Don't hibernate over the summer
Preparing incoming law students for all 100 firms.
BigLaw Bear gives incoming students 100-firm data, attorney context, and a free application tracker built for callback season.
Hiring at a firm? See the firm portal →
Why this matters
Get an edge over the summer.
Three months into 1L, you're expected to know what you want to do for the rest of your career. Most law students aren't ready but you have an edge now.
- You are here
Summer 2026
You are here
Browse the 100, compare your top picks, build your shortlist before classes start.
Sep to Oct 2026
Direct applications start
Firm portals, early-interest forms, and receptions can open before the school interview process.
Nov to Dec 2026
Bid lists take shape
Career offices set deadlines while finals hit. Your shortlist needs to be real before winter break.
January 2027
School interviews
Many schools run On-Campus Interviewing, often called OCI, around this window.
Feb to Mar 2027
Callbacks + offers
Screeners turn into callbacks and decisions. Students who built the list early move with less panic.
Click anywhere on the timeline to start your free profile
The Directory
The 100 firms, ranked the three ways that matter
Vault, Chambers Band 1 by practice area, AmLaw revenue and PPP. Sortable side by side. Filter by city to see who's strongest where you'd actually work.
Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP
New York, NY · Antitrust · Restructuring
PPP $7.20M
Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz
New York, NY · Corporate / M&A
PPP $12.15M
Latham & Watkins LLP
Los Angeles, CA · Banking & Finance
PPP $8.65M
Davis Polk & Wardwell
New York, NY · Capital Markets
PPP $9.80M
+ 96 more firms in the directory
Decision Tools
Salary, cost of living, and offer math in one public toolkit
Compare market salaries, adjust offers across cities, stack total compensation, and pressure-test practice-area fit before you commit hours to a shortlist.
$245K
Salary Calculator
Nominal vs COL-adjusted pay
NYC → DC
COL Adjuster
Purchasing power + tax delta
4 offers
Offer Stack
Base, bonus, clerkship premium
12 qs
Practice Fit
Work style mapped to practice
Example comparison
$245K in New York ≈ $131K national purchasing power
Your Tracker
Every application, deadline, and contact in one row
Pipeline-style view from Applied to Offer. Inline notes, attorney contacts, reschedule requests. The dashboard adapts as your real recruiting activity picks up.
Applied
8
Screener
3
Callback
2
Offer
1
Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP
Decision due Oct 14
Sullivan & Cromwell LLP
Round 2 scheduled Tue 9:00 AM
Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP
Recruiter: Anna Patel
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP
Submitted Sep 8
The Library
Ask anything about BigLaw, get a real answer
Salary scales. Practice area breakdowns. Recruiting timelines. Plain-English guides written for incoming students, not insiders. Search the 200+ articles or browse the topic tree.
Answer
Learn the recruiting sequence, build a first firm list, and get fluent enough in practice-area vocabulary to ask better questions.