Balestriere Fariello is a private trials and investigations law firm with a public service focus. We're looking for business college students who want a true apprenticeship experience at a highly entrepreneurial law firm that is working towards changing the way law is practiced, where they will do meaningful work in developing systems and methods employed by lawyers and other professionals on significant cases, will learn and grow by working alongside lawyers and other professionals, and who have mature, responsible attitudes, willing to do whatever work is necessary to get the job done.

The Firm now actively recruits college seniors as business staff, including as chief of staff (who run firm offices and all operations) and directors of communication (who actively promote the firm by way of public relations and in obtaining publicity) hopes increasingly to hire as business staff those who have already worked at the firm as business and communications college apprentices.

We are not a prestigious law office. We do not care to be. Students interested in prestige or an attractive line on their resume should save their time and ours and apply elsewhere. We have absolutely no tolerance whatsoever for arrogance, poor attitudes, or lack of commitment. We are willing to do whatever work necessary which is consistent with our integrity to win in our cases -- we are not "better" than any work -- and demand students who work with us share that attitude. We only want students ready to work hard alongside other committed professionals, and have fun, in a genuine apprenticeship experience.

We also are not a typical law office, swimming in efficiency, or seeking to live off of the prestige the firm has developed.  Instead, we are constantly striving to achieve efficiency in the way work, systematizing our methods, and practicing law in a different way.

We expect much more from our apprentices than do other law offices and value training and mentorship as core values of the firm. We give undergraduates work usually reserved for law or business school students or graduates, and give law students work usually reserved for junior associates. Business and communication college apprentices could work on any business, public relations, marketing, or communications task in the firm, including, by way of example:

• Writing and organizing articles for the firm newsletter.
• Coordination of recruiting and interviewing for incoming classes of analysts and apprentices.
• Preparing and compiling data for monthly financial reports.
• Development of a marketing strategy for the law firm, including building on web based and other advertising campaigns, brochures and general media, social networking sites, and CLE courses.
• Administration and management of the firm's electronic database and filing room.

Who Should Apply

The firm is currently seeking business and communications college students as apprentices for Summer 2010 as well as the entire 2010-2011 school year, starting in September 2010 and ending in May 2011. We spend a lot of time training apprentices such that the longer term or more intensive work period makes sense both for the firm and for apprentices. Any apprentices who start in the summer and continue to work with us during the school year participate in the firm's training program, lecture series, and social events.

Business and communications college apprentices must be rising college seniors. While our young, evolving firm can make no promises at this time, we hope to recruit from the business and communications apprentice program chiefs of staff and communications director to work at the firm full time after college graduation and until they go to business school, or potentially for the long term.

Requirements

Apprentices must be serious about their commitment to the firm and their work. This is essentially a job, not a class, even if exposure, training, and simply learning are integral parts of the experience.  In the past, we have asked a few apprentices to end their work with us on the spot when they showed us that they did not treat their work or their colleagues seriously enough.  Poor attitude or a lack of respect for fellow apprentices, law firm staff, clients, witnesses, or anyone else is a basis for immediate termination of the apprenticeship.

Apprentices must also be very careful in their work, pay attention to detail, possess excellent writing and research skills, be ready to take initiative and be creative, work well in teams, but also be able to slog away in a given project by themselves, be willing to do whatever work is necessary for a given project, and be prepared to work on multiple tasks in different areas of the firm’s business over the course of their apprenticeship.

An interest in public service is very important. A desire to be entrepreneurial and creativity is crucial. High integrity is essential. Fitting in with our staff in our particular environment is necessary.

We, in turn, will meet our responsibility to make the apprenticeship a challenging and rewarding one and to involve apprentices as much as possible in our work. Committed apprentices have become integral parts of the firm in very short order. Past legal college apprentices have joined the firm after graduation as full time analysts, and we expect to hire full time business staff from our business and communications apprenticeship program.

Benefits

There is no cash payment to apprentices. However, the firm does cover public transportation expenses within New York City, and apprentices will be invited to take part in the firm's training program and a regular lecture series featuring lawyers and judges from both state and federal courts (During the school year, the firm will also reimburse apprentices who commute to New York from out of the City for all or part of their transportation costs). There also are social events during the apprenticeship, paid for by the firm. Students are encouraged to receive credit for the apprenticeship and the firm will assist them in any way necessary to make that happen. Past apprentices have also written papers with lawyers at the firm. As noted, past apprentices have gone on to full time employment at the firm, and our hope is that we shall hire more and more of our full time staff from the firm's college and law student apprenticeship programs.

Time Commitment

For the summer, apprentices must work in the firm at least four full days a week, and are required to use their own laptops with wireless modems to access the firm’s network. During the semester, those apprentices who have worked at the firm during the summer must work in the firm at least one full day a week when school is in session, though two days in the office are strongly encouraged, and must perform at least 15 hours of work per week (in and out of office). Those who can commit to more time in the office shall be preferred in the hiring process.

Fall semester-only apprentices are required to work at the firm full time during normal business hours, also using their laptops with wireless modems.

Finally, the firm will create an email account for each apprentice, which they must check at least once daily on days the courts are open when they are not at the firm, and must be available for emergency phone calls during reasonable hours if something urgent comes up in one of their cases while they are not in the office.

We understand that, during the semester, school is a student’s top priority. At the same time, if an apprentice commits to working a certain number of days or on a given project at the beginning of the apprenticeship, we expect the apprentice to fulfill that commitment and keep her word. Changing the time commitment after the semester begins is a basis for our terminating the apprenticeship.

Application Procedure

Interested applicants should submit the following to recruiting@balestriere.net as soon as possible:

• cover letter,
  
• resume,
  
• writing sample,
  
• unofficial copy of an up to date transcript,
  
• contact information for at least three references (including at least one employer reference).

Write “Business College Apprentice Application” and the period of time in which you're interested in the subject heading of the e-mail.

More Information

For more information check out our website at www.balestriere.net.