OCI or interview coming up? Book a free 15-minute consultation to talk it through.

I have been in the room on both sides of the OCI table. These are the five things that sink otherwise strong candidates every single year. The same five mistakes apply to lateral interviews, by the way — just with higher stakes.

1. Not Researching the Firm Specifically

Reading the firm’s website the morning of the interview is not research. Research means knowing something specific — a recent deal, a practice group expansion, a partner who joined. Spend thirty minutes per firm on actual research. Write down two or three things that are genuinely interesting to you. The difference comes through immediately.

2. A Generic “Why Biglaw” Answer

“I want to work on sophisticated transactions with elite clients.” Every candidate says this. The answer they want is specific to their firm and honest about your goals. If you want biglaw to exit to private equity in three years, that is a more interesting answer than the alternative. For laterals: the equivalent is the “why this firm and why now” answer, which deserves the same specificity. Specificity is credibility.

3. Talking Too Much

A good OCI answer is two to three sentences of substance, then stop. Practice answer length. Leaving a beat of silence after your answer is a sign of confidence, not uncertainty.

4. Asking About Compensation or Hours Early

These are legitimate concerns. They are not first-interview topics. Save them for the callback, when you are actually evaluating whether to take an offer. At OCI, your only job is to make them want to invite you back.

5. No Follow-Up

A thank you email done well leaves a small but real impression. Done poorly — generic, misspelled, sent from a phone — it’s worse than nothing. Done briefly, specifically, within twenty-four hours, it closes the loop cleanly.

The candidate who gets the callback is almost never the most impressive person in the room. They’re the one who made the interviewer feel like the conversation was genuinely worth having.

If you want to do a mock interview or work through your firm list, the first 15 minutes are free. More here. For a complete walkthrough of biglaw interviews — OCI through lateral — my book Biglaw Interview Advice is on Amazon.