Case Studies

This candidate is a native of France. She has a ferocious work ethic, and she earned perfect grades at the best university in France both in her undergraduate degree and her two masters degrees. The candidate then moved to the United States and completed an LLM at a top-20 law school. READ MORE >

The market for patent agents is incredibly competitive. Large law firms and IP boutiques hire patent agents to prepare and file patent applications on behalf of their clients. They prioritize educational background and love to hire candidates with PhDs or other advanced degrees, both in hard sciences (electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, physics, and computer science) and soft sciences (chemistry, biology, biomedical engineering). The more years of specialized education and research, the better. READ MORE >

This candidate was born and raised in the Midwest, and had attended a highly regarded regional school for undergrad where he had performed very well academically and majored in Political Science and Communications. Having an interest in law and politics, upon graduating from college, he had joined a state Senator's office and worked for two years prior to returning to law school in the same state. He performed very well in law school as well (graduating in the top 20% of his class), and was published in and elected the Editor-in-Chief of the school's Law Review. READ MORE >

This patent agent candidate earned his undergraduate degree in biochemistry, where he had been awarded multiple scholarships and was part of his school's honor's program. He performed extensive research in undergrad related to formestane, and was selected for an internship with a well-known, national company. After receiving his college degree, he began graduate school at a nationally-ranked university in the Midwest where he was a highly involved and impressive student. In his time as a Ph.D. candidate, he was awarded significant funding in fellowships, grants, and prizes for research proposals and scientific writing, and assisted writing multiple successful grants. His research in graduate school focused on developing small molecule probes for imaging and therapy of human diseases; fabricating nanoparticle drug delivery systems to improve pharmaceutical solubility, targeting, and bio-distribution; and creating a new method for functionalizing nanoparticle surfaces with targeting and imaging agents. He was involved in numerous publications and as a writer for a Chemistry journal. READ MORE >

This candidate grew up in the Midwest, and was a stellar student in both undergrad and law school. He had received a full academic scholarship for college, and originally planned to become a teacher. However, he had been drawn to the idea of law school and of working to advance the rights of individuals. He was admitted to a local law school where he was a top performer. He had earned multiple scholarships, participated on and was published in the Law Review, and received various awards for his academic and experiential work. He graduated first in his class with a very high GPA. READ MORE >

This candidate is an excellent example of how anything can happen during a job search, so it's important to keep an open mind and remain in contact with all potential employers. READ MORE >

It is always worthwhile to submit your resume to BCG Search, even if we do not have a current search for an attorney with your experience. BCG keeps confidential files of all the attorneys who submit their resumes to our company. We look to these files every time a law firm reaches out to us requesting resumes. If your experience matches what the firm is looking for, we will reach out to you to see if you are interested in learning more about the opportunity and applying to the firm. We never submit a candidate's materials to a law firm without the express permission of the candidate. READ MORE >

This candidate grew up in the Midwest, and attended a highly nationally ranked university for undergrad. He continued on with his higher education, eventually earning multiple Masters Degrees including in Human Resources. Prior to attending law school, he had spent over five years working in the human resources arena with multiple respected companies and eventually being promoted to a director-level position. READ MORE >

This candidate attended an elite national university for undergrad, where he focused his studies in business and completed multiple finance internships. He was also interested in international relations/ politics, and is fluent in a foreign language. He ultimately determined to attend law school, where he felt he could merge these interests into a career focusing on international transactions and business law. He was admitted to a Top 10 law school in the Midwest, and performed very well. READ MORE >

This candidate grew up in the Midwest, and attended a national university near her hometown for undergrad. Desiring to effect change, she participated in the U.S. Peace Corps after college before being admitted to a highly-regarded law school out east. During school, this candidate gained many experiences working in immigration and customs enforcement, including returning to her home state one summer to work at the immigration court, and clerking with a nationally-known immigration law firm. Her experience included researching legal issues pertaining to national security cases and drafting memoranda on determining terrorist activity under the applicable provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act. She also assisted in preparing employer-sponsored and self-sponsored petitions for employment-based nonimmigrant and immigrant visas for high-skilled and corporate foreign nationals. READ MORE >

Litigation boutiques are a great career move for attorneys who want meaningful trial experience. Many boutiques try cases on a regular basis, giving associates a chance to go to court early in their career. Associates rarely get these opportunities in large Am Law firms. Big law firms often defend clients whose goal is to avoid trial and settle cases. These clients pay a large premium for big law representation, and typically only want the engagement partner to represent them in court. As a result, senior associates get little to no courtroom experience at large law firms. This experience is plentiful at litigation boutiques, making them a fantastic option for associates who want real trial work. READ MORE >

Boutique firms love candidates with hands on litigation experience. Small firms often take cases to trial, as opposed to big law firms that aim to settle cases they are defending for large clients. Boutiques are a great option for attorneys who want real courtroom experience early in their career. Many provide hands on experience, allowing their associates to do as much trial work as they want and forgoing mock exercises that some larger firms use as a substitute for real experience. Many also provide a collegial work environment and market pay. They are should not be overlooked in a job search. READ MORE >

Labor & Employment continues to be a very hot practice area throughout California. Even small-firm candidates with somewhat "clunky" backgrounds but with strong and substantive defense-side Labor & Employment experience may have success moving up to a midsized or larger firm. READ MORE >

Every candidate placement can teach us something about the market and about the marketability of similarly-situated candidates. In the case of the candidate that I just placed, I learned that Labor & Employment continues to be a very hot practice area throughout California, and even senior Labor & Employment attorneys are placeable (even though, for example, senior General Litigators are very hard to place). I also learned that it is important for the Recruiter and for the candidate not to give up, and for the Recruiter to continue to apply the candidate to firms and new opportunities, even to the same firm multiple times if the new opening that pops up is a closer fit to the candidate's practice area, experience and specialty than the original opening that the candidate was applied for. READ MORE >