Standards for the Timing of Offers and Decisions
General Provisions
We believe it is in the best interests of employers and students, whenever possible, for employers to allow students adequate time to evaluate their employment options. Therefore, all offers to law students should remain open for at least two weeks (14 days) after the date of the offer letter.
We recognize that due to firm or office size, employers may require flexibility on the offer acceptance period. Employers should nonetheless follow a reasonableness standard in the offer process and may contact the Office of Career and Professional Development (OCPD) for guidance, as needed.
A student should not hold open more than three offers of employment at any one time. For each offer received that places a student over the offer limit, the student should release an offer within three days of the excess offer.
“Exploding” offers, which rob students of meaningful choice and are unlikely to produce good matches for the employer or the candidate, are expressly prohibited. Students may request an offer extension if necessary to make an informed decision; employers are encouraged to grant extensions if the request is reasonable and granting the extension is not unduly burdensome.
The OCPD strongly discourages “open until filled” offers, in which employers extend more offers than they have positions available. In these cases, the employer must advise the student in writing that the position is open until filled, regardless of whether a timeframe has otherwise been given for the student to decide on the offer.
Summer Employment Offers
Second Year Students
We encourage employers to give 2L students at least 14 days from the date of the offer letter or, for participating employers, the first day of the Early Interview Program (EIP), June 16, 2025, whichever is later, to decide on summer employment offers. Employers are asked to include the expiration date of their offer in the offer letter. Employers who plan to hold offers open for less than 14 days are asked to contact the OCPD so that the office is aware, and advisors can guide students in their strategy and decision making.
Employers who engage in pre-EIP recruiting should offer interview times and formats to minimize students’ travel time and expense as well as potential disruption to their first-year studies or summer employment. Employers should also provide students interviewed prior to EIP with regular updates of their status, including as of five business days prior to the start of EIP, so they can make fully informed EIP decisions.
These policies apply to offers to 2L students returning for a second summer as well as offers made to 2Ls not previously employed by the firm.
First Year Students
We ask employers to respect that 1Ls should be focused on their studies in the first semester of law school. In most instances, the 1L summer job search process should not begin until the conclusion of first semester exams.
All offers to first year students for summer employment should remain open for at least 14 days after the date of the offer letter.
Post-Graduate Employment Offers
Students Previously Employed by Employer
We encourage employers offering full-time positions to commence following graduation to candidates previously employed by them to leave those offers open for at least 14 days following the date of the offer letter or October 1 of the student’s final year of law school, whichever is later.
Students Not Previously Employed by Employer
Employers offering full-time positions to commence following graduation to students not previously employed by them are encouraged to leave those offers open for at least 14 days following the date of the offer letter.
