Wachtell Lawyer looking to pivot into Finance

I've posted this before on this forum, you should feel free to dig through older posts of people trying to switch from law to finance.  The ideal situation for you should be to move out from doing M&A work to more restructuring work at your firm. WLRK is not exactly Tier 1 in restructuring but good enough to get you looks in the future if you play your cards well. Your M&A work will very much not be relevant here for distressed/special situations unless you also spent time working on credit docs/leveraged financing tied to M&A. The other thing in your favor is you are a junior associate - its easier to make the switch to associate level in banking (as opposed to VP, etc that is a lot harder).

The path you should gun for is: Associate Law (go for M&A to Restructuring work)- > Restructuring Associate at a bank (1/2 years max)- > Distressed Investing. You could potentially use your School network to move (some H people have done it, not sure about Y) directly, but that will depend on your pre-law work experience.

Best of luck!

Here's the notes that I posted before:

1. Banks will always value your background. The disadvantages you point are not relevant. Your background is very invaluable. The question is which team - Coverage vs M&A vs RX vs LevFin etc. You do not need an MBA.

2. RX, LevFin and associated groups will look very favorably at you, particularly if you worked on drafting credit agreements, or were peripherally involved in the credit process tied to M&A (staple financing, etc etc). 

3. Do not just assume that just because you worked as M&A lawyer means you are ready to do Coverage or M&A or that they will prefer you. The only thing that really works in your favor is that you understand a deal process (and the intensity it brings). M&A lawyers are basically quarter-backing the deal from a legal perspective- you are the liaison for say regulatory lawyer, anti-trust lawyer, ECM lawyer,etc (the job is not just drafting, its getting a bunch of specialists to provide drafting/other inputs on a deal from legal perspective). In the same way, bankers (particularly associates but also VPs) are also quarter-backing a deal but from a wider perspective - In addition to running the math and materials, you are now corralling the management, the accountants, the tax-accountants, internal finance people, debt advisory team, the lawyers, etc etc. Your similarity ends here though. Associate/VP level banking - very much focused on being in the model, checking numbers, having a good grip of financials, etc- these are tools of trade you can only learn through experience and dedication (and most of your background doesn't really help here).

4. Your biggest pitfall would be the perception that you are not good at math, or excel. You have to overcome that both in recruiting but also once you do make the switch.  We had an associate once come through a top tier law firm as a lateral after 2 years of law and fell apart because he was completely unable to operate at the same level our analysts were operating at, or check work, or make incremental edits/provide meaningful guidance. (Interestingly, he is now doing something completely unrelated and fun!). As a banker, you are responsible for the numbers, and (almost always) the materials. The buck starts and stops with you. Someone above pointed learning financial modelling - you absolutely must, and not just learn it, but become at least as good as analysts/associates. That should be your standard.

5. Dealing with uncertainty- law is very definitive. Your job is to identify risks and mitigate them for your clients. Banking is often doing the opposite (outside of RX) - your job is to convince the clients to take a little more risk (more equity, more debt, another acquisition, disposal, etc etc). The greatest lawyer-turned-bankers are those that can, among things, make a balanced judgment. This is also a reflection of your earnings potential - law is fixed, banking is bonus based. Are you comfortable with that type of work and earnings?

Source: I was a M&A lawyer once.