BigLaw Associates Happy? Puh-leez

So Hildebrandt International is due to release a survey saying that 45 percent of the 464 associates surveyed rated themselves “highly satisfied” with their jobs, while another 50 percent were “more or less” satisfied.
I just don’t buy it. I’m not alone in my skepticism. There were some good insights from the comments on the WSJ [...]

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Working Hard: The Lawyer Religion

Lawyers love to talk about how hard they work. Who can blame them? Working — and billing — lots of hours is how most become partner. Working hard is the lawyer’s version of religion.
But there’s another side of the “working hard” talk. It’s used as a shield against criticism. As in, “I’ve been working so [...]

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Attorney ADD

Are you one of those neat desk kind of people? I seriously envy you. The only time in my life I’ve been hyper-organized is when I was pregnant.
I’ve worked with many attorneys over the years who had worse desks than mine. Piles everywhere — the desk, the credenza, the floor. The only place you [...]

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Are Boomer Lawyers to Blame?

I admit it, I love that some of the things that used to irk me most about working in law firms — required pantyhose-wearing in the summer chief among them — have finally changed.
I love even more that boomer lawyers might just get some comeuppance from their own kids, Gen Y, aka Millenials.
In case you’ve [...]

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The End of Billable Hours?

The Wall St. Journal has published a story (subscription required) and some blog posts (here, here, and here) about the demise of the billable hour. I get a sick kick out of all the comments to these stories. There are so many lawyers who do not get the concept of efficiency, and think that all [...]

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Admin Note

My leavinglaw.biz email isn’t working right now. So if you sent anything in the last few days, I probably did not get it. Sorry!
This is the last straw with the hosting company, so I’m transferring to a new host. In the meantime, you can send notes to jennalvey AT gmail DOT com. I should (God [...]

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Which Came First, Depression or the Lawyer?

I want to expand a bit on yesterday’s post. How much does a BigLaw environment cause depression, as opposed to exacerbate a disposition toward it?
Turns out there are some studies and articles out there on the topic. This 2001 article in Cardozo Law Review says that pessimism is actually a trait that make a strong [...]

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Beware the Magic Bullet

When you’re in the midst of grinding misery, well-paid though it may be, you want out. As in, beam me up, Scotty.
Some people in horrid situations do get out of them fast. Particularly if they’ve been fairly happy before in their lives, and haven’t been drowning in awfulness for very long. How long is very [...]

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Reviews and the Perfect Lawyer

It’s fall, and so review season is in full swing. You get to find out how badly those cranky partners hold grudges because you missed that extra space AND an extra period in a letter to the judge, or committed your client to an ethical position in discovery when the partner wasn’t going to, or [...]

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Friday Files: Lawyer Rationalizations

Lawyers have this maddening, awe-inspiring ability to rationalize damn near anything. Take, for instance, a D.C. BigLaw firm that, back before emailing to people outside your own firm was common, moved into swank new offices in a restored historic building.
These offices were meant to impress. Pearwood and black terrazzo surrounded us, along with glass and [...]

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