‘Longer Runway’ Due to Virus Means Anxiety for New Big Law Class

Fall has become a season of discontent for a 2020 Big Law associate class whose expectations of a stable start to their careers have been upended by the coronavirus.

Many bar authorities across the country, including in New York and California, delayed or canceled in-person bar exams scheduled for July for public health reasons, leaving recent law school graduates anxiously studying for months on end for an exam that may or may not happen this fall, to be administered in an online format that presents potential problems.

They also face another big hurdle — employment. Many law firms have ...