This candidate is very friendly, eloquent, has a great personality, and I think was able to tell her story in a way that made her look as good as possible and removed any doubt in the firms' minds about why she was looking to join another firm so soon after accepting a position. She was also a clunky candidate to begin with in that she had worked as a Labor & Employment clerk for two years before joining the firm that she was at for about two years before leaving in August to join her most recent firm. The candidate and I practiced her answers to red flag questions, which I think helped.
This candidate taught me a couple of lessons. First, Labor & Employment continues to be very marketable in CA - I've been able to get offers for or place all of the Labor & Employment candidates that I've worked with. Secondly, there are all sorts of opportunities in Labor & Employment at Big Law, mid-sized, and small law firms, both on the plaintiff's and defense side. Thirdly, certain candidates can be place-able, even if they've accepted another opportunity. If a candidate is open to you applying him or her to all sorts of types of opportunities, it may be worth it to continue working with him or her in specific instances. This candidate had left her firm in August, but I had had a lot of success placing all of my other Labor & Employment candidates, so I decided to keep working with this candidate. Luckily, she approved all sorts of opportunities on the Plaintiff's and Defense side. My continuing to work with her eventually paid off!