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Old 06-10-2014, 01:34 PM
 
18 posts, read 60,849 times
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We are considering a move from CA to TN. My husband will soon meet the requirements to be able to be admitted to the TN bar without taking another full exam. The only threads I can find are quite a few years old, so I am hoping for more up to date information. We know people in TN, just not anyone in this field. Any information about the job market for an attorney with 5 years experience would be great. What are the best ways to search (recruiters, etc..)? When looking on craigslist, there is very little. Here in CA this is a big way to advertise openings, so I am hoping there is another site that is the equivalent in TN.
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Old 06-10-2014, 01:56 PM
 
Location: Gallatin, TN
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I'd start with the TN Bar Association and the Nashville Bar Association.
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Old 06-10-2014, 07:12 PM
 
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It is better than it was 4 years ago, but it still isn't great.
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Old 06-14-2014, 06:46 PM
 
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What is his specialty? Healthcare law is very big here. Special Counsel and Counsel on Call are two local recruiters.
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Old 06-15-2014, 06:20 PM
 
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It's civil litigation, subrogation, and representing public entities.
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Old 06-20-2014, 07:37 PM
 
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I'm a mid level associate in a larger law firm here in Nashville and relocated from a major market. The answer is, it depends. The economy is hot right now and so it's the deal lawyers that are in demand. Litigation, not so much, but there are still positions available. It will also depend on where in CA he is coming from and why you guys are interested in Nashville. If he's at a Biglaw firm in CA it will be easier than if he's at a smaller shop. There are a couple of firms here that generally eat up the transplants from the major markets.

Even so, there's a lot of people from major markets trying to relocate, so it's really hard to break into the legal market here without a very concrete (i.e. on your resume) reason for wanting to be here. Did he go to law school at Vandy? Are either of you from the area?

As for the best way to find the job, networking. The legal community here is a bit insular and firms don't really post openings. Everyone is always talking to everyone and people who are looking are generally on the other firms radar so that when an opportunity opens up, there's no need to post, they reach out to the attorney directly. The second best way is to scour firm websites for openings. I also used bcgsearch to at least figure out when there were openings and then had to, from there, figure out what firm it was referencing. No harm in reaching out to a recruiter, and I know a fantastic one, she actually found me my job (but I'm an M&A person, much different market right now) but just remember, a firm has to pay that recruiter a lot of money to hire you, so all things being equal, they'd prefer a candidate who applied outright than via a recruiter.

Feel free to message me with any specific questions you have if my rambling post failed to answer something
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Old 06-21-2014, 05:08 AM
 
2,428 posts, read 5,553,727 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SouthernBound? View Post
I'm a mid level associate in a larger law firm here in Nashville and relocated from a major market. The answer is, it depends. The economy is hot right now and so it's the deal lawyers that are in demand. Litigation, not so much, but there are still positions available. It will also depend on where in CA he is coming from and why you guys are interested in Nashville. If he's at a Biglaw firm in CA it will be easier than if he's at a smaller shop. There are a couple of firms here that generally eat up the transplants from the major markets.

Even so, there's a lot of people from major markets trying to relocate, so it's really hard to break into the legal market here without a very concrete (i.e. on your resume) reason for wanting to be here. Did he go to law school at Vandy? Are either of you from the area?

As for the best way to find the job, networking. The legal community here is a bit insular and firms don't really post openings. Everyone is always talking to everyone and people who are looking are generally on the other firms radar so that when an opportunity opens up, there's no need to post, they reach out to the attorney directly. The second best way is to scour firm websites for openings. I also used bcgsearch to at least figure out when there were openings and then had to, from there, figure out what firm it was referencing. No harm in reaching out to a recruiter, and I know a fantastic one, she actually found me my job (but I'm an M&A person, much different market right now) but just remember, a firm has to pay that recruiter a lot of money to hire you, so all things being equal, they'd prefer a candidate who applied outright than via a recruiter.

Feel free to message me with any specific questions you have if my rambling post failed to answer something
I agree with all of this. Nashville is a very small legal market for a city of its size. Birmingham AL has a bigger legal market than Nashville.

Also the salaries can be shocking coming from a larger market. Yes, cost of living is lower, but for most lawyers their student loan payments stay the same :-). The associate salaries are pretty compressed so you don't get huge raises for jumping from a 2d year associate to a 5th year associate, like you do in larger markets like NY, Boston, DC, SF.
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Old 06-21-2014, 08:44 AM
 
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Agree about low salaries. And there are lots of applicants, even for doc review type jobs. Like a ratio of 6:1.
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Old 06-21-2014, 03:38 PM
 
18 posts, read 60,849 times
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Hmmm. Well that's not what I wanted to hear But I had thought as much. We don't have any real reason to move there except for months of research, some friends, and because CA is becoming an increasingly harder state to live in. He is not in a big law firm, more a medium sized. I think where I was confused is that the job postings I see are saying TN bar eligible, or willing to become a member of TN bar within a reasonable time frame....etc...That made me think there are firms that want attorneys from the outside. Our student loan payments are income based, so that's not so much the issue. BUT we were hoping to be able to live cheaply and throw money at them in order to get done with that hanging over our heads! He has a really good job here, but CA cost of living can minimize that. Thanks for the input.
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Old 06-21-2014, 04:02 PM
 
Location: Franklin, TN
3,760 posts, read 7,099,663 times
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Birmingham is a 3 hour straight shot drive down 65. You should check it out if you are going to visit Nashville. A friend of mine just got his law degree and has found some degree of initial success in Hohenwald (Google it). You might find some underserved smaller city around here who needs a lawyer?
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