I always find crypto to be a great answer to "what's a recent commercial topic that has interested you"

[divaination]

everyone's eyes are on it (+ metaverse) because it's really just the new hype train / potential incoming bubble. interviewers do tend to press me to elaborate further but because there are just so many little niches to talk about, answering questions is a breeze and I genuinely do enjoy talking about my analysis of it esp investment/risk/ regulatory issues that law firms want to hear about

 

[Jimpix]

I have been deep in the crypto space for a few years now. I am not sure about the validity of this, but I spoke to a restructuring lawyer on Crypto Twitter who advised me to not discuss crypto in my application. He said it was more likely to be a net negative than a net positive, given how conservative many lawyers are and the public's general dismissiveness of crypto.

For what it's worth though, I agree with you. In an interview, especially under pressure, I would probably resort to discussing crypto too.

 

[AvniD]

everyone's eyes are on it (+ metaverse) because it's really just the new hype train / potential incoming bubble. interviewers do tend to press me to elaborate further but because there are just so many little niches to talk about, answering questions is a breeze and I genuinely do enjoy talking about my analysis of it esp investment/risk/ regulatory issues that law firms want to hear about

I think it's great to talk about what you're genuinely interested in- the entire point of getting candidates to discuss news stories is to get them to unpick the details and engage with the commercial and legal issues at hand and this becomes much easier to do if you're choosing to talk about something you've actually been following.

Focusing on investment and regulatory issues is super important and will make you stand out instantly! Also, keeping up with recent news and scrutiny around cryptocurrencies and crypto-assets and evaluating them for their legal issues for various stakeholders may be a good way to show that you're thorough!

 

[divaination]

I have been deep in the crypto space for a few years now. I am not sure about the validity of this, but I spoke to a restructuring lawyer on Crypto Twitter who advised me to not discuss crypto in my application. He said it was more likely to be a net negative than a net positive, given how conservative many lawyers are and the public's general dismissiveness of crypto.

For what it's worth though, I agree with you. In an interview, especially under pressure, I would probably resort to discussing crypto too.

i really agree, i dont ever mention it in written applications but i go back to crypto during interviews because ive been following the space a lot just for fun in my free time, and can substantiate everything i say with examples, so that comes off as a more confident and reassured answer than something more traditionally discussed and correct but less substantiated with examples.

and i think forward thinking law firms do still care deeply about the crypto space because altho the older public themselves might be dismissive of it, the younger generation and big institutional investors do care - so law firms care too - and this goes beyond just caring for the client, some law firms are actively involved in crypto themselves, for example HSF itself had funds frozen in FTX and it was the second largest unsecured Alameda creditor (the first being AWS).

a lot of why i talk about it is just because it's easy to use common sense to think out all the surrounding issues - if they put me on the spot with a hard question, there is always a sensible answer to be found !

 

[Will Jones]

I have been deep in the crypto space for a few years now. I am not sure about the validity of this, but I spoke to a restructuring lawyer on Crypto Twitter who advised me to not discuss crypto in my application. He said it was more likely to be a net negative than a net positive, given how conservative many lawyers are and the public's general dismissiveness of crypto.

For what it's worth though, I agree with you. In an interview, especially under pressure, I would probably resort to discussing crypto too.

Was this Wassie Lawyer or Gonbe?

I agree that discussing crypto in an interview or application is high risk/high reward. Most law firm partners are conservative and think it's a massive scam... although if you're speaking to a restructuring lawyer at a US/MC firm they may be involved in some of the cases and so find it more interesting!

 

[Jimpix]

Was this Wassie Lawyer or Gonbe?

I agree that discussing crypto in an interview or application is high risk/high reward. Most law firm partners are conservative and think it's a massive scam... although if you're speaking to a restructuring lawyer at a US/MC firm they may be involved in some of the cases and so find it more interesting!

Gonbe

 

[jamielidchi]

I have been deep in the crypto space for a few years now. I am not sure about the validity of this, but I spoke to a restructuring lawyer on Crypto Twitter who advised me to not discuss crypto in my application. He said it was more likely to be a net negative than a net positive, given how conservative many lawyers are and the public's general dismissiveness of crypto.

For what it's worth though, I agree with you. In an interview, especially under pressure, I would probably resort to discussing crypto too.

I can tell from your profile pic that you're interested in crypto! I'd have thought being able to discuss DeFi, in detail, or something like NFT Finance, would show a true interest, and demonstrate that crypto is more than memecoins, simultaneously