It is being reported that Biglaw has changed its practices about recruiting on law school campuses. It used to be that 1Ls could not be approached about summer associate positions until well into their first semester of law school. Now, it appears that the practice has changed and that Biglaw is coming after first year students, who look like superstars on paper, even before the Fall semester begins. In addition, it also has been reported that these same Biglaw firms are incentivizing upper class students, who have experience working at the firms, to help identify desirable first year students, befriend them, and participate in the “sell”.

And, most disappointing is that NALP, an advisory organization specializing in law student placement in coordination with law schools, has reversed its prior rigid “hands off 1Ls until October 15” recommendation and replaced it with a “reasonableness standard.” I think we can assume that the “reasonableness” will be controlled by the big money.

To be frank, this sounds abusive at the least and abhorrent at the most.

Earlier in my career, I taught Legal Research and Writing to 1Ls at Georgetown Law. I am very familiar with the insecurities and practices of first year law students. And, to my knowledge, not much has changed over the years. Many 1Ls suffer from Imposter Syndrome, and most of them are insecure to one degree or another. Any indication that they can do better or that they need to put in additional time is met with fear. It is all about grades and who comes out on top. They are surrounded by the best and the brightest at schools in the Top Tier, and both their competitive genes and insecurity genes are working overtime.

To give them as much time as possible to get established in such a super competitive environment, organizations like NALP have traditionally recommended “hands off” these vulnerable students until they get their footing. That is, until now. Until Biglaw sees another advantage. Until the value of the “win” usurps the collective wisdom of practitioners.

You and I can write the script. Law firms approach these kids, feeding their egos and assuring them that they will be superstars and that the firms know it and will take a chance on them before they actually prove their merit. And at a time too early for the 1Ls to see right through it. Give them some experience in law school, and they will realize that it is all about grades and honorariums. They will know that, if the grades turn out to be substandard, the law firms will dump them like yesterday’s bad news. It is a game of inches that first years should not be tempted to play.

This is wrong, and I hope that clearer heads will prevail before too much damage is done. I hope that we will go back to giving the kids a break. Let them settle in. Let them gain some degree of security well before law firm recruiters pounce on them.

According to an article on Above the Law, students have appealed to the ABA to consider the matter. I am sorry to say that gives me little comfort. I am familiar with the workings of the ABA, having been a monthly columnist for the ABA Journal at one time. I do not put much stock in the ABA to square off against Biglaw. They are one and the same, unfortunately.

But there is power in numbers at the ABA. If you are an ABA member and are concerned about this changed policy, contact the ABA. Use your power. Tell them hands off the 1Ls. There are plenty of first years who will distinguish themselves in time to meet the needs of Biglaw.

And what is the rush, anyway? Oh, money, money, money, of course. Marketing advantages for Biglaw. Not human advantages for future lawyers.

Ugh. I have seen this movie before.

Happy 2026. I hope it turns out that way. I am counting on all of you to keep your legal minds razor sharp because I think there is a lot coming your way in 2026.

I have to say I am suspect about the way it is starting out. And, as a student of history, my thoughts turn to Marie Antoinette at times like this.

You may recall Marie as the wife of Louis XVI and the Queen of France under his reign. Although she is lauded as having been a better leader than Louis in many respects, she is best remembered for her indifference to the masses, who were suffering while the Crown spent opulently on palaces, brocades, and opera glasses. When confronted with the needs of her people, specifically that they were starving and had no bread to eat, Marie responded “Let them eat cake.”

Suffice to say that things did not turn out well for Marie and Louis.

Not a student of French history? No problem. You don’t have to be. Just remember that, as lawyers, you have special tools to consider and ponder when similar events arise.

Now if you think I am referring to Nicolas Maduro of Venezuela and his wife Celia Flores and their own cruel brand of indifference to the masses in Venezuela, I am not. Although I abhor the way the people of Venezuela have suffered under the Maduro regime, my analogy is much closer to home.

Think about what is happening in our own country. Perhaps, as an American citizen, you care about the basic needs of our own masses and issues like food insecurity, inadequate and unaffordable healthcare, and how families are being torn apart and injured by immigration policies that are inhumane.

If that is the case, perhaps you should think about how those issues and others are being ignored while our president is building monuments to himself, gilding the White House, and playing emperor for a term …. or more if he has it his way.

Consider the plans for the new East Wing, the Arc de Trump he is planning to erect somewhere in your Capitol City, the Imperialistic-style and arguably illegal takeover of Venezuela, and now the obsession to take over Greenland, which is “inconveniently” owned by Denmark, a NATO ally. And contrast that to what appears to be an attitude of indifference about the many more mundane issues that involve the basic care taking of the American people.

Those mundane issues take attention for certain, but they also require money to address and solve. Will that be possible as our public treasure is being depleted to “run” another country? Although you will hear that private donors are expected to pay the freight for some of what is being done or planned by the Administration, you may want to keep your eye on the public treasure that is funded by US taxpayers and how it may be drawn down to support these operations. If you think that US oil companies are going to pay for it all, think again. To date, they don’t appear to be too enthusiastic. So now that we are in for more than a penny and what is likely more than a pound in Venezuela, what happens next? Keep your ears attuned to what may become the sucking sound of depletion of the US treasury.

There is a lot to think about in 2026. All I know in these first few days is that ignoring the needs of the People should have consequences because it is the People’s United States of America. And there is precedent in history for ignoring the People.

This is where your legal and communal skills need to kick in. Read. Analyze. Discuss. It is no time to just stick your head in the sand and wish for a better day. The legal profession is no place for Pollyannas.