Law firm creates 'bespoke' tasks for job applicants (it helps to be a Saul Bellow fan or math whiz)
Lawyers interested in associate positions with the intellectual property boutique Fisch Sigler are asked to go beyond submission of the traditional cover letter and resume.
Applicants to the Washington, D.C., law firm were recently given the option of writing a three-paragraph essay, Bloomberg Big Law Business reports. The topic: Whether Saul Bellow deserved his 1976 Nobel Prize for Literature.
The job posting said the law firm was looking for “a literary artisan” who “savors persuasive writing” and is well-versed in the classics. Those unfamiliar with Bellow’s work were warned in the job application that the position may not be right for them.
Founding partner Alan Fisch said several candidates wrote the essay, and wanted to talk about it during their interviews. The firm has hired one of the applicants.
Now, the firm is looking for another associate who can focus on damages, according to JDJournal and Bloomberg. Applicants are being asked to submit the answer to this math problem: “If Jesse takes public transportation to work at a rate of 20 miles per hour, and then takes the same route home using a ride-share at a rate of 40 miles per hour, what is Jesse’s average speed for the entire trip?”
Fisch told JD Journal that the firm creates the tasks based on the job opening. “This process is entirely bespoke,” Fisch said. “We crafted it in-house out of a deep concern about making just the right hiring choice. The goal remains for our team to evaluate a broad picture of the candidate and for the candidate to experience a genuine taste of the team’s ethos and winning ways.”
