legal assistant

associate

attorney

staff attorney

ediscovery analyst

King & Spalding

King & Spalding is a well-functioning law firm that focuses on excellent work and improving the bottom line.  Same rigorous hours, often tedious work, and demanding clients that you might expect at any other top firm.  Salaries generally are matched with NYC market, nice benefits but more stringent on in-office perks than similarly-sized firms, and actual opportunities for advancement. There is a sizable partner class made every year.  

Where they differ from many other firms in the DC area is the extreme degree of homogeneity within the firm: not only by race and class as is common in Big Law (though diversity rates are appalling basically everywhere except Atlanta) but even more prominent is the interest/involvement in Republican politics for many in the top brass. It's not every law firm that would welcome Tucker Carlson as a keynote speaker for one of their premier public events. And in early 2017, K&S was essentially a feeder school for Trump administration appointees.

Top resume indicators for success include Federalist Society membership and Harvard Law or UVA Law School graduate, and many of the biggest institutional clients stemmed from tobacco and energy sectors. The firm definitely felt like a more insular environment than where many of my peers worked in part because of such strong legacy ties. 

People were generally polite and I haven't heard tales of screaming partners or other horror stories that are whispered about their competitors. The financials are strong and work in most practice groups was plentiful so it will matter how heavily workplace culture factors into your decisionmaking to determine if this firm is a good fit.

Working as a Project Attorney was here was awful. When I was hired, I wasn't told that I would be working mandatory 50 hour work weeks-- this included weekend work. Fifty hour work weeks and weekend work sprang up often without notice. Management was also pretty bad. Many of the staff and senior staff attorneys did not know how to speak to those working for them and were unnecessarily rude and condescending. Now add that on to long hours and you have a recipe for going insane. Don't make a single mistake either-- you'll be blacklisted and pushed out. 

If you really, really need cash and decide to go here to do doc review, make sure you have a quick exit strategy.

King & Spalding is a great law firm.  If you are fortunate enough to be hired as an associate you will be earning nearly $150k a year.  If you work as a staff or project attorney you will be making a third of that.  Typical day at work includes billing 8-10 hours for clients.  During rush projects billable requirements could go as high as 16 hours a day (although this is not typical).  Coworkers are normally the best around and extremely professional.  Hardest part of the job (for staff and project attorneys) is that you get paid well below the average for an entry level attorney position in this area.  Most attorneys in these positions merely want the experience to put on their resume.

I have worked as a lawyer in a number of law firms in my career and this experience was definitely in the bottom two. My manager, who knew less than I did, was the ultimate Queen of Micromanaging. To say that this group of managers was lacking in just about every way is an understatement. I accomplished my goals most every day but was always told that I was lacking in some new, ridiculous way. The gaslighting up and down the management chain was really bad. My managing attorney and her superiors in our department were nice to our faces but would stab us in the back at the first chance given. Never again will I allow myself to be treated like that.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Competitive salary for market and industry. 

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Culture favors and benefits those who have historically held positions of power in this country. Cliques are formed within the organization. Those not apart of the “in crowd” have very little opportunities for growth and advancement. 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Less than ideal. Dated. Not inspiring. 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
The role I held was not challenging or interesting. My typical day was spent avoiding land mines other were intentionally setting.

An awesome place to work. I was eager to arrive early and stay late to get the job done. Upper management was responsive to the needs of mid management. I learned that King and Spalding has a strong comittment to volunteering in the community and that committment encouraged me to volunteer in my spare time. The hardest part of my job was leaving and the most enjoyable was the attitude of cooperativeness I received from many of the staff.

The firm is family oriented, have decent benefits, and their encourage teamwork. Management is open to suggestions and are approachable. 
Would like to see more professional software training and investments in software books. Corporate office in Atlanta exerts too much control over the everyday running of the New York office. 
Co-workers are fun to work with and it's a cordial environment. Would like to see them implement a bonus reward system and an environment that encourages innovativeness.

I worked at the Discovery Center for several months right after taking the bar exam.  They were in the middle of a huge document production project, requiring all of us to work 10-billable-hour days.  It was boring, but I very much appreciated having the job at the time.  After a couple months, there was a settlement and the production ended.  All of a sudden, a bunch of people had little to do.  That was around the time I left.  Many of the people there had been there for a long time and seemed to enjoy it.  Just wasn't my cup of tea.

I worked at K&S for a total of 15 years. I was privileged to work with many wonderful attorneys who appreciated my dedication and loyalty and took good care of me in return. What I learned was the value of good relationships, hard work, and reliability. The hardest part of my job was that I am meant to be a counselor, not a legal assistant, and because of that, didn't find a sense of meaning and purpose in my work. The most enjoyable part of the job was the people with whom I worked.

Like most large law firms, K&S has some great strengths as a place to work, unless you're looking for work/life balance. Even as a project attorney, you will begin on day one working for Fortune 500 clients and be given an enormous amount of responsibility. While work is hard at times, the culture plays hard as well. The firm sponsors a lot of great opportunities from holiday parties to firm sports teams to kick-back, relax, and network with fellow employees.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Legal assistant 9 salaries reported	$79,222 per year
Associate 3 salaries reported	$285,000 per year
Attorney 8 salaries reported	$114,375 per year
Staff attorney 3 salaries reported	$77,000 per year
Ediscovery analyst 3 salaries reported	$58,667 per year

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