At least 30 U of T students secured work in New York and Buffalo
Each year, a significant number of U of T Law students secure work positions in New York. Despite the chilly legal hiring market, this year was no exception, with at least 30 U of T Law students heading to the States.
36 students responded to Ultra Vires’ informal survey this year. 30 secured a 2024 summer associate position in the U.S.. Most of the successful candidates reported that they will be working in New York, but two students indicated that they will be working in Buffalo.
Out of 30 successful candidates, 18 were 2L JD students, 11 were 3L JD/MBA students, and one was a 3L JD/MI student. Compared to last year’s New York recruit results, there was a significant increase in the number of JD/MBA students who secured a New York position. This rise could be attributed to the larger size of the 3L JD/MBA class this year.
This year, Ultra Vires also collected information on whether the successful candidates secured their offer through U of T’s official OCI process or via other means (e.g., “pre-OCI” process, the Loyola Patent Law Interview Program, etc.). Only 11 students—36.7 percent of the successful candidates—reported to have secured their position through the OCI process. The remaining 19 students—63.3 percent of the successful candidates—secured their positions via other means. The majority of the students secured their position through the “pre-OCI” process (applying directly to law firms before the OCI period). Considering the increasing emphasis New York employers place on the pre-OCI recruiting process, the results are perhaps unsurprising, and the trends we see here are projected to continue into future New York recruits.
| Law Firm | Number of U of T Students Hired | JD | JD/MBA | JD/MI |
| Sullivan & Cromwell LLP | 7 | 6 | 1 | – |
| Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP | 6 | 2 | 3 | 1 |
| Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP | 3 | 1 | 2 | – |
| Kirkland & Ellis LLP | 2 | 2 | – | – |
| Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP and Affiliates | 2 | 1* | 1 | – |
| Hodgson Russ LLP** | 2 | 2 | – | – |
| Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP | 1 | 1 | – | – |
| Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP | 1 | – | 1 | – |
| King & Spalding LLP | 1 | – | 1 | – |
| Milbank LLP | 1 | – | 1 | – |
| Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP | 1 | 1 | – | – |
| Shearman & Sterling LLP | 1 | 1 | – | – |
| Sidley Austin LLP | 1 | – | 1 | – |
| White & Case LLP | 1 | 1 | – | – |
| Total | 30 | 18 | 11 | 1 |
**Buffalo office
Editors’ Note: This table has been updated from the version published in our October issue to reflect new information and to correct an error stating that Hodgson Russ LLP hired students at their Boston office. This has been corrected to state that students have been hired at their Buffalo office.