I was called in for an interview and I arrived at the location in St. Paul, Minnesota. The building is beautiful and historic. The office is gorgeous and relatively new. They just moved down the hall from a smaller space. Once they let me in the secure front door, I was led to their big conference room overlooking downtown St. Paul. My interview lasted approximately 50 minutes. I spoke with one partner from St. Paul and one who video conferenced in from Dallas. They were both great people and we had a great discussion. I was very excited to hear back.
About a week later I received a pre-offer background and conflicts check. This was promising.
A little over two weeks after my interview they offered me the job. I was ecstatic. The job description was everything I had been looking for. The hiring partner, who was a different attorney than the two I spoke with in my interview, sent me a letter with the offer and benefits package. The benefits offer was great - the salary was not. It was well under market value for the billable hour requirement ($78,000 annually for 2,000 hours minimum per year). As was recommended by many of my trusted mentors, colleagues, and friends, I attempted to negotiate my salary. I asked for $85,000 annually. At this point I wasn't expecting that amount - I thought they would come back at $80,000 or say that original offer was it - take it or leave it.
I received a letter three days later rescinding the offer. I was informed that it was because I "demanded" a higher salary and that the "financial considerations must align for both sides in order for employment to result in the mutually beneficial relationship." I was beyond shocked and appalled that they would rescind the offer instead of informing me that the first offer was a firm offer. Additionally, I was offended that they accused me of "demanding" a higher salary when I merely requested to negotiate. I never made a demand. I attempted to call the two attorneys I had my interview with to see if we could work things out, but I never heard a response from them. I also emailed the hiring partner, but I never heard back from him, either. Three days after my offer was rescinded, they placed an ad for the position online.
After reflecting upon the situation, I believe that they forgot about the human element behind rescinding a job offer. I was crushed. Furthermore, after reading through more of the reviews here on Glassdoor, it appears that salary tends to be a touchy subject with this firm. I feel like I dodged a bullet because if they are willing to treat someone like that on their way into the firm, I don't want to find out how they treat their current Associates.
Apply at your own risk.