{"id":110507,"date":"2025-03-14T13:03:04","date_gmt":"2025-03-14T21:03:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/2025\/03\/14\/the-biglaw-job-market-is-rough-but-it-isnt-worth-going-to-prison-over\/"},"modified":"2025-03-14T13:03:04","modified_gmt":"2025-03-14T21:03:04","slug":"the-biglaw-job-market-is-rough-but-it-isnt-worth-going-to-prison-over","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/2025\/03\/14\/the-biglaw-job-market-is-rough-but-it-isnt-worth-going-to-prison-over\/","title":{"rendered":"The Biglaw Job Market Is Rough, But It Isn\u2019t Worth Going To Prison Over"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignright size-large is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"620\" height=\"413\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/abovethelaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2017\/10\/prisoner-behind-bars-620x413.jpg?resize=620%2C413&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-70093\" title=\"\"><figcaption><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Between the price of eggs and some Biglaw bonuses looking like other people\u2019s salaries, there\u2019s no surprise that people would go to extreme lengths to net one of these high-paying jobs. But there should be limits. Not just the ones we impose on our own job search like opportunities for hybrid work, not bending the knee to Trump at minimum or standing on the rule of law at best, but external ones too. You know, like not committing social security fraud to score the callback. One former lawyer didn\u2019t get the message, but he will definitely be getting jail time. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.abajournal.com\/news\/article\/disbarred-lawyer-gets-prison-time-after-posing-as-biglaw-alum-former-football-player-in-quest-for-jobs\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">ABA Journal<\/a> has coverage:<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>A disbarred Ohio lawyer has been sentenced to 37 months in prison for Social Security fraud after using fake identities in a quest for law firm jobs.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>Richard Louis Crosby III, 37, of Mason, Ohio, was sentenced Monday, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/legal\/legalindustry\/lawyer-who-used-fake-identities-get-law-firm-jobs-gets-37-months-prison-2025-03-10\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Reuters<\/a> and a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/usao-sdoh\/pr\/disbarred-attorney-sentenced-more-3-years-prison-social-security-number-fraud-part\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">March 10 press release<\/a>. In addition to serving time in prison, Crosby will have to pay $171,000 in restitution to defrauded firms.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>$171k in restitution? If he needed a Biglaw gig before, he definitely needs one now! In addition to lying about his Social Security number, Crosby decided to falsely state that he was a Marine, a University of Michigan football player, and a former Kirkland &amp; Ellis employee. Did he ever think that those claims would be easy to run a background check on? He might as well have said that he was a lead attorney at Enron. Would that have been more believable? No, but it definitely would have been harder to verify.<\/p>\n<p>The job market is rough, but do your best to be honest on your resume \u2014 prison is rougher. <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.abajournal.com\/news\/article\/disbarred-lawyer-gets-prison-time-after-posing-as-biglaw-alum-former-football-player-in-quest-for-jobs\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Disbarred Lawyer Gets Prison Time After Posing As BigLaw Alum, Former Football Player In Quest For Jobs<\/a> [ABA Journal]<\/p>\n<p><strong>Earlier<\/strong>: <a href=\"https:\/\/abovethelaw.com\/2023\/11\/disbarred-attorney-uses-fake-id-to-score-better-job-than-you\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Disbarred Attorney Uses Fake ID To Score Better Job Than You<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/abovethelaw.com\/2024\/07\/faux-biglaw-lawyer-pleads-guilty-to-social-security-fraud-gets-prison-time\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Faux Biglaw Lawyer Pleads Guilty To Social Security Fraud, Gets Prison Time<\/a><\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignright size-full\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/abovethelaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2025\/03\/image-4.png?resize=150%2C150&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1153393\" title=\"\"><figcaption><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><strong>Chris Williams became a social media manager and assistant editor for Above the Law in June 2021. Prior to joining the staff, he moonlighted as a minor Memelord\u2122 in the Facebook group\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/photo\/?fbid=10222912314148913&amp;set=p.10222912314148913&amp;opaqueCursor=AboVBPzRKh4loie1LupyI7ltSvsaUWxURlMk_338xXb_BPhzMNPHbWfVDUsOyUH1mfvHQ4Bsipef989J-V0OyqhMZzHPafTw49vttxDh_no8xymRSSUssmh47qTzHAc13R0wzk8nPhgSylnSAYcBNbHjYDqZDqy5r0f7PwzCZw9T-0cakKMIin3XI0O8R5H5OJGAu4kJjGPAoZpgL6woU9lwoHiAjxAwAlpmdlyt6vHLJ1TVn2srkC3G4qBW5ANthJ_YNT3BUPCu2vu1ZIxiqYwXGLfMIxQR4cllUaB0Cja74ln1FHs3n-xyHe6MDtxln0-F4QJchox9nCaivB_xmSxw3FduERhPebhWj1MKJ20jeucGZ64jY6DdUn2d87dVgNlFE5qHvNEtfMpoEKx1096oFfqbZ9s71YVsbXxLIsRiiW54eLp4R7z3WHAKu8v8xeLIZt86UVU1iOaSlJ0n5tT3_VonQT6n2F0sIUSLY272cI-yjWxaUIr0Qj-1NQDFFcn9dkq8pYV2-o0M3LK2Qhr9LKt-Bk4MTGUZCkb4Kw6mgDmRCux3nhJqd2hdLd8LgTA\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Law School Memes for Edgy T14s<\/a>. \u00a0He endured Missouri long enough to graduate from Washington University in St. Louis School of Law. He is a former boatbuilder who is learning to swim,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.academia.edu\/33296970\/Lets_Be_Frank_Parrhesia_and_the_Black_Comedic_Tradition\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">a published author on critical race theory, philosophy, and humor<\/a>, and has a love for cycling that occasionally annoys his peers. You can reach him by email at\u00a0<a href=\"mailto:cwilliams@abovethelaw.com\">cwilliams@abovethelaw.com<\/a>\u00a0and by tweet at\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/WritesForRent\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">@WritesForRent<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The post <a href=\"https:\/\/abovethelaw.com\/2025\/03\/the-biglaw-job-market-is-rough-but-it-isnt-worth-going-to-prison-over\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">The Biglaw Job Market Is Rough, But It Isn\u2019t Worth Going To Prison Over<\/a> appeared first on <a href=\"https:\/\/abovethelaw.com\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Above the Law<\/a>.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignright size-large is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"620\" height=\"413\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/abovethelaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2017\/10\/prisoner-behind-bars-620x413.jpg?resize=620%2C413&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-70093\" title=\"\"><figcaption><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Between the price of eggs and some Biglaw bonuses looking like other people\u2019s salaries, there\u2019s no surprise that people would go to extreme lengths to net one of these high-paying jobs. But there should be limits. Not just the ones we impose on our own job search like opportunities for hybrid work, not bending the knee to Trump at minimum or standing on the rule of law at best, but external ones too. You know, like not committing social security fraud to score the callback. One former lawyer didn\u2019t get the message, but he will definitely be getting jail time. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.abajournal.com\/news\/article\/disbarred-lawyer-gets-prison-time-after-posing-as-biglaw-alum-former-football-player-in-quest-for-jobs\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">ABA Journal<\/a> has coverage:<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>A disbarred Ohio lawyer has been sentenced to 37 months in prison for Social Security fraud after using fake identities in a quest for law firm jobs.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>Richard Louis Crosby III, 37, of Mason, Ohio, was sentenced Monday, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/legal\/legalindustry\/lawyer-who-used-fake-identities-get-law-firm-jobs-gets-37-months-prison-2025-03-10\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Reuters<\/a> and a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/usao-sdoh\/pr\/disbarred-attorney-sentenced-more-3-years-prison-social-security-number-fraud-part\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">March 10 press release<\/a>. In addition to serving time in prison, Crosby will have to pay $171,000 in restitution to defrauded firms.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>$171k in restitution? If he needed a Biglaw gig before, he definitely needs one now! In addition to lying about his Social Security number, Crosby decided to falsely state that he was a Marine, a University of Michigan football player, and a former Kirkland &amp; Ellis employee. Did he ever think that those claims would be easy to run a background check on? He might as well have said that he was a lead attorney at Enron. Would that have been more believable? No, but it definitely would have been harder to verify.<\/p>\n<p>The job market is rough, but do your best to be honest on your resume \u2014 prison is rougher. <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.abajournal.com\/news\/article\/disbarred-lawyer-gets-prison-time-after-posing-as-biglaw-alum-former-football-player-in-quest-for-jobs\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Disbarred Lawyer Gets Prison Time After Posing As BigLaw Alum, Former Football Player In Quest For Jobs<\/a> [ABA Journal]<\/p>\n<p><strong>Earlier<\/strong>: <a href=\"https:\/\/abovethelaw.com\/2023\/11\/disbarred-attorney-uses-fake-id-to-score-better-job-than-you\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Disbarred Attorney Uses Fake ID To Score Better Job Than You<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/abovethelaw.com\/2024\/07\/faux-biglaw-lawyer-pleads-guilty-to-social-security-fraud-gets-prison-time\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Faux Biglaw Lawyer Pleads Guilty To Social Security Fraud, Gets Prison Time<\/a><\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\" \/>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignright size-full\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/abovethelaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2025\/03\/image-4.png?resize=150%2C150&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1153393\" title=\"\"><figcaption><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><strong>Chris Williams became a social media manager and assistant editor for Above the Law in June 2021. Prior to joining the staff, he moonlighted as a minor Memelord\u2122 in the Facebook group\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/photo\/?fbid=10222912314148913&amp;set=p.10222912314148913&amp;opaqueCursor=AboVBPzRKh4loie1LupyI7ltSvsaUWxURlMk_338xXb_BPhzMNPHbWfVDUsOyUH1mfvHQ4Bsipef989J-V0OyqhMZzHPafTw49vttxDh_no8xymRSSUssmh47qTzHAc13R0wzk8nPhgSylnSAYcBNbHjYDqZDqy5r0f7PwzCZw9T-0cakKMIin3XI0O8R5H5OJGAu4kJjGPAoZpgL6woU9lwoHiAjxAwAlpmdlyt6vHLJ1TVn2srkC3G4qBW5ANthJ_YNT3BUPCu2vu1ZIxiqYwXGLfMIxQR4cllUaB0Cja74ln1FHs3n-xyHe6MDtxln0-F4QJchox9nCaivB_xmSxw3FduERhPebhWj1MKJ20jeucGZ64jY6DdUn2d87dVgNlFE5qHvNEtfMpoEKx1096oFfqbZ9s71YVsbXxLIsRiiW54eLp4R7z3WHAKu8v8xeLIZt86UVU1iOaSlJ0n5tT3_VonQT6n2F0sIUSLY272cI-yjWxaUIr0Qj-1NQDFFcn9dkq8pYV2-o0M3LK2Qhr9LKt-Bk4MTGUZCkb4Kw6mgDmRCux3nhJqd2hdLd8LgTA\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Law School Memes for Edgy T14s<\/a>. \u00a0He endured Missouri long enough to graduate from Washington University in St. Louis School of Law. He is a former boatbuilder who is learning to swim,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.academia.edu\/33296970\/Lets_Be_Frank_Parrhesia_and_the_Black_Comedic_Tradition\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">a published author on critical race theory, philosophy, and humor<\/a>, and has a love for cycling that occasionally annoys his peers. You can reach him by email at\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/abovethelaw.com\/cdn-cgi\/l\/email-protection#6300140a0f0f0a020e102302010c1506170b060f02144d000c0e\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">[email\u00a0protected]<\/a>\u00a0and by tweet at\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/WritesForRent\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">@WritesForRent<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Between the price of eggs and some Biglaw bonuses looking like other people\u2019s salaries, there\u2019s no surprise that people would go to extreme lengths to net one of these high-paying jobs. But there should be limits. Not just the ones we impose on our own job search like opportunities for hybrid work, not bending the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":110481,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-110507","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-above_the_law"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/xira.com\/p\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/image-4-UTlhEk.png?fit=150%2C150&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/110507","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=110507"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/110507\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/110481"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=110507"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=110507"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=110507"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}