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V O L . X X V N O. X X V I N OV E M B E R 1 1 , 2 0 1 9 26 F O C U S L AW On a similar note, Eaton Peabody encourages applications from students from away, including a summer associ- ate hired for next year who attends a law school in the western United States but is originally from Maine. Eaton Peabody's Ryan Dumais, who co-chairs the firm's hiring committee from Augusta, says the firm recruits for entry-level attorney hires on a three- to five-year horizon. at's partly a func- tion of the summer program, and partly a function of the traditional, one-year judicial clerkships after graduation. While Eaton Peabody normally takes on two summer associates, this past summer it had three, two of whom will join the firm in fall 2020 after fin- ishing one-year judicial clerkships. "We don't hire for attrition," Dumais says. "We hire for specific needs." He also says the recruiting committee tweaks its approach when needed, underscoring that "we try not to be lock-step about it." At Preti Flaherty, recruitment com- mittee chair Jeffrey Talbert says the firm sometimes enlists external recruiters to help find candidates for specific posi- tions. He says the hardest people to find are those with an established book of business and are willing to relocate. But he says the firm has overcome that hurdle by being transparent about how it operates, and the fact that it's a large firm that can handle a wide range of cases. "We're also a meritocracy," Talbert says, "so people understand that if they work hard they'll do well and advance at the firm. at's been overall very helpful, especially with folks looking for opportunities to grow." Small firms with big ambitions Murray Plumb & Murray, a 16-attor- ney firm with offices on Pearl Street in Portland, recently hired Katherine Krakowka as of counsel on its three- person bankruptcy team co-chaired by Andrew Helman and Kelly McDonald. McDonald also chairs the firm's hiring committee, and says the firm likes to bring on summer associates it sees fitting in for the long term. "We really want to bring in a sum- mer associate who is going to succeed and who we're going to like, and at the end of that time we're going to make them an offer for post-graduation, and then will stay here and make partner," he says. He likes to joke about the compari- son to John Grisham's novel "e Firm" or the Eagles' song "Hotel California," but adds: "I won't use that metaphor too often because it scares people.' On a more serious note, McDonald says the firm hasn't yet found a sum- mer associate for 2020 — sometimes they're snapped up by larger rivals — but is resigned to the possibility it may not find one. With any new hire the firm looks for high-quality lawyers it sees fitting into the family-like culture, partly a function of its decision to stay under 25 lawyers. "at small size means that here, first-year associates are going to client meetings," he says. "ey're not part of a six-lawyer team where they're reporting to a senior associate who's reporting to a junior partner who's reporting to a senior partner, who's actually talking to the cli- ent." He also highlights diversity as an "explicit priority, because we're better off if we're not just a bunch of white men." A few blocks away at civil litigation firm ompson Bowie & Hatch LLC, hiring partner Robert Hatch says he hires most if not all new associates from judicial clerkships and when interview- ing summer associate candidates "we look for the good people, and then we teach them to be good lawyers." Hatch says the firm has a zero attrition rate for lawyers and staff, and wouldn't be surprised to grow beyond the current 15 attorneys, particularly in the areas of immigration, mediation and pro- fessional liability defense. "Some of our practices are growing, and having more hands would be very beneficial to us." Three-year plan Back at Bernstein Shur, Fortin says the firm looks to hire lawyers who have had work and different life experiences before going to law school. at includes former paralegal Julia MacDonald and Elliot Brake, who was working as a program assistant at Portland nonprofit Preble Street when he first met Fortin and mentioned he was studying for the Law School Admission Test. "Law school was still years away, but she gave me her card and I kept it," he says. He later applied for and was accepted as a summer associate in 2019, as well as MacDonald. Both, now in their late 20s and in their third and final year at UMaine Law, will spend the next year in judicial clerkships and then start full- time at Bernstein Shur in fall 2022. "It feels weird to do that," says MacDonald, "but it feels really good know what I'll be doing. It takes the pressure off." R e n e e C o r d e s , M a i n e b i z s e n i o r w r i t e r, c a n b e r e a c h e d a t r c o r d e s @ m a i n e b i z . b i z a n d @ r s c o r d e s Trustworthy Reliable Strategic Partner Experienced RUDMAN WINCHELL 207.947.4501 rudmanwinchell.com C O U N S E L O R S A T L A W Everything you need to protect your family, business and community. Kelly McDonald, who chairs the hiring committee at Murray Plumb & Murray, says the Portland firm looks for attorneys it sees fitting into its family-like culture. P H O T O / T I M G R E E N WAY » C O N T I N U E D F RO M P R E V I O U S PA G E [Diversity is an] explicit priority, because we're better off if we're not just a bunch of white men. — Kelly McDonald Murray, Plumb & Murray

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