Should I work for Cravath?

[Kirk Lazarus]

I recently got an offer from Cravath too, and when searching the net for boards and other opinions about the place I see a lot of hatred toward the place, yet they consistently are ranked a top top firm. 

Is all this hatred just a jealousy thing then?  I am not trying to start an argument or anything but seriously people are speaking out of both of sides of their mouth when it comes to Cravath and most of the hate comes from people who "decided not to work there."  I'm not saying they're wrong, I am just trying to get some honesty.

LOL. It isn't jealousy. It is just that firm rankings aren't like law school rankings. It isn't like going to cravath is like going to Harvard where you'll be much better off than going to Georgetown, on average. And people who pick firms based on vault rankings are misguided.

If you like Cravath because its a good fit for you, then that's all that matters.

[NewHere]

Not a jealousy thing. Jealousy would imply that all the haters had applied at Cravath and were rejected. The truth is that many people don't even apply, because they just have no interest in working there.

Let that not dissuade you. It is a great firm with a great reputation. But if you want to work there, you'd do well to listen to the negative stuff as well as the positive stuff before making your decision.

(Full disclosure: I did not apply at Cravath.)

[themanwithnoname]

I know.  They have an 18-month practice group rotation.  You could probably still find good people, no?

you should look again into their rotation system. You are assigned to one partner for 18 months and then rotated to another partner within the practice group.

[onoble]

What I was referring to is all the hate from people who "don't apply." 

It doesn't make sense, people are basing decisions of rumors and postings on blogs.

What I would like is someone who actually worked there say it was not worth it.  people trashing cravath who never even applied there (never even interviewed) are basing their opinions on bullsh*t.

[,.,.,.;.,.,.]

Unfortunately, rumors and postings on blogs are often the best barometer you have for a firm or school.  I haven't gone through OCI at a Tier-II school with bad grades, but I'm assuming that it's tough down there because I've heard it's tough on these forums and other sites, and I met Tier-II students who told me it's tough unless you're a top student.

So that's life.  Either work at Cravath despite the rumors or don't.

[NewHere]

What I would like is someone who actually worked there say it was not worth it.  people trashing cravath who never even applied there (never even interviewed) are basing their opinions on bullsh*t.

Not really. To speak for myself, I'm basing my opinion on conversations with friends who work(ed) there. I find that valuable information, equally valuable, if not more, than speaking to interviewers (who want to sell their place). My friends who work there obviously chose to do so, so they can tell me what's good about it, but also what's bad. (And for me, the balance works out such that I wouldn't want to work there. Doesn't mean that nobody should work there. Different people value different things.)