewing. A legal education no longer guarantees that one will become a lawyer, in the traditional sense. Many of these young men and women who are in law school today will never receive that golden offer letter, and their path, upon graduation, will not be clear.

Law school placement and career centers need to open up a conversation on alternative career options, and career paths, than the traditional law firm model. These can include going small/solo, contract attorneys, teaching, legislative analysts, paralegals, journalism … marketing, technology and librarians, too.

Hi everyone. I want to welcome Michelle Fabio from About.com: Law School as a guest blogger to The Legal Watercooler. As we just spent the last two posts questioning WHO and WHY anyone would go to law school these days, how about some productivity tips for those who have made the leap to 1L status.

How to Increase Productivity in 5 Easy Steps

The law school year is just starting up, and I’m guessing many of you 1Ls are already behind in your reading assignments. I hear you (I’ve been you!), which is why I’m offering you some ideas on how you can be more productive now and throughout your life.

Indeed, these tips are for everyone, not just 1Ls, because really, who among us hasn’t gone to bed wishing we had done more, gotten more accomplished that day, crossed just one more item off the old to-do list?

Here are five easy ways you can become more productive:

1. Sleep.
See, I told you these would be easy tips! OK, what I really mean is to sleep better, more regularly, and get the right amount of sleep for your body–and it *will* tell you how much you need if you listen closely.

Just by getting better, more regular sleep, you’ll see an increase in concentration levels, energy, and focus, and this will likely turn into being more productive as well.

2. Move.
“But that’s the opposite of sleep,” you may be thinking. Why yes it is, and just like all things in life, balance is key, which means as important as rest is, so is movement.

Particularly if you’re at a desk most of the day, it’s vital that you get up and move around, whether it’s a walk to the office bathroom or an hour at the gym. Your mind also needs that time to clear itself, refresh, and process new information, so don’t underestimate the importance of physical movement regarding your productivity levels.

3. Group distractions.
Take one or two days and write down everything that interrupts you as you try to work or study; returning phone calls, email checks, Facebook status updates, dog walks, whatever it is, write it down.

From now on, try to group some of these together on your breaks from work, which, by the way, I highly recommend planning through the Pomodoro Technique. It’s worked wonders for my productivity, but there are many other time management methods out there for you to try if it doesn’t suit you.

4. Group errands.

In the same vein as the #3 tip, unless you have to go to the post office today because your lights will be turned off otherwise, wait until the end of the week when you have a list of errands to run (*and* your desire to work or study has perhaps waned a bit), or even until the weekend.

By doing a bunch of things at once, you’ll not only create more time to be productive doing other things, you’ll also have a nice sense of accomplishment when you finish–which tends to inspire you to do even more.

5. Track your progress.
One of the best things you can do to be more productive is to *see* how productive you’re being. Why is that?

Because we love to know that we’re actually getting things accomplished.

Whether it’s through a journal, diary, spreadsheet, or some other application or tool, keeping track of what you’re getting done really does inspire you to do more.

What are your productivity secrets?

Guest post by Michelle Fabio, About.com Guide to Law School, who also writes about how to become a paralegal at BecomeaParalegal.net.

Follow Michelle on Twitter: @michellefabio or @lawschoolguide

I read with interest a couple pieces today here and here on the value of law school, and the ethics of continuing to open new law schools, admit new students, promote salaries that are unrealistic in today’s economy, and saddle students with $100,000 or more in debt on graduation day … all with impunity.

I’ve been asked by several people, including fans of The Legal Watercooler, my opinions on entering law school at this time.

My answer: are you a gambling man, or woman? Are you willing to roll the dice and hope that a high-paying job is waiting for you in three years?

Thousands of young adults made that decision three years ago, only to see their dream jobs deferred and deferred again. The golden ticket, a summer associate position, no longer guarantees entry into the white-shoed world of BigLaw.

I’m not saying don’t go to law school. I’m just saying that before you enter the hallowed halls of law school, think long and hard. Why are you entering law school? What type of law do you want to practice? Are you entrepreneurial enough to open your own firm if need be? Do you have the personality, or are you savvy enough, to become a rainmaker? And, most importantly, are you willing to gamble $100,000 (or more) and three years of your life away??

There are a lot of different barometers out there for judging whether or not an individual has the personality skills to be a rainmaker. Unfortunately, LSAT results might not be amongst them.

According to a chart prepared by the Tax Prof Blog, the best “candidate” for law school, the person with the highest LSAT score, is most likely to be a Math or Physics major.

Ugh. That explains it!!

At a prior AmLaw 100 firm, I was chastised for not getting the chair of the IP department “out there more,” writing, doing press. My response, “The guy has an undergrad in Chemistry, then went off to law school. I’m lucky if he opens his door.”

As the BUSINESS of law, and the success of any given individual lawyer, is becoming more dependent on the development of personal relationships, the ability to reach out and promote one’s self, and SALES, then we need to remove the barriers that keep those who are so predisposed out of law school.

I’m not saying that the logic questions, while fun, should be excluded, but should we not be testing other skills as well that would identify good business leaders and business developers? Those of us who are in-house know that the role of service partner (smart, in high quantity, little ability to build a personal book of business) is being inched out in favor of rainmakers (smart, in low quantity, lots of personality and ability to build a personal book of business).

Simply stated: The success of any given lawyer in today’s law firm is dependent on many factors, the greatest of which are 1) good lawyering; and, 2) the ability to bring in new business.

I really don’t think that a Sociology/Social Work, Marketing, Business Management, Education, Business Administration, Health Professionals, Prelaw, and Criminal Justice major is less capable of LEARNING law school lessons than a Physics/Math, Economics, Philosophy/Theology major. We all understand that the APPLICATION of the lessons takes place AFTER the bar results are reached.

Kevin O’Keefe has a great post today, Seize the moment lawyers, that I recommend everyone thinking about a blog read — lawyer or not!

Lawyers are not alone in allowing their fears, or their lack of understanding of something new, stand in the way of them taking action. However, now is not the time to allow fear and ignorance hold you back. Now is the time to seize the moment.

Nancy Myrland summed it up perfectly in the comments section:

Don’t let fear paralyze your growth. How will you feel a few years down the road when asked what you did to weather the economy; to maintain and grow your practices and your firms? Will you be slightly embarrassed when you answer that you cut staff, cut marketing, cut participation in the community, reduced your ability to have discussions with current and potential clients, on and on and on? Or will you feel great because you took advantage of the silence being created by that group I just mentioned? Will you be able to hold your head high, knowing you took advantage of this time to focus on communicating and marketing like never before?

I hate to say “I called it first” (which I really didn’t, but I was close), but I’ve been talking about the “lost generation” of law students for quite some time. Who could look at all of these law firm layoffs and not reach the same conclusion?

From a May 19, 2009, post Looking for Inspiration in the Recession:

Yet more proof that the Class of ’09 is the Lost Generation.

Get ready, Class of ’09, more announcements like this to come. You may think you are just deferred, but you are really fired.

Boy, has that ever come true. Didn’t realize it would trickle down to the Class of 2010, and who can predict what will occur for those 1Ls.

Today, the ABA Journal seems to be getting the message in their post, A ‘Lost Year’ for 2Ls: About Half of BigLaw Jobs Are Gone

The timing couldn’t be worse for second-year law students.

Large law firms are hiring about half as many summer associates as usual, resulting in “the most wrenching job search season in over 50 years,” the New York Times reports. For many second-year law students, the “golden ticket” to a high-paying career at a big firm is slipping away.

Now these students are scrambling for other jobs at smaller firms, in government and in public-interest organizations.

Students who took out large loans to go to top-tier schools assumed they could pay off their debt with high-paying law firm jobs. But this year is different, says Irene Dorzback, the assistant dean for career services at New York University law school.

“People are now accepting this notion of a lost year,” she told the Times.

But, we’re not about the problem here at The Legal Watercooler. We like going Pollyanna on you, and we are always happy to support those who are part of the solution.

Today, The New York City Bar and City Bar Justice Center announced their Deferred Associate Law Extern Support Project, and we wish them the best of luck!

The New York City Bar and City Bar Justice Center are pleased to announce the launch of the Deferred Associate Law Extern Support Project. The Project was created in response to the growing pool of law school graduates who have been deferred for up to a year from private law firms and have chosen to work in public interest law in New York City. The Project is also open to law firm associates who have accepted year-long voluntary deferral offers from their firms.

The main goal of the project is to provide a series of training sessions that will help the law firm externs get up to speed on the hard and soft skills needed to succeed at their externships and when they return to law firms. A secondary goal of the Project is to bring the externs together with their peers to discuss their experiences in a supportive environment and to meet leaders in the legal profession who support pro bono efforts.

I could not agree more with this statement more:

Social media isn’t a fad, it’s a fundamental shift in the way we communicate.

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Watching my Twitter feed today I really enjoyed the following conversation:

Timothy B. Corcoran tweeted that at an ITLA09 panel discussing how technology can support alternative fees, a BigLaw partner said:

Clients can look for savings elsewhere in legal budget other than my billable hour.

Matt Homann quickly concurred, “And they will!!”

In all fairness, Nancy Myrland replied:

I think he was suggesting that it’s not just about squeezing vendors. Maybe there are other inefficiencies too.

Nancy also added this to the conversation:

Also, the myth that alternative fees will def’y be savings 4 the client is alive & well. There’s no guarantee.

I agree with Nancy, and Tim. There are always inefficiencies within any budget. Alternative fees are not a guarantee of cost savings for the corporate counsel. However, it is not up to the vendor to decide which inefficiencies a client should correct before asking them to cut their rates.

I wrote about the dynamic of in-house legal departments as cost centers for a corporation. Private practice lawyers need to understand the pressures faced by their clients. They are being asked to cut their budgets, trim the fat, and to quantify dollars spent.

There will always be a few, and I mean a few as in fewer than five, firms that will be able to consistently dictate their price on “bet the farm” litigation and complex corporate matters. And, that doesn’t necessarily trickle down to the entire firm.

Before you can emphatically say “NO” to a client request for alternative fee arrangements, are you in a position where your clients can say “Good-bye” to you?

If you haven’t heard about ABA Journal’s Legal Rebels project, don’t worry. It doesn’t kick-off until September 14th.

In these times of great economic chaos lies great opportunity.

The legal profession is not just struggling through a recession, but also undergoing a structural break with the past. There is a growing consensus that the profession that emerges from the recession will be different in fundamental ways from the one that entered it.

Dozens of lawyers nationwide aren’t waiting for change. Day by day, they’re remaking their corners of the profession. These mavericks are finding new ways to practice law, represent their clients, adjudicate cases and train the next generation of lawyers. Most are leveraging the power of the Internet to help them work better, faster and different.

The Legal Rebels project will profile these innovators and describe the changes they are making. It will tell their stories in the ABA Journal, on this website and through a variety of social media channels using text, pictures, audio and video

The first seven profiles were released today.

And I am glad to say that they are not the “usual suspects” or lawyers, for that matter. For a true “legal rebel” can even be found in a humble legal marketing director, a legal librarian, a consultant with gumption … all of whom can be nominated here.

Working Mother Magazine recently released their Top 50 Best Law Firms for Women. Having worked at two of these firms I’d like to suggest to the editors of Working Mother, and all the blogs that reran the story, that they change it to Top 50 Best Law Firms for Women LAWYERS.

From my personal experience, there is a disconnect between the benefits for the lawyers and those for the staff (and managers who usually fall somewhere in between). While the benefits provided for the Top 50 are generous for the women lawyers, I wonder about those provided to the assistants (who are primarily women), paralegals (once again, majority are women), receptionists (women), accounting, marketing and the administrative staff (women, women, women).

I am glad that the firms in this country are being pressured by Working Mother and Yale Law Women to increase their benefits for the lawyers, but before they bestow a “best place” honor on a firm, why not take a deeper look and see if that benevolence trickles down to the rest of the cogs that make that firm run?

JMHO.