Investment Banking Interview Tips for JD Candidates

This post tries to clarify what information a JD holder or candidate needs to have in order to intelligently respond to questions of an investment banking interview. This posting is geared toward a financial position, not a legal one.

It is a widely acknowledged fact that law students must quickly temporarily remember and regurgitate huge amounts of information for their exams. You can read this in numerous publications, The Curmudgeon's Guide to Practicing Law being one of the more popular ones quite literally stating this outright.

I note that this may make JD candidates that are aiming for financial jobs less prepared for investment banking interviews than they would expect. You may have taken M&A, Securities Regulations, Corporations, etc. However, how much of it have you retained for future interviews?

Unless you are an outright genius, it is likely that you have forgotten pretty much all of the details taught in these classes, especially given that bar examinations do not routinely test these areas. A few months of bar prep will make you less aware of current events and applicable law. From my experience with investment bank interviewers and employees, you must know the following:

Basic accounting terminology and concepts (especially rules about goodwill value reporting)

Regulation D's purposes and contents, including specific thresholds

Consideration strategies in M&A transactions (How to save on taxes, etc)

Corporate voting and disclosure rules
Specifics of current financial events (What are today's prime rates? Who generates mortgages? Whom are they sold to?)

Who regulates your employer? How?

EDGAR

Basic understanding of fiscal and monetary policy

Basics of venture valuation terminology and methods (Trading comps, etc. My opinion is that if you don't know what a poison pill is, you will never get a call back, so keep an example of one in your head)

Basic investing terminology (What is a warrant? What does "no load" mean?)

What does an investment banker do? What does your employer make money doing?

Quite a collection to keep in your brain? Surely, but that is the price of a prestigious, well-paying position. Also take my advice with a grain of salt--I have not managed to obtain an investment banking position, but I have accumulated this advice by meeting with various investment bankers over the last six years or so.