Careers
Here is where the inspirational recruitment video is supposed to be... But we don't have one. Our website lacks purposeless fluff. In fact, you would be challenged to find any other law firm website where there is more actual, relevant substance - thousands of pages of text of decisions, articles, and press, all which have emanated from Itkowitz & Harwood. No empty promises, no repackaging of someone else's stuff. So we decided to make our Careers section in keeping with that approach, and will endeavor to show you as much as we can, which is likely to give you some insight into who we are. The best place to start, if you are considering working here, is to check out the profiles of our current associates and JD's.
What follows are answers to Frequently Asked Questions about our hiring process and what it is like to be an associate here. Much of what follows is from a document that is provided to candidates to whom we offer interviews, and we created the answers in collaboration with current associates. No one will ever tell you more about a potential job than we will.
November 1, 2011
- What is the current composition of the firm? Who will I be working for and with?
- How many hours a week am I expected to be at work? To bill?
- What will I be doing?
- How are cases staffed? How are assignments handed out?
- Will I have enough supervision, or will I be left on my own?
- Where will I sit? What are the facilities like?
- What benefits do I get?
- What is the technology like at the firm?
- What are the expectations with respect to attire?
- What are the support staff like?
- Can I ever work from home?
- What is the environment at the firm really like?
- How will I get feedback? Is there a formal review process?
- Is the advertised salary negotiable?
- Why did the person I am replacing leave? Where can I go after I&H
- On that note, are there opportunities for advancement for me in this firm?
- Does the firm have an internal mission statement?
- The firm is growing, do you see it getting much bigger?
- How is the firm's ethics record?
- Why have you chosen to interview me? And what will my interview be like? Describe the hiring process.
- Do you currently have any open entry level associate positions? I am currently in a clerkship or a fellowship that will last for about a year, but would like to apply now, does that make sense?
- I am not living in New York City right now, can we do a telephone or video conference interview? Will you pay for me to come to New York City for the interview?
- But what if by the time I am in New York City and available for an interview, you have filled all your current associate positions?
- Do you do on campus interviews at my school? Should I apply before I graduate? Do you take summer associates?
- Do you hire laterals? What if I am a lateral and am willing to take an entry-level job?
- How do I apply?
- How many people am I competing with for this job? I applied before and no one contacted me, should I apply again?
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What is the current composition of the firm? Who will I be working for and with?
The firm currently consists of sixteen attorneys: the partners (Jay Itkowitz, Donald Harwood, Michelle Maratto, and Daniel Spitalnic; Genevieve Salvatore and Craig Lanza (who are currently "Of Counsel"); and ten associates. There are approximately 15 other non-attorney staff members. You will have the chance to meet nearly everyone during the interview process. The firm is still small enough that we can answer that you will be working, at some point or another, with almost everyone.
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How many hours a week am I expected to be at work? To bill?
You should expect to be at work, on average, about 47.5 hours per week, depending on what is going on. This average is made up of months when you will work in excess of 47.5 hour weeks, for example, when you are involved in a trial, and months when you take three weeks off, for example, to get married or travel.
There is no "billable hours" requirement. Associates are expected to enter into the time keeping program a record of all their activities while at work. Currently, the associates are required to record an average of 190 hours per month. Please note that those 190 hours are not "billable" hours, they are hours spent at work or working. Thus things like the obligatory afternoon cake in the conference room for a coworker's birthday or researching from home count toward the 190 hours. This is not as onerous as the hours requirement at large law firms, but neither does it make for a nine-to-five job.
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What will I be doing?
For an entry level position, the following are examples of what you will be doing at first:
- Reading extremely long leases and contracts
- Legal research, legal research, legal research
- Routine court appearances, mainly for calendar calls, preliminary conferences, and compliance conferences
- Drafting letters
- Routine, and increasingly more challenging, communications with opposing counsel and clients
- Preparing pleadings
- Preparing discovery demands
- Responding to discovery demands
- Organizing facts and data, making time lines and spreadsheets
- Attending client meetings and taking notes
- Electronic discovery work
- Preparing materials that partners need for depositions, oral arguments, trials, etc.
- Preparing records on appeal
The following are some examples of what you will likely be doing within the year:
- MORE legal research
- Drafting simple, and increasingly more complicated, motions
- Arguing the motions you draft
- Inquests
- Defending depositions on cases you are very familiar with
- Greater interaction with clients
- Routine, and increasingly more complicated, settlement negotiations
- Trial prep
Within two years:
- More legal research
- Harder motions
- Taking depositions where appropriate
- Second seating trials
- Legal project management
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How are cases staffed? How are assignments handed out?
Every case has a partner and an associate assigned to it. If and when the case needs further staffing, there are typically other associates assigned to the case as well, i.e. secondary associates. The secondary associates may come in and out of the picture, but the main associate on the case is there from beginning to end.
We choose who the main associate on the case is by taking the following into consideration: whose case load is currently the lightest; who has worked on that type of case before and is, therefore, familiar with the area, or alternatively, who has not worked on that type of case before and needs to learn something about that area; whether the case requires a more senior associate or whether a more junior associate could handle it.
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Will I have enough supervision, or will I be left on my own?
You will be adequately supervised. Every day will be a training experience. Moreover:
- We conduct formal weekly trainings on a variety of topics. See some actual internal flyers regarding weekly trainings offered at the firm.
- We have a great computer system and we have many documents automated so they are easier to draft, and we have a great database of samples.
- Jay Itkowitz is phenomenal teacher, but he is a tough person to work for. Don Harwood is a less willing teacher, but a brilliant lawyer, and often people learn more from him than from anyone.
- Daniel Spitalnic is a good teacher, and he has the advantage of having started here as an associate ten years ago, so he understands a young attorney's perspective well. The more senior associates and of counsels are also extremely knowledgeable and patient teachers.
- Here is an example of an informal training protocol - whenever there is a deposition, the attorney taking the deposition takes an entry level associate with him or her to watch the deposition, whether or not that associate is assigned to the case. The entry level associate who attends is also required to handle the pre and post deposition checklist items.
- The firm has drafted many Continuing Legal Education materials for courses that we teach and these are also helpful internal firm training materials.
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Where will I sit? What are the facilities like?
You will have your own office with a window. I can show it to you on the interview. This firm will never cram two attorneys into one office or put a J.D. at a work station. (Many firms, large and small, do.) We occupy a newly renovated 8500 square-foot floor. If you want to get a sense of the place - see the link to the Empty Walls Itinerant Art Initiative.
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What benefits do I get?
We can provide you with greater details on the following if you need to know it before accepting the job. In general:
- United Healthcare-Oxford Health Care after three months on the job and the employee pays thirty percent of the premium
- Group Life and Long Term Disability Insurance fully paid for by I&H
- TransitCheck
- We pay your salary while you are serving jury duty
- We typically provide you access to enough free CLE to meet your bi-annual requirements
- Discounted gym memberships available
- Free weekly Wednesday morning yoga class (your attendance counts toward your hours requirement)
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What is the technology like at the firm?
The technology at I&H is excellent -- truly as good as you will find at any firm, of any size. Each I&H team member has a state-of-the-art desk top, operating system, and a Blackberry, and is supported by a team of top-notch technologists. I&H employs seamlessly integrated practice management software, document management software, and document generation software, which allows the firm to be a "paperless" office. I&H is a fully e-discovery capable firm, deploying the same high-level software utilized by most Am-Law-100 Firms and the United States Department of Justice. I&H litigated one of the foundational cases on e-discovery sanctions in New York State Court.
I&H does not have technology for technology's sake, rather we have good stuff that works and makes life easier. Our experience has always been that the technology pays for itself by helping us efficiently provide excellent service to our clients. Most small firms simply do not invest the significant time and money in technology that I&H does. In contrast, large firms are not nearly as nimble as I&H when it comes to incorporating new technological initiatives. In short, we are willing to invest in our technology and we have the freedom to experiment and innovate to determine what works best.
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What are the expectations with respect to attire?
Business very very casual. We do not dress up every day. Typically, client meetings are scheduled in advance. So we only dress up when we have to be at a meeting or in court. We all keep suits on the backs of our doors. This makes life much easier. And we have a discount deal with a green dry cleaner who picks up and drops off at the office!
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What are the support staff like?
There are four well trained paralegals. We do not have secretaries. An example of how things work is as follows: an associate drafts a letter and prints it out and gives it to a paralegal to scan and mail; or, an associate drafts an affirmation, then the paralegal (working in close conjunction with the attorney) makes the litigation backs, copies the exhibits, assembles the papers, serves the document, does the affidavit of service, and files it
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Can I ever work from home?
Eventually. The first year or so it is important for you to be present in the office. However, we give you the capability to sign in remotely, and we currently have more senior associates who will work from home when they have large research and writing assignments or document review projects.
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What is the environment at the firm really like?
The environment is generally casual, collegial, organized. But, frankly, if you are a very sensitive person this is not the job for you. Periodically tensions can run high in an environment like this -- we are a small shop with great clients. These clients expect as much from us as they would from a large firm. More, actually. The work is demanding. The pressure can be intense with high standards and tight deadlines.
The following comment comes from an actual former associate here: "The reality of a small firm is that every one interacts with everyone else. Unlike a large firm, there is nowhere to 'hide' and be just a 'cog'. Additionally, because it is a small firm, everyone must shoulder their share of responsibility. You must stay on top of things, and if a ball gets dropped, you will need to answer for it."
The upside, is that the pressure is a function of challenging work, and not of challenging people. It being a small group of carefully selected people, there is no "back stabbing" or other non-productive nonsense here.
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How will I get feedback? Is there a formal review process?
We do not have a formal review process at this time. But in an environment as small as this one, honestly - you will not be wondering what your strengths and weakness are. That becomes apparent very quickly. We give a great deal of feedback, both positive and constructive. Law is an apprentice profession and continual feedback is part of the natural process of how you work and learn with other attorneys. Look at it this way - it is in the firm's interest to capitalize upon your strengths and to help you improve upon the areas in which you need growth.
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Is the advertised salary negotiable?
No. The salaries for entry level associates are in a lockstep system. Your "class", however, depends on the year you got here, not on your graduation year. Everyone in the same "class" gets the same money and people know what to expect for raises. I believe that this system both manages everyone's expectations and it keeps things fair.
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Why did the person I am replacing leave? Where can I go after I&H?
The last seven associates who left I&H went to the following places:
- Policy Manager-Counsel -- Success Academy Charter Schools (charter school management non-profit and education reform think tank profiled in the award-winning documentaries Waiting for Superman and The Lottery, New York)
- Kreindler & Kreindler, LLP (30 attorney Aviation Firm, Manhattan)
- Baker Hostetler (700 attorney global law firm) -- three of our associates went to Baker!
- Certilman Balin (70 Attorneys, Long Island)
- NBC In House Legal
Here is a more complete list of great places our alumni associates have gone:
PLACES FORMER I&H ASSOCIATES HAVE GONE AFTER I&H
- Baker Hostetler (700 lawyers) (3 people have gone directly from I&H to this firm)
- Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP (500 Attorneys, New York, New York)
- Kelley Drye & Warren LLP (375 Attorneys, New York, New York)
- Pepper Hamilton, LLP (500 Attorneys, Philadelphia)
- Cozen & O'Connor (531 Attorneys, Philadelphia)
- Warberg Pinchas (Financial Firm)
- Pryor Cashman (124 Attorneys, New York, New York)
- Robinson & Cole (225 Lawyers)
- Hiscock & Barclay, LLP (210 Attorneys, New York, New York)
- Rosenberg & Estis, P.C. (49 Attorneys, New York, New York) (2 people have gone directly from I&H to this firm)
- Certilman Balin (70 Attorneys, Long Island)
- Kreindler & Kreindler, LLP (30 attorney Aviation Firm, Manhattan)
- Moritt, Hock, Hamroff & Horowitz (50 Attorneys, Long Island, New York)
- Metropolitan Transportation Authority - In House Counsel Department
- NBC in house legal department
- Hall & Hall, LLP (Staten Island's Biggest Firm)
- Thelen Reid Brown Raysman & Steiner LLP (New York, New York)
- Fischbein Badillo Wagner Harding, LLP (79 Attorneys, New York, New York)
One of the strongest recommendations for taking this job is that it will open up many doors for you that are not currently open to you now as an entry level. We would love for you to spend your entire career here and maybe you will. But most lawyers today do not spend their entire careers at their first job, and we are only too honored that great people choose to begin their fantastic careers here.
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On that note, are there opportunities for advancement for me in this firm?
That, obviously, depends.
Recently we have increased our case load, hired more lawyers, and raised salaries. Moreover, we are developing a group of mid-level associates, capable of supervising more junior attorneys. It is conceivable that this job could fit in with a young attorney's longer-term plans, depending on what that person is seeking from his or her career, and are happy to explore and foster such relationships.
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Does the firm have an internal mission statement?
There are five things that we are trying to achieve at Itkowitz & Harwood.
- To deliver the highest quality legal services to our clients, expeditiously and in a cost-effective manner.
- To be the absolute best in the industry at what we do.
- To be ethical - in all things, at all times.
- To make a lot of money.
- To have a good quality of life attend our careers. This means both that: (a) we enjoy being at work, and (b) our work schedules allow us to have sufficient time outside of work for satisfying overall lives.
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The firm is growing; do you see it getting much bigger?
We see growth as something that supports elements of the mission statement above. Bringing together carefully selected people will give us more ways to meet our clients' needs, and more ways for us all to grow professionally.
We do not, however, believe in growth for growth's sake. It isn't actually that hard to cobble together tens or even hundreds of lawyers and call yourself a mid-sized or large firm - but that doesn't mean that you are offering more value to the client. We want only to be better and further the five goals discussed above.
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How is the firm's ethics record?
We are proud to say that we have never made a claim to our insurance carrier, nor has anyone here ever been disciplined in any way by the Bar Association. Our ethics record is spotless.
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Why have you chosen to interview me? And what will my interview be like? Describe the hiring process.
Our associate hiring process goes like this.
(1) Typically, three times per year we place an ad for an associate position with 30 law schools on Symplicity and with approximately ten minority bar associations. We consider closely, however, graduates from any of the top 100 or so law schools. We use Leiter's Law School Ranks as our guide to which schools are "top", rather than US News & World Report's rankings. Leiter's ranks schools based upon quality of the students and quality of the faculty, and we find these rankings more accurately reflect our personal observations about the schools.
(2) All resumes go through two rounds of preliminary vetting.
(3) Those that remain after the preliminary vetting are subjected to a detailed analysis using a standardized point system that gives credit for: presentation, academics, writing, moot court, work experience, bar admissions, school, and other factors. The people we hire usually have something cool about them - for example maybe they toured with a band before law school or they are an avid composter and organic gardener.
(4) We ask the top ranked individuals for two writing samples. We read those closely and rate them using a standardized point system that gives credit for: communication, complexity, persuasiveness, brevity, clarity, organization, topic sentences, format, etc. Before we read the samples an administrative person redacts the names from the writing samples, so that as we read we have no idea who is a man or a woman, whose name begins with A and whose with Z. You have to be able to write well to work here. Thus we put this step in front of the interview process.
(5) After rating the writing samples, we ask the top writers to come in for an interview where they meet with our managing partner, Michelle Maratto. She has prepared a list of a super-psychological-scientific interview questions to ask the people. Honestly, the questions are pretty straight-forward, and most are just designed to get you to talk. If you have made it to this point in the process, you are qualified for the job. Michelle's task at the interview is simply to determine who is likely to be the best fit for the job. Thus, there are no correct or incorrect answers to the questions.
(6) Probably two-thirds of the candidates who attend a first interview are asked back for a second interview, where the candidate meets all the associates and most of the partners. Therefore, if you come back, you will meet almost everyone that you would be working with. You will have as long as you like to ask the associates frank questions outside of the presence of the partners.
(7) Occasionally, we feel we need to ask people back for a third interview. That probably will not happen.
(8) If we are going to offer you the job we will ask for your references and speak with them. We also ask for a copy of your law school transcript to make sure that you didn't manufacture the whole beautiful resume thing.
It is a grueling process, for the firm more than for the candidate. But there is nothing more important to this firm than hiring the best people, so it is well worth the trouble.
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Do you currently have any open entry level associate positions? I am currently in a clerkship or a fellowship that will last for about a year, but would like to apply now, does that make sense?
Always apply if you are looking for a job and you think that you might want to work here. We accept and process applications on a rolling basis and are often hiring.
We currently have ten associate slots that we are attempting to keep staffed, and we are growing. Because of our careful recruitment process we have not had anyone leave here unhappy or get fired for years. However, we promote the job to highly qualified applicants by pointing out and embracing (rather than running from) reality - that this job has proven over and over again to be a stepping stone to a great next job, a job the applicant couldn't have attained from an entry level posture. That fact, coupled with the fact that people leave for other legitimate reasons - for example, "My wife took a job in Asia and I am going with her." - all lead to inevitable turn over in a law firm of this size.
Thus, recruitment is an exciting and essential part of our regular routine around here.
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I am not living in New York City right now, can we do a telephone or video conference interview? Will you pay for me to come to New York City for the interview?
No, to both questions. We simply do not feel comfortable conducting the first interview via phone or video conference. Again, we have a rolling recruitment process. If we like your writing and ask you to come for an interview, the interview can be held the next time you are in New York City and it is convenient for you.
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But what if by the time I am in New York City and available for an interview, you have filled all your current associate positions?
If by the time you are in New York City and available for an interview, the firm has filled all its current associate positions, then interview with us anyway. If we are inclined to extend an offer to you, then when next we have an open slot, we will do so. If, at such time, you are available and want the job, then it will be a match.
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Do you do on campus interviews at my school? Should I apply before I graduate? Do you take summer associates?
No, to all three questions. We have been invited to participate in on-campus interviews everywhere, but we do not see the utility in doing so. We do not take summer associates.
We will not consider you until you have sat for the New York State Bar exam. You do not have to have passed the exam, just sat for it. By the way, we look favorably upon those who have also sat for the New Jersey and Connecticut Bars.
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Do you hire laterals? What if I am a lateral and am willing to take an entry-level job?
We only hire recent law graduates (within a couple years of graduation) who are a natural match for an entry-level position. We like to train people from the beginning. Entry-level associates are integral to our firm's delivery of superior client service in a value-driven model. Moreover, we have, within the firm, partners, of counsels and senior associates in numbers sufficient to train and supervise the entry levels. Hiring a lateral for an entry-level position does not make sense for either the firm or the candidate.
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How do I apply?
If you are not responding to a specific advertisements, then please follow the below procedure:
Application Process: Send resume and cover letter to Michelle Maratto at managingpartner@itkowitz.com.
- State clearly and exactly your bar status in the first sentence of the cover letter;
- Indicate where you saw the ad in the first sentence of the cover letter;
- Only email (do not call or fax or mail hardcopy);
- Only send resume and cover letter (no writing samples, transcripts or references); and
- Mention in the subject line of the email that you are applying for Job # AT-000C.
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How many people am I competing with for this job? I applied before and no one contacted me, should I apply again?
As of this writing, we get about 600 new resumes whenever we place an ad, so about 1,800 resumes per year. About a third of those resumes and cover letters make it through the first two preliminary rounds to undergo in depth grading. We ask the top tenth of those candidates who were graded to send writing. We ask between a third and a quarter of those who sent writing samples to come in for a first interview. At that point, you have a fifty percent chance of getting the job.
Two of the associates here today applied more than once before we called them. What changed in the interim between their first and second applications? A lot of things can change. Your law school, academics, moot court experience, and law journal or review experience cannot change – these are set in stone. But your presentation, writing credentials, work experience, bar admissions, and personal interests can all be enhanced over time. Moreover, hopefully we at the firm get better with time as well, and develop an ever keener eye for the true gems out there. You should believe that you are one of them.
-- End of FAQ's --
We told you - No one will ever tell you more about a potential job than we will.
Managing Partner, Michelle Maratto, is in charge of attorney recruitment. Our director of Human Resources is George Rathbun, PHR.
Thank you for your interest in Itkowitz & Harwood and good luck on your career journey.