Cleary Gottlieb Reviews

Pros

Benefits package, Overall work environment.

Cons

Global working hours often require working "after hours."

Pros

Very respectful environment; attorneys and management are cooperative and understanding. Negative attitudes are frowned upon. No micro-management and much flexibility as to how and when work is done. Good benefits.

Cons

Be prepared to cancel your dinner plans. Oh, and your weekend plans too. But you won't know these things until you're about to head out for the day.

Advice to Senior Management

Develop a work-life balance plan. Be more in touch with how much overtime paralegals are putting in; reassign work more frequently to allow free time to those who are overloaded.

Pros

If you're interested in big law, Cleary is still one of the best places to work. Super-smart colleagues, great support staff, beautiful offices, excellent pay.

Cons

Ridiculously high expectations that pretty much no one can meet without killing themselves. You are expected to be checking your blackberry every 5 mins on the weekend and evenings (assuming you're not already at the office). Complete unpredictability about schedule if you're in transactional work; total crushing hours pretty much regardless of what area you're in.

Advice to Senior Management

Come up with a policy on blackberry use and expectations! Do not just say to clients that we are available 24/7 for them. Although that's what's expected at all top law firms....

Pros

Benefits are top-of-the-line; OT starts after 35 hours; understanding when personal problems come up.

Cons

Somewhat of a rigid hierarchy; unflexible hours.

Advice to Senior Management

If someone is putting in a lot of hours give them the ability to flex more than one hour a month.

Pros

Cleary is a great firm, as far as NYC elite law firms go. I had a very positive experience there. They do everything they can to make your life there comfortable. The people were always respectful and nice. And despite the hierarchical nature of big law firms, I didn't feel the presence of the hierarchy. I interacted with partners in much the same way that I interacted with other associates. It's also a great, interesting bunch of people. If you want the big firm experience, Cleary is a great way to go.

Cons

The hours can be brutal. Also, there's not a lot of non-financial services-type work. It's very big, so it doesn't have much of a "community feel."

Advice to Senior Management

The policy that people living in NJ don't get a car home until an hour later than people that live in NY seems patently unfair.

Pros

Prestige
High-speed work (as far as large law firms go)
Very egalitarian culture
Flexible schedule - as long as you get your work done, they don't care where you are or where you do it from
Treat you like an adult

Cons

Brutal hours
Expectations of perfect work product
Greedy partners continue to take advantage of associates - we work extremely hard with a "yes please' attitude but receive paltry bonuses

Advice to Senior Management

The firm is doing so much better than almost every other firm in the country and is raking in millions upon millions of dollars, but we are given the same bonuses as firms who have lost money and laid off associates? Keeping bonuses low so that you can make $2.5 million instead of $2.45 million a year? An extra $20,000 at the end of the year makes a HUGE difference for each of us! It makes me reallt uncomfortable to work with partners who continue to take advantage of me.

I plan to leave Cleary to work at another large firm that has lower billable hour expectations. I see no reason to have to work 2500 hours a year when I can make the same amount and work only 2000-2100 hours.

Pros

Very laid back. Everyone is helpful and extremely competent

Cons

there was too much overtime.

Advice to Senior Management

Improve intramural sports programs.

Pros

Excellent work - although lots of it

Cons

Lots of work - could always use more $

Advice to Senior Management

Less work

Pros

Great benefits, understanding bosses and very intelligent, competent co-workers.

Cons

The hours can be quite long.

Advice to Senior Management

Not applicable for this review.

Pros

Good training ground, smart competent lawyers, good leadership by partners, recognition of individual contributions when above the norm.

Cons

No tolerance for diversity in personalities; weak management by administration particularly relating to interpersonal conflicts, far too much emphasis on comaraderie at the expense of individual work style. A syrupy sweet approach is the only way to go here.

Advice to Senior Management

Cleary is a good firm in many respects but it shows intolerance for those very capabilities and traits in folks that would advance it.