Fordham University School of Law Dean William Micheal Treanor has banned international law firm Reed Smith from participating in on-campus interviews for five years, pointing to the firm’s “lack of professionalism” in its late cancellation of interviews at Fordham this year.
Though Reed Smith intends to have a 2010 summer associate program, they decided to cut interviews at some law schools, including Fordham. This is the first time in Treanor’s tenure as dean that he has prohibited a firm from conducting on-campus interviews. Reed Smith did not cancel interviews until after they had received their interview schedule. In a letter to students explaining the decision to ban Reed Smith from the interview process, Treanor noted that no other firm has ever cancelled interviews at Fordham as late as Reed Smith did.
In his letter, Treanor wrote, “Reed Smith’s action is more disheartening because of the lack of professionalism it conveys … At Fordham Law, we require our students to conduct themselves with the utmost professionalism, and we expect employers to demonstrate the same high standards.”
Dana Levin, recruiting director for Reed Smith, told the online ABA Journal that the firm’s decision to scale back the number of schools it was interviewing at was economically motivated, and that they will conduct in-office interviews “where appropriate” for students at schools they did not visit.
“When we made our decision about on-campus recruiting, we immediately and directly communicated it to Fordham. Reed Smith has more than 20 Fordham graduates in our lawyer ranks, all of them valuable members of our team,” Levin said. “We hope Dean Treanor will reconsider his decision in light of the marketplace realities our industry is facing, and we look forward to continuing our long and successful relationship with Fordham.”
