A prominent law firm is unraveling—but Palantir has an intriguing offer
Good morning. Weil, Gotshal & Manges, a prominent Wall Street law firm with more than 90 years of history, is planning to wind down, pending a vote by its partners. David Glazer, CFO of Palantir Technologies, is already reaching out to aspiring lawyers who may have expected to spend a summer there.
Glazer posted on LinkedIn on Thursday: “If you were going to be a Weil summer associate but now want to put your experience to work at Palantir, want to work a real summer job (with way less lunches) but way more fun. Reach out!”
His invitation follows Weil’s announcement on Wednesday that its leadership had recommended closing the firm.
“Following a careful review of strategic alternatives, the firm’s management committee has recommended to the partnership that the firm pursue an orderly wind-down,” Weil said in a statement . Partners are expected to vote in the coming days.
Glazer knows something about taking a different career path. He joined Palantir in 2013 as legal counsel for corporate and securities, held several other leadership roles, and became CFO in July 2020. Before joining the company, he was a corporate securities attorney at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, where he advised technology companies and founders on IPOs, equity and debt financings, M&A, and corporate governance.
He is now leading Palantir’s finance organization as the company’s market cap exceeds $450 billion. In Q2, revenue surged 93% year over year to $1.94 billion.
Glazer’s own move from law to finance offers one way to read the invitation: Legal training need not lead exclusively to a legal career. Perhaps Glazer sees an opportunity for aspiring lawyers to contribute to Palantir in ways they had not considered. His post does not specify what work they would do, but it raises an interesting question about the AI era: how companies can put analytical judgment to work beyond conventional career tracks.
The opening for those students comes amid a striking reversal for Weil. The nearly century-old firm has handled major matters for companies including Lehman Brothers, Enron and General Motors. Its planned wind-down follows an exodus of partners and unsuccessful merger talks, leaving uncertainty for approximately 1,200 lawyers worldwide.
As recently as Sept. 30, Weil was announcing industry recognition. The firm said it had been named “Competition Team of the Year” at the Legal Business Awards 2026 for its work advising Boeing as global antitrust counsel outside the U.S. on its acquisition of Spirit AeroSystems.
Yet prominent departures continued. On Oct. 22, Law.com reported that Caroline Hickey Zalka, head of Weil’s securities litigation practice and a member of its management committee, was in advanced talks to join Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison. Within a week, Weil’s leadership had recommended winding down the firm.
For students who potentially expected to begin their careers there, Glazer’s invitation points toward a different possibility—one that echoes his own unconventional route to the CFO’s office.
Have a good weekend. Sheryl Estrada Sheryl.Estrada@fortune.com
This story was originally featured on Fortune.com