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Every year, Vault Law’s annual associate survey polls tens of thousands of associates from hundreds of the nation’s most prestigious law firms about both the relative prestige of firms other than their own as well as the working conditions at their own firm. Besides this, we also ask each respondent for practical advice for law students and prospective laterals, as well as a sample of interview questions they were actually asked. Our survey also distinguishes between large and midsize law firms. Below is a cross-section of the interview questions provided to us by associates working at the large law firms we surveyed.
“’How do you handle many competing projects?’ ‘How do you handle stress?’ ‘What do you think is your best asset as a new attorney/junior associate?’”
“It's mostly casual conversation, but I like to ask about academic information in the resume (like if writing awards or other graduate work is mentioned) to see how well someone explains a sophisticated subject concisely, and also to get a better sense for the whole person.”
“The firm is interested in what else a person is bringing besides a law school degree. If a candidate had a career change before law, they can expect questions about how their previous work informs their approach to legal work and what else they are bringing to the table. These are things that come into play when you work at the firm, too, so it's useful to know.”
“Tell me about yourself; describe how legal writing is different from other types of writing you've encountered; describe a legal issue you've encountered that you found interesting; what is the hardest thing you've ever done.”
“For summer associates, there are core competencies and a set of standardized questions we ask, including the candidate's commitment to inclusion, as well as other competencies like problem solving, self-motivation, etc. For laterals, the questions are typically around past experience.”
“We ask a range of questions, but try to ask questions that will reveal the candidate's intellectual quality and personality, such as "tell me about an interesting problem you encountered in law school" or "what is your interest in working for our firm specifically?"”
“The firm asks candidates open-ended questions that allow them room to discuss whatever comes to mind (and gives the firm a chance to get to know them better). My interviews were very conversational, and I ended up discussing all kinds of thing with the interviewers (linguistics, board games, etc.)”
“I have interviewed people and try to keep it more informal. If a candidate has gotten past the screener, it was most likely with the managing partner, therefore their grades are fine. When many people interview candidates, they want to make sure they will be people they want to work with. For the most part Quinn does a good job of weeding out jerks. Therefore, the interview will mostly focus on personality traits and ambitions at the firm.”
“Our standard, non-biased question: "Tell me about a time you set a challenging goal for yourself and how you accomplished it." The rest of the questioning flows naturally.”
“Many behavioral and intellectual questions such as asking about candidate's senior thesis, favorite law school case, etc. Asking about collaborating with other people, leadership experiences. etc.”
“Rather than hypotheticals, interviewers ask behavioral questions designed to assess core competencies such as teamwork, intellectual curiosity, initiative, resilience, communication, and judgment. Candidates are generally encouraged to describe specific situations, the actions they took, and the results. Examples of the types of questions candidates may be asked include describing a time they worked through a challenging team dynamic, handled critical feedback, managed competing deadlines, or took initiative on a difficult project. Interviewers may also ask candidates to discuss how they prepared for the interview, how they approach learning new or complex material, or how they have responded to setbacks or criticism in academic or professional settings. Overall, the questions are conversational but structured, and are intended to evaluate both substantive strengths and cultural fit in a consistent and fair manner.”
“Interviews tend to focus on candidates' academic background, prior work experience, interest in the firm's specific practice areas, and ability to handle complex and time-sensitive work. Questions are typically conversational and aimed at assessing judgment, communication skills, and overall fit.”
“Every office will be interested in knowing why you are applying there, especially if you are applying from out of state. They'll also be interested in knowing what your favorite classes are in law school, what you might be interested in studying, what types of internships or clinics you're pursuing, and how they might fit in to your long term career goals. For the transactional department, you don't have to know exactly what area you want to pursue-but they will want to know why you want to join them versus litigation (or, if you don't know exactly which way you want to specialize, they'll want to know what you're interested in trying out over the summer).”
“What does career success mean to you? How has the law school experience compared to your expectations? What's the most useful piece of constructive feedback you've ever received?”
“We ask many different types of questions ranging from behavioral (e.g., what is a strength of yours), to background-based (e.g., what made you want to go to law school), to more specific about my firm (e.g., why do you want to work here or what type of work are you most interested in)?”
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