Akin Gump To Establish Associate Farm System

New associates at Akin Gump Strauss Hauer and Feld LLP are heading to the minors. Yesterday, one day after the completion of professional baseball’s 2009 Cricket Wireless AAA All-Star Game, Akin Gump announced that it will be instituting a new program this fall that will divert all of its first-year associates to positions with one of the firms that it typically uses as local counsel. The terms of the new plan, including how long the incoming associates will stay in these smaller firms, are sketchy, but one thing is clear, the firm intends to use a new “farm system” approach to producing the type of associate talent its clients are demanding.

In a press release, Akin Gump said it envisioned the new associates fielding “all sorts” of legal issues in this “year or more” at a smaller firm. The goal is to get associates “fully participating in the game no matter how small the playing field.” Akin Gump’s move comes amidst growing sentiment in the legal profession that clients are tired of putting “bet the company” matters in the hands of rookie lawyers. According to one general counsel, the current big law system is broken. “If I’m about to head into the late innings of a products liability case the last thing I’m going to do is rely on inexperienced pitchers to close out the game. Too often big law firms leverage John and Judy law school graduate until the game reaches the ninth inning. Sometimes, by that point the game is so out of hand even the best closer can’t help you.”

Indeed, many in the legal industry believe Akin Gump’s announcement could start a shift in how attorneys spend their first several years out of law school as associates move back and forth among major and minor firms. Without new associates, however, some believe Akin Gump may struggle to deal with the grunt work that comes with any large representation. At least one legal analyst believes that this means the market for contract attorneys is about to explode. “The way I see it, if you’re a citizen of India or a student of a third-tier law school, your limited skill set means you are almost completely recession proof.”

With this move, Akin Gump does risk backlash from associates that view the new plan as a demotion. According to one anonymous law student who is planning to start at Akin Gump in the fall, the switch to a local counsel’s office is going to be quite difficult. “Look, I am all for gaining valuable experience after law school, but up until yesterday I was heading to Akin’s office in New York. Now, I just received word that I’ll be working at a two-person shop in Birmingham, Alabama. I’m devastated. I mean the only thing worse would be if they told me I was re-assigned to DLA Piper.”