Law Class of 2019 Employment Summary

The Class of 2019 from Washington and Lee University School of Law shows another year of strong performance in employment. The Office of Career Strategy reports that 92.7% of the class of 2019 secured a long-term, full-time job that either required bar passage or for which a J.D. degree was an advantage.

Big Law

Each year a large portion of our graduating class finds employment at law firms of varying sizes, including Big Law (defined as law firms with over 500 attorneys). For the Class of 2019, 15.5% of our graduates found employment in Big Law, including at many of the NLJ Top 350 firms, such as:

  • Alston & Bird LLP
  • Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP
  • Burr & Forman, LLP
  • Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP
  • Covington & Burling LLP
  • Eversheds Sutherland
  • Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner, LLP
  • Hunton Andrews Kurth
  • Jackson Lewis P.C.
  • Jackson Walker
  • Jones Walker, LLP
  • K&L Gates LLP
  • Locke Lord LLP
  • Mayer Brown LLP
  • Moore & Van Allen, LLC
  • Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP
  • Morrison & Foerster LLP
  • Perkins Coie LLP
  • Venable LLP 

Judicial Clerkships

One particular area of strength for W&L Law has always been placement in federal and state clerkships. For our Class of 2019, 26% are working as judicial clerks; 10.5% at the federal level; 15.5% at the state level. Our graduates are clerking at courts across the country, including:

  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, Office of the Staff Attorney
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces
  • U.S. Court of Federal Claims
  • U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Administrative Law Judges
  • U.S. District Court, Northern District of Alabama
  • U.S. District Court, Southern District of Alabama
  • U.S. District Court, Eastern and Western Districts of Kentucky
  • U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Virginia
  • U.S. District Court, Middle District of Georgia
  • U.S. District Court, Southern District of Georgia
  • Supreme Court of Virginia
  • Delaware Superior Court
  • Superior Court of New Jersey
  • State trial courts in Alaska, Delaware, Maryland, Nevada, and Virginia

Government & Public Interest

Approximately 18% of the Class of 2019 are working for a variety of government agencies, not-for-profits, and public interest employers, including:

  •  Bronx County Office of the District Attorney
  • Office of the Colorado Public Defender
  • Commonwealth of Virginia, Assistant Commonwealth Attorney
  • Denver City Attorney's Office 
  • Florida Public Service Commission
  • Legal Aid Society of Eastern Virginia 
  • New York State Senate
  • Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts
  • U.S. Army
  • U.S. Department of Defense  

Business & Industry

Lastly, 6.8% of our Class of 2019 are working for a variety of business & industry employers, including work in policy and finance:

  • American Academy of Actuaries
  • BBB National Programs, Inc.
  • eyeo GmbH
  • JP Morgan Chase
  • Quantum Electronic Payment
  • RSM International
  • U.S. Beet Sugar Association  

Geographic Locations

Graduates of the Class of 2019 have full-time employment in 22 states and 1 foreign country. The top geographic areas for employment are:

  • Virginia (26%)
  • Washington D.C. (14%)
  • North Carolina (8%)
  • Alabama (7%)
  • New York (7%)
  • Texas (7%)

Graduates also accepted employment in the following states: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Washington, and West Virginia.