Reader C wonders who the happy lawyers are… but I think this leads us to a bigger question that will hopefully make for an interesting discussion: how do you view your career in your general quest for happiness?
Hi Kat, I have a question for you and your incredible readers. I am an undergrad applying to law schools now for next fall and I do recognize the oft-quoted “realities” (from friends of family, professors, etc) of being a lawyer- mountains of dense reading, long (sometimes extremely so) hours, getting stuck in a job you hate just to pay of the $200k of student loans your education cost you. I sort of stumbled onto the idea of law, I wasn’t one of those who dreamed my whole life of putting away the bad guys or anything; I randomly found it through a class but I have never been more in love with a subject. I am an avid Corporette reader, but the things I read in the comments section of many posts terrify me and leave me to ask, rather desperately: Is anyone happy being a lawyer? I know everyone is different, had a different idea of “the dream lawyering job,” reacts differently to stress, etc. but if there is anyone out there who loves being a lawyer, it would be a huge comfort to hear about it!
First off: apologies to the non-lawyer/JD students among Corporette readers; hopefully our discussion will take us to greater truths about happiness and your career.
That said… reader C’s question is a great, great question, and I think the readers will give far better answers than I will considering that I never really found my happy sweet spot in the law, personally.
Something I’ve heard often, and agree with wholeheartedly, is that there are two kinds of people: those who enjoy law school, and those who enjoy the practice of law. I am totally in the first camp of people — I loved law school, which I found to be filled with ethereal questions that you can ponder at your leisure and come to your own conclusion. There are clear paths to “success,” and good work is tangibly rewarded with grades and other honors.
(Pictured: Rainbow Valley, originally uploaded to Flickr by rwangsa.)
On the other hand, I found the practice of law (and to be clear, my experience is mostly limited to BigLaw litigation) to be better suited for people who loved debate — you’re not picking the “right” answer for yourself, but arguing whatever’s best for your client. The practice of law involves both customer service (and in BigLaw they expect you to be always responsive) and, the higher you climb up the ladder, sales — in that you’re expected to wine and dine new clients to bring to the firm.
There are not many tangible rewards for good work, at least in Big Law — everyone is paid the same, and whether you win or lose a case often has very little to do with the level of effort on your part.
The drudgery quotient is also high, at least at the beginning — lots of doc review and case-hunting (where partner says, “I need a case that says the sky is blue — go find it.”). There’s also often an element of “you must learn your client’s industry and business inside out so you can understand the documents you’re preparing or the arguments you’re making.”
All of this isn’t a bad thing, per se, but when you hear about the high number of unhappy lawyers I think it’s often because people went into it thinking they “like to write” or “loved thinking about legal questions” and find themselves in a customer service and sales position.
That said — there are LOTS of happy lawyers, and many of them read this blog. In reader surveys, people consistently say that they’re happy with their work on an intellectual, monetary, and lifestyle basis. I’ve noticed more than a few comment threads where people talk about their love for their job, and some of the older readers even noted that they had to switch jobs numerous times or that they had to work for 15 years before they found their happy place. (Way to be persistent, ladies!)
The other thing to mention (especially to a college student) is that I’m not sure I put stock in the idea that your job is going to be your ultimate source of happiness and fulfillment — after all, they do pay you do to it.
I think it’s better viewed as primarily a source of income (and possibly accolades) and certain types of happiness, such as the society you keep at work as well as the intellectual stimulation the work provides to you, weighed against the stress inherent with the job and the time your job takes you away from other things.
So let’s talk about this. Readers: If you’re in law, are you happy? For those readers who’ve been lawyers for more than 5 years — what facets of the job do you enjoy the most? In general, ladies, how do you balance the “work” nature of work with this broader idea that we want to be happy and fulfilled most of our waking hours?
Jas
While I fully support the idea that you can’t get all your happiness from your job, and that you should focus on happiness outside of work, I don’t know how practical that is for lawyers. While I’m not a lawyer, I am in a field that works long hours and from what I understand from the comments here, lawyers are expected to work even longer hours. If your job drains all your time and energy from outside activities, you better hope the job provides most of your happiness, because it’ll prevent you from finding it elsewhere.
Herbie
This.
Ashley
THIS!!!
NM
Don’t underestimate the debt thing.
I am not a happy lawyer, but I attribute that largely to the following:
1) I send almost all of my discretionary income to pay off student loans;
2) As a result, I cannot afford a lifestyle that is much better than my life before law school;
3) I work my tail off at work (on track for 700 hours in the last 3 months of 2011); and
4) While I slave and scrimp and sacrifice, my former classmates are putting their salaries to retirement, vacation, luxury homes, $500 dinners out at chichi places, and all kinds of stuff that I can only dream of.
It makes me feel like my life is so worthless, while those of my colleagues are akin to Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous.
NM
Early post, sorry.
Bottom line: If you can get your law school education handed to you (like by parents or a scholarship), take it. Otherwise, you’re in for a long period of indentured servitude, surrounded by people whose life experiences will always make you feel like an “other.”
I would also really discount the experiences of any poster who graduated prior to 2008. It was a different world back then; our generation will never be able to get the kinds of plum positions that earlier grads obtained.
Ning
Actually, having listened to what my biglaw-employed fiance has told me about his law school experience, it’s better to take on student loans and go to a top school, than go to a meh law school for free. Since the recession, the Harvards, Yales, and Columbias have started taking jobs at firms ranked far below what they would have considered pre-2008, squeezing out candidates from other schools. And some not-insignificant percentage of his HLS class couldn’t find a job before graduation.
So, this leave the students at lesser schools in a worse position, and the people I know who went to middle-range law schools are having issues just finding jobs, let alone good ones.
From what I’ve learned, I think law school is only worth it if you go to a top school. Paying off $200K in student loans is easier if you make $150/year. Life ain’t so grand as a $12/hour staff attorney.
NM
“From what I’ve learned, I think law school is only worth it if you go to a top school. ”
I agree with you. Don’t go to law school unless you go to a top 14 (10?) school, *and* someone other than you can pay for it. In that situation, law school is an all but guaranteed ticket to a nice life. I’d be just ducky if I were in my current position, but without the debt. The debt means that I am functioning as a highly paid lawyer but living like my secretary.
Small-state lawyer
Yes, where you go to school matters. But what is a “top” law school might vary depending on where you want to practice. One problem with national rankings is that they assume all schools will/must compete nationally–but that’s clearly not true. For example, in some less-populous states, the best school in the state is a public school that places graduates in top jobs all over the state. That school might not be “Top 14,” but it’s still probably a good investment if you want to stay in-state–especially with in-state tuition. That being said, I would not recommend (especially in this economic climate) paying retail to go to the lowest-ranked school in the city/state/region you want to work in.
On the other hand, in the most competitive markets, Georgetown grads (for those of you who don’t follow these things, G’town is generally considered the bottom of the “Top 14”) might have trouble competing with graduates from the super elite schools.
Anon For This
I was in the “ticket to a nice life” boat, more or less, and graduated at a better time. I’m still not sure it was the right decision because I chose one of those high-paying jobs and spent most of my 20’s and 30’s slaving away at something that made it difficult for me to have a relationship and a life.
I actually think you need the free or nearly-free top or close to top law school, PLUS contacts at smaller firms where it is hard for ANYONE, even top law grads, to get jobs because they are so small and so focused on “fit.” The theme in most of the posts here is that the people who are happy early in their careers started at those small firms.
lyla
The last paragraph of NM’s post is particularly true. Lawyers prior to 2008/2009 had an entirely different situation when they graduated. Even my fiance’s class (2009) still had the perk-filled summer positions. My 2L summer at biglaw had no such perks, and we worked as hard and as many hours as many of the lower level associates. The extravagant lunches and parties were very few, if any. There’s much more a competitive atmosphere because few firms were doing 100% offers (or if they were, they included a few cold offers).
Associates are now very expendable. If your work isn’t up to snuff or your hours slip, there are thousands of out-of-work attorneys who will come in and lick the soles of the hiring partner’s shoes all the while asking for a mere percentage of your salary.
A
I know this may shock you, but lawyers who graduated pre-2008 have faced struggles, too. I graduated in the midst of the early 2000’s dot com bubble burst, right after 9/11. The firm where I summered went poof when I was a 3L.
Yes, the situation now is pretty dire. But it’s not like it was all sunshine and rainbows for all law grads pre 2008.
Herbie
@NM… Re your former classmates… This may not make you feel any better, but I’ll put it out there anyway.
You never know what someone else’s financial situation is. They may be the grasshopper to your ant (even if your ant can’t build a very big nest due to student loan and salary issues). Most of your classmates probably have hefty loans, too. Yet they’re living in swank apartments, going on lavish vacations, throwing around money at dinners… they’re clearly spending lots of money, but are they truly saving adequately? Having worked with the type of people you describe, I can assure you that most are not and are in a very precarious state of financial affairs. They just need one thing to go wrong to bring down that house of cards. I knew partners who, despite pulling down serious income, were broke or close to it. So you never know.
You sound very much like my Sig. O., who is unhappy for the same reasons. But he also acknowledges that his situation forced him to learn how to save (even if only a little) while living within his means, and that’s something a lot of people (even “rich” people!) ever learn. You ever read the Millionaire Next Door? Despite what the Real Housewives would have us believe, most millionaires don’t drive luxury vehicles. They buy used and American. Most of them live in homes worth $250k or less. They’re millionaires because they save and invest, not because they’re profligate spenders. Case in point: look at the facts behind the Real Housewives. Most of them are broke, having their cars repossessed, etc.
So, that doesn’t really help your situation, but just realize that everything may not be quite like it seems with your peers…
NM
Good point Herbie.
That is certainly true on a macro level, but my classmates and fellow biglaw associates are actually pretty transparent about their financial situations. So yes, I do know who is married to fellow high earners, who has debt, who doesn’t, who has rich parents who still gift them thousands a year on top of their biglaw salaries, etc.
Herbie
Fair enough. Ummm maybe turn off Facebook, then?
M
I am intrigued by the Millionaire Next Door. It sounds like something I would force certain friends and family members to read. My cousin made a comment at thanksgiving about how the fancy department stores probably don’t have good black friday sales because their rich clientele would scoff at the idea of buying anything “on sale,” and I about crawled out of my skin.
ARKR
WOW – interesting question.
As for me, I am a ’99 law school grad, spent 4+ years as a JAG attorney in the Army, 1 1/2 year at home mom, 2+ years as gov’t civil litigator, and last 4+ years as in-house litigator, where I anticipate I will stay for a very long time. I have loved my jobs, the number is not representative of the positions, just a consequence of moves and life changes.
Key for me has always been my colleagues. Any job will have its ups and downs, and it is the people you are working with that get you through the downs and help you celebrate the ups. I loved law school – had great friends and study group partners. I l0ved the Army (pre-kids) – military colleagues are a pretty tight group. Loved my government attorney colleagues – anyone who loves their work for so little pay is a great support network. And now, I never have that Sunday night dread feeling of having to get up again, because I know that I get to work with some pretty incredible people the next day. Attorneys, and maybe litigators more specifically, are generally pretty social creatures, and work for me would not be fun if there wasn’t some social aspect to it. And dorky as it may be, spending lunch in the cafeteria fighting over mundane contract interpretations and litigation strategy can be a huge laugh!
And this far out, I find myself not focusing so much on intense career objectives – I am not an officer in my company, but I have a fabulous family, great flexibility, and the money to live the way we want. I work on different issues all the time, and get to direct outside counsel to do the majority of the drudgery (ok, so in-house e-discovery will NEVER be glamorous…) I have a true career and a life – that’s success as far as I am concerned.
Dorianne
I think commenters above have done a good job saying everything I would have wanted to say, but I got to the party a little late. I just found this site and really am enjoying it. I love the posts and the comments are insightful and extremely helpful.
I will mention that given the economic climate right now, there are many people I know who are unhappy with their decision to become an attorney. I get it. However, I know just as many people who have been hit hard and still think they made the right decision. I don’t think lawyers are unique in this regard. I can only speak for myself when I say that I found Law School to be a weird and offputting environment. I hated it and often thought I had made a BAD decision. It wasn’t until I was out and actually working that I started enjoying “law”, meaning taking an actual interest in learning and attempting to find my niche.
The last point I will add is that I started working in media when I was in law school and though I am still in it, I am in a different environment than where I started. If you asked me a year ago if I was happy, that answer might be different. I practice, but there is a certain skill set you develop in law school that makes you apt to do other things. If you find that your are unhappy, try to keep this is mind if you decide to start over. I often wonder what I might have decided to do with myself if I had realized that a law degree didn’t have to mean practicing.
Anon
I am entering my fourth year of practice with the government. I really enjoy my job. I like the work I do, the automony I have over my cases, and my co-workers are also my friends. Also, the flexibility is key to my happiness. I have kids and feel like I am able to balance everything. Of course, the trade-off is money. But I grew up with parents who were teachers, and so I am very used to living middle-class. I make more than all of my friends who did not go to law school, so I think it was a decision that has paid off. I also went to a state school and so I have a rather small amount of student loans, which I pay back under IBR.
One thing that really helped me was the clinic at law school. I realized there that the type of law I thought all along that I wanted to practice was actually not what I wanted to do. I was glad for that eye-opening experience. So take some time before law school to really figure out what lawyers do and whether or not you want to do that too. For me anyways, it is nothing like TV.
Bette
I am someone who always thought that they wanted to go to law school but never actually did. After college I started working in my chosen field in a policy/analyst/advisor position and quickly realized that the lawyers didn’t actually do the most interesting work in the field. They weren’t the ones hammering out the big themes of the documents, they were the ones fine tuning the details and arguing over language.
Now I work for the government of one of the largest cities in America, leading a team addressing a Big Policy Issue. As one part of the solution to address the Big Policy Issue I actually set up a specific court and now have a team of lawyers working for me on this issue.
This really made me abanadon once and for all my idea of going to law school. I realized that I would much rather have the job that I do currently than the job of those lawyers that now work for me.
My current boss and I joke that we run a law school intervention program (we all have a lot of interns who are interested in policy and thinking about law school.)
Lyssa
Wow, that sounds like a facinating job. May I ask what background you had that lead you into that one?
roses
As you’ve read from the thread, there are many lawyers out there who are happy at their jobs. But you can’t assume that the legal job that you might want will be available to you. Your school’s ranking, your grades, you prior work experience, and the people you know will all work together to set the scope of possible jobs for you. If you can see yourself being pretty happy in a wide variety of legal jobs, great. If not, especially if you are primarily interested in a very narrow and/or competitive area of law, you should reconsider.
C.Z.
I both enjoyed law school and am a happy lawyer. But I have a somewhat unusual job as a career court attorney. I don’t get paid as much as I might in private practice but I make about $80K, with great benefits and great hours, and my salary is set to increase with time served so that it will be in the low six figures in a few years, assuming all goes as planned. Eventually, I hope to become a judge, which I hope will give me even more job satisfaction, if not all that much more money.
I am not normally someone who discusses these things, but I share this because I am someone who only went to law school because I didn’t know what else to do, never wanted to be a lawyer, and, like the OP, basically took a few legal classes I liked in undergrad. I am incredibly lucky that I found my current job because it basically lets me do exactly what I enjoyed about school — read, research, write — while also feeling like I am able to make a difference by doing the just thing, reaching the right result, and helping to shape the law. All that said, my job is definitely not for everyone and I am sure there are many who’d find it boring. Although in terms of loneliness, I am lucky in that my position requires substantial social interaction with lawyers through conferences, overseeing discovery, etc, as well as with judges, interns, and courthouse staff. I hope that if I can become a judge, that social aspect will increase evermore as I really do enjoy that aspect of the work very much.
In contrast, most of the folks I went to law school with are not happy and feel either underpaid, overworked, or both. I could easily be one of them but for the fact that I stumbled into a job I love, and I am willing to trade off some of the financial opportunities out there for better life/work balance and intellectual fulfillment.
I would also add that anyone considering law school needs to: 1) really think about the crappy job market out there and 2) figure out a way to minimize their costs. You shouldn’t have to spend $200K on law school. Figure out what you need to do to minimize that cost. Many of my classmates lived very comfortably in school and are now paying the price every month. I was lucky to have a partial scholarship and no undergrad loans, but I also lived at home and made sure not to take out a penny more than was needed for my tuition & the most basic costs. My debtload is still huge (about $80K), but it’s not crushing or overwhelming, for which I am grateful.
Anyway, I guess there is no right answer. This is a profession that is not suited to everyone, but it does have a lot of flexibility and most people can find the right fit for them with time. Of course, having reasonable expectations helps.
Mallory
I graduated from a good law school three years ago. I am now in solo practice — and it is extremely rewarding. There were a few bright spots in law school: con law, my clinic, my clerkship at Legal Aid, and meeting the man I married shortly after we graduated. For the most part, it was tedious, difficult, and at times competitive.
Nothing could have talked me out of law school. I decided that was my future career path when I was 16, largely as a result of conversations with my AP Government instructor, who was a retired tax attorney. It is fair to say that I thought being an attorney was and what it actually is were worlds apart, a realization that began during 1L year and was not complete until I took a job at a small firm.
Large firm positions are lucrative, exhausting, and out of reach for most students. My husband and I moved to a different state after graduation and I eventually took a position with a very small firm that specialized in my desired area of practice. Earlier this year, I left and started my own practice. I am now eight months in. It has been great for my relationship with my husband (no more late nights!), who has a government job, my social life, my sleep, and my overall happiness. Solo practice is not for the faint of heart. It is very rarely discussed in law school, but it is a career option you should be aware of.
Be aware that the loans are outrageous and there is a current and projected surplus of lawyers. Day in and day out, you will be providing services to clients, and may have to take steps to keep them happy (more so than I ever did in my college retail jobs ;). That is a reality you must truly consider. Unless you have a lifelong legal aid or government career — which are fantastic options, by the way — you will at some point be expected to generate business.
There are parts of being an attorney I’m not crazy about, but owning and managing my own practice gives me an intense feeling of self-fulfillment that I don’t think any other position could. My husband is a public defender and loves his work, although he will probably join my practice at some point down the road.
Law school was awful. Solo practice, so far, is pretty great.
For the record: I am 27 years old, happily married, do not have children, and do not work beyond standard business hours. (I’m not rich, either. ;)
k
I graduated from law school in 2005. I have been an unhappy lawyer and am now a happy lawyer. I clerked for 2 years and worked in big law as a civil litigator for 4 years. Now I am a civil litigator in a midsize law firm and I love it.
I am glass I stuck with it through the crappy parts. That time was an opportunity to think hard about what I liked about my work and what I needed to change in order to not go home most nights fantasizing about going back to food service.
I took a 20+% pay cut to take my current job, but because big law lawyers are paid so (IMO) obscenely (and because my student debt was manageable and I avoided the golden handcuffs), that didn’t have any real impact on my quality of life. In exchange for giving up that money, I gained coworkers and managers who I respect and trust to look out f0r the whole ship, not just themselves; time to pursue non-law-related hobbies that nuture me mentally and keep me healthy, physically; and clients that are compatible with my personal beliefs about what is socially useful versus socially destructive. Those three things are significant enough, individually. But collectively they are enormous and made all the difference between being a happy lawyer and an unhappy one.
FWIW (and I don’t mean to start a bar fight with this, just to counter some artless phrasing I’ve encountered here and elsewhere in legal practice), it is not my experience that leaving big law has meant that I am not able to do top-notch work on cutting-edge legal issues. I remain really f*cking good at my job, and since I moved to the plaintiffs’ side of the equation I’ve been working on the same really interesting issues as before, it’s just that now I rarely have that disconnect between what I think is the right answer and what is the best legal argument I can make on my client’s behalf.
tika55
I’m not a lawyer, but I thought about going to law school. When I was in high school, I participated in an extracurricular activity that involved writing an appellate brief and making an oral argument in support of the brief. I loved the research and prep, and was pretty good at it. I always had law school in the back of my head, so I did a few things while I was in college. #1: I worked at a law firm. It was so, so boring. #2: I spoke with an in-house lawyer at my dad’s (major multinational) company about her job. It didn’t excite me. #3: I read a book that, among other things, mentioned many other things you could do with a pile of cash instead of going to law school. I’m now very happy as a social sciences PhD/consultant. I’m well paid, enjoy my work and have a very flexible schedule because I work from home. I really can’t complain – especially when I meet up for dinner with my BigLaw friends when I travel to NY. Just when I think that my job is stressful, they remind me to be grateful – it’s all relative!
anonpm3
I am a “not unhappy” lawyer. I graduated in 2010, so I have just finished up my first year in practice. I don’t work long hours, but I also make hardly any money, therefore, trying to pay off the debt I accumulated during law school, even with the help of H’s salary, makes life less than enjoyable outside of work. I try to see the light at the end of the tunnel, but it’s too far away to offer any sort of consolation.
I don’t mind the work I do, but I don’t particularly enjoy the people I work with, nor can I see myself staying at this particular firm forever. The lack of options elsewhere in my mid-sized city make me feel trapped where I am and completely unmotivated to work my @ss off.
I am aware that most of that sounds unhappy. The reason I am “not unhappy” isn’t because of my work -it’s because I love my free time and the way I spend it with my friends and family. I am trying to look at my job, despite the meager salary, as a means to pay off my debt and obtain a little more freedom about my future.
If I had it to do over again, knowing what I know now about the legal market and the crushing amount of debt, I highly doubt I would have gone to law school, but like another poster said… I’m not sure what I would have done instead. I always wanted to go to law school and be a lawyer and never really considered an alternate route, despite that fact that I knew next to nothing about what the practice of law was really like when I made that decision.
Right now, my plan for the future is to work this job until most of my debt is paid off and then go into practice with a friend/colleague on our own in the future. That thought is also terrifying, but given how much I have learned in a single year of practice, I hope I will feel confident and competent enough, when the time comes, to strike out on my own-ish.
Anonymous
I am in my 8th year of practice. I would say that I am generally happy, but I don’t know if I would go to law school again if I could do it over. Honestly, I’m happy enough so thinking about what I coulda, shoulda, woulda done is not a helpful exercise.
I am at a large regional firm in a mid-size market. I like the people I work with on an everyday basis but am not as happy with the firm when I get past the people I work with. There are many things I hate about my work – billable hours, lack of reward for efficiency, marketing, etc. I like working with the clients. I don’t like it when they are demanding, but generally, I like the clients I work with.
All that being said, I have three kids (none in school yet – so my family life is BUSY!) I actually work part-time and that enables me to have a work-life balance that I can handle. I am thinking of finding another job, but I am hesitant to go full time as I like the balance and I am struggling to figure out how to make part-time work especially if I take a new job.
My big question mark these days is that I would like to see more models for working moms. I just don’t know how I could go full time, my husband works full time, and raise my kids without going crazy. Of the female partners here, either they have no children, have stay-at-home husbands (good for them, but won’t work for me), or are part-time (I would love to do this model, but I don’t know that it is an option). We don’t have a single full-time female attorney that has children and a husband that works. In fact, we have very few male attorneys who have children still in the house and have wives who work anything close to a full time job. This has been at the top of my mind recently as I am trying to figure out how to do it. I want to actually see my kids as they grow up, so it’s a challenge.
New to Law
I think that one of the reasons people get the impression that lawyers aren’t happy is because law tends to attract a lot of worriers. We worry about what we’re going to be doing not just today, but 10 years from now, and we have a bad habit of judging ourselves by external measures of success. Being around other perfectionists probably makes the problem worse, but the same people would probably worry just as much in any other profession.
Personally, I love lawyering. I think it is very, very important to set boundaries and find ways to do healthy non-law things like socialize and exercise, but I wouldn’t give up this line of work for the world. I had another career before law school (a perfectly respectable one, at that) and I just can’t tell you how bored I was. It was painful to go into work every day. Now, I am always intellectually stimulated and I care about the problems that I work on.
In the line of tips for happiness, I would recommend that you not judge yourself by external measures of success. People with the top credentials get told what sort of work they are supposed to do and those without top credentials feel like failures for not getting that work. You have to think about what sort of work you will actually enjoy in a complex matrix of what kind of work you can get. If BigLaw is for you, then good for you. But if its not, there are so many other kinds of law that people find fulfilling.
jenny
I’ve been a lawyer for 4 years, and I’m pretty happy. I work for a state attorney general doing contracts and business litigation, which I like. The hours are fairly sane, the pay is decent, and I work with nice people. It’s a good environment. I’m married and have a 1 year old daughter, and I’m pretty happy with the work/life balance. The last 6 months have been rough for a variety of reasons, including insane busyness at work, but that can and does happen in any field.
I second the recommendation to work at different firms in law school. As a law student, I clerked for 3 different firms (big/small, plaintiff/defense, litigation/transactional) and had an externship with a federal judge. It was good to see a wide range of fields and personalities up close.
I also highly recommend working in a different field between undergrad and law school, if possible. I worked in a variety of fields for 6 years between college and law school. The experience helped me realize that most of the gripes I have now I would have in any job. The experience also helped me keep law school in perspective.
I chose to attend a state university for law school because I knew I didn’t want to be biglaw and I wanted some flexibility in my job search. My total student loan burden was around $50k on graduation. Not a drop int he bucket, but I had more choices as a result.
Anonymous
Yes, I love my job and what I do. I work in a public interest practice fighting for a social justice issue that’s very important to me. In fact, I’m one of those people who feel like I’m doing what I’m meant to do. That said, the pay is terrible — if it were not for loan forgiveness and my spouse’s career, I’d be in big trouble.
Bottom line: Don’t do it for the money. Don’t even do it because you love “the law.” Do it only if there’s something in the world you desperately want to change and you believe litigation/ legislation is the way to do it.
Anonymous
I have been practicing for 11 years, and I was a paralegal for 3 years before I went to law school. I went to law school because I realized that as a paralegal I was making 1/3 of what an attorney would be making for the same work. I was lucky enough to work as a paralegal in offices that gave a lot of responsibility and training. That experience definitely helped me with billable hours and understanding how to work in an office (always, always be nice to admin assistants and receptionists, know their names and greet them every morning, sign up for relevant publications, go to as many in house trainings as you can). I believe the experience of being a paralegal helped me excel in the first year of law practice, which helped me avoid being laid off following Enron/internet bubble bursting/effects in financial markets of 9/11. I did corporate work for 8 years and left after I had a baby and realized having a family (the way that I wanted to have a family, at least) and the job was incompatible. I was technically “part time” and I was certainly paid at a lower level but somehow never seemed to feel less pressure in workload. I moved into government work and a lot of my skill set has been transferable. There are still issues – less pay, but much less workload pressure, and I do feel valued by my boss and my clients. One cannot expect perfection. After having been an attorney for a significant amount of time, I’ve gained enough knowledge and legal common sense that I can serve as an advisor to those making policy decisions. So I would say that I am rewarded by my work (which I think is separate from happiness), but it did take about a decade of practice to feel that way. My spouse and I still have law school loans to pay off and that likely won’t change for a decade, at which time we will need to pay for our children’s college and start seriously saving for retirement.
eh230
It would be interested to see some statistics based on the comments to this post. It appears that there are very few happy big law attorneys. On the other hand, goverment lawyers seem to be pretty happy. It would be interesting to see if there is a correlation between job type and happiness.
Ning
My fiance just started his first year in BigLaw litigation, and my perception is that the career is a double-edged sword. He’s definitely in the “camp” that didn’t enjoy law school, but truly enjoys the practice of law. He loves debate (and was a champ during his HS years). When he tells me about work, he just glows when he’s talking about finding small issues that can affect a case and all the strategy that goes into working a case for a client. He’s definitely a lawyer, he’s wanted to be a lawyer as long as I’ve known him, and I know he loves being a lawyer. His practice area is also important, as I hear him complain to no end when he receives a project from an area he’s not interested in working.
However, he also came home at 11:30pm last night, back sore from being hunched over at a computer all day. The environment is harsh, and can make people unhappy.
My fiance is a happy lawyer, but he also gets fulfillment from working long hours to contribute positively to a case.
Texas Attorney
Oh, I think you should not expect to “love” your job. If you do, you will be disappointed ultimately, no matter what your job is. Love your husband, your child, the lifestyle your job allows. Being a lawyer, ultimately, is just a job. A means to an end. I am satisfied with my job. I enjoy the place I work now (and have for the last ten years) more than any other place I have worked. I have very good friends here. I was interviewing a witness the other day on a case I have. He seemed to me to have such a cool and interesting job. When I mentioned that, he said he was thinking the same thing about me. To him, his job was just a job, just like me.
Now I will say, there are all kinds of lawyering jobs. So you have to find your place. DO NOT go to lawschool with dreams of big money in big law. Most law grads dont make, and those who do don’t like it. If you go to lawschool with reasonable expectations, you will likely not be disappointed. When I went to lawschool, I had never met an attorney. My only perception of lawyers were those on LA Law (now I have dated myself!). I have never worked with a male attorney that looks like Jimmy Smits or Harry Hamlin. Now there is your disappointment.
Logan
I’m an attorney and beginning by third year of practice in a medium-sized firm. I firmly belong in the second camp Kat mentioned. I hated law school, but I love being an attorney.
Saying I love being an attorney does not mean to say that I love all aspects of being an attorney — billable hours, late nights, etc. But, I really enjoy the people that I work with and the area of law that I work in.
Reader C, the thing that worries me about your letter is the fact that you fell upon the idea of becoming a lawyer because you love the subject. Although loving the subject is a start, in my humble opinion, its more important to love the practice. Law school is an expensive and time consuming exercise to go through only to find out three years later that you don’t like the practice of law as much as you liked the theory of it. I strongly recommend getting an internship or summer job at a law firm to try and get a feel for the practice before you commit to going to law school. If you can’t get a job, then ask an attorney if you can shadow them for a short period of time. And, if you can, try and do that at different types of law firms or with different types of lawyers.
I hope that’s helpful. Good luck.
anon
While I’m not miserable in my job with a mid-sized firm, and enjoy many aspects of it, the following things undermine my job satisfaction:
1. Private practice of law is a tough job to combine with family life. Because we bill by the hour and hours billed is a major measure of success and value, it’s not possible to make up for working less by doing exceptional work or getting work done more efficiently. You can’t get around putting in the time. Also (and this would be true of many client-service jobs), clients are highly demanding and often don’t appreciate or allow for the time necessary to get things done on the legal side. I say this having just spent much of what I thought was going to be a relaxing Thanksgiving with family working on a last-minute client “emergency.”
2. Many types of legal work are pretty solitary. If you are a people person, this can be a downer.
3. The interaction you do have with people is often contentious. If you are a person who enjoys interacting with others in a cooperative and affirming manner, legal practice may go against the grain.
4. Much of the nuts and bolts of legal practice can be pretty tedious and boring. It’s a mistake to think you’ll enjoy practicing because you enjoy theorizing about the law in school. These are two entirely different things.
I much agree that it’s a great idea to learn more about legal work by taking a job as a paralegal for a year or two before committing to law school.
Anon
And now for a word from the other side…loved law school, hate being a lawyer. Started at biglaw, moved to small law, now at medium law. I hate the stress, the billable hours, being thrown under the bus by partners and associates alike, insane client demands, being yelled at because someone else is have a bad day, and fighing with opposing counsel over inane cr*p, all purportedly in pursuit of client’s so-called interests. Lunch and corporette are the only good things in my day (and I mean each and everyone of them). I am desperately trying to find another job, but in this economy, I’m stuck.
Anon
Amen.
Texas Attorney
I have to say, I graduated from one of those “meh” lawschools during the last big downturn (1991). I went to NOT the University of Texas (go Red Raiders) and I have done just fine. I did not make $150,000 when I first got out (or the 1991 equivalent to it), but I have paid my student loans and support my family in fine style. I would not have taken on private school debt for anything. I’m just saying.
Texas Tax
NOT the University of Texas! Love it!
cbackson
Hm.
I’m not a happy lawyer. I’m a fifth year in biglaw, doing M&A. Although I work with great people and have clients whom I love, the hours are just so wearing. Sure some weeks are fine but many weeks my entire private life disappears down the rabbit hole. My work can be exciting, but sometimes after a deal closes, I go home to my house and barely remember who I am when I’m not working. I worry, as a single woman, that I’ll never marry again , because I’m too busy really to date. I see that my firm has no female partners in my practice and know that some of that is because the physical toll of pregnancy and the time taken for leave are incompatible with the life cycle of a public company deal.
If I had it to do over again, I’d be an Episcopal priest.
anon
Wow – completely identical situation here (except for the priest part). I would have went into higher ed.
C2
I completely agree. Fourth year medium-law. For me, there is no way to be happy longterm with these hours (more specifically the lack of control over the hours, and the inability to plan). Any advice offered by other commentors to find fulfillment and happiness in your personal life just doesn’t help those billing 2100+. The reality is that for many of us, that rich personal life is expected to be a very distant second to firm and client needs. Even when you make it through a weekend uninterrupted, the constant threat of the red flashing Blackberry light takes its toll.
same anon as above
I completely agree with this – the anxiety of holding your breath and waiting for the flashing light is exhausting. Trying to set boundaries and have a personal life while being a dedicated associate committed to my big firm master is just not possible.
I used to like my job very much and wake up thinking I was so lucky to work where I did (first year or so). I would love to visit with all the very junior lawyers on this thread in a few years to see if anything has changed. Three years ago, I would not have believed you if you told me I was going to be this miserable and unhappy at my job.
cbackson
Agreed. When I started off I was convinced I wouldn’t be one of those unhappy lawyers. But I wasn’t single then, so at the very least I came home to somebody else at the end of the day. And I thought I could put up with the difficult life if I could find meaning in my family and provide for them.
Now I’m single, and the job is all I have, because I don’t have time to develop anything else. I can’t live this way for much longer.
Divaliscious11
Am a hybrid of Kat’s description. I enjoyed law school and also really enjoy the practice of law. Becoming a happy lawyer was about finding the right place. I am pretty happy now, although I’d like both a little more flexibility and a little more money, even though I recognize that my income is pretty good, and my work schedule is mostly manageable. I am 10 years in, and senior enough to be lead on new projects, have senior and engaging projects without being so senior that I am bogged down by administration etc…. I don’t think I’d be happy if I was a litigator. My advice would be to find what you enjoy and steer your career there. Work is not my source of joy, but for something that gets so much of my attention, I am generally happy with it.
raisa
I did love law school and also love practice, but for each for different reasons: I like to write and analyze, to meet people and help them understand how the law can (or can’t) solve their problems, to learn new things quickly, to advocate, to hear and tell stories. It helps to be a fluid thinker who can think through all sides of a problem, speak confidently, and appreciate how politics and precedent all play possible outcomes (which is what I learned in law school anyway).
I would say my life is great and my current practice (10+ years, currently in government) is where I want to be. Of course we work HARD, but so do teachers, nurses, plumbers, etc. We cannot afford conspicuous consumption which is fine with me. We do travel a bit each year, spoil our kids at Christmas, and I’m able to dress as well as I like. When I’ve seen jobs outright destroy someone’s happiness it’s always some nature of boundary problem: Not knowing when to say no, letting a boss feel like a parent (or having sibling rivalry with coworkers), indulging in gossip or infidelity. Problems with budgeting and debt easily become marriage problems, which is why law firm partners can seem SO cranky and greedy. Private practice is essentially a game of IOU’s, moving money between clients, income and overhead: Billable hours are ultimately a measure of indebtedness. It’s definitely not for everyone. To be a happy lawyer I’d say be extremely careful with consumer debt and alcohol, brush resentment and envy aside, and live your own best life.
Herbie
Happy lawyer here! Currently in-house after a lengthy stint doing litigation at a large law firm.
Why I like my job:
• Small legal department, which translates into: (1) working with the GC on a daily basis; (2) working with senior-level executives frequently; (3) being involved in every aspect of a very large business. That is freaking cool.
• The other people in my legal department. They’re good peeps. I like and respect them.
• I typically work regular hours with a few “late” nights a month (don’t laugh—a late night for us is 7 – 8 p.m.). I really don’t work on the weekends, although I would if necessary. Caveat, my hours reflect my place on the totem pole. My GC and AGC work more than I do. That feels strange after the BigLaw model.
• No billable hour! I didn’t realize until after I started this job just how much time I’d spent worrying about billing. Either I was working all the time and billing a ton (and therefore miserable and stressed), or I was anxious because I wasn’t billing “enough.” It was so liberating that first weekend when I realized I no longer had to calculate how many hours of billable time something enjoyable would cost me.
What I liked about BigLaw:
• I worked with really, really good attorneys. I’ve seen enough to be grateful that the partners with whom I worked directly were great strategists, skilled writers and advocates, and extremely ethical.
• Despite doing my fair share of doc review, I also got great practical experience. That experience helped make me attractive to my current employer (in addition to my all-around general awesomeness, ahem).
• I made a bunch of great friends at my firm.
What I didn’t like about BigLaw:
• It can be extremely isolating. To hear a 30-year trial partner talk about being an associate, it sounds like it used to be a lot like law school… all the associates would be up in the library, going through reporters, late at night. You were working hard, but you were with other people. Now, there’s WestLaw, and you probably do your work in your office by yourself or at home by yourself. When you do nothing but work…by yourself… day in… and day out… that can be rough.
• BigLaw can be dehumanizing. You are a giant walking dollar sign. Your purpose in life is to bill, bill, bill. You will be paid a large salary. This means, depending on who you get stuck working for, that you are obligated to cancel any and all plans, no matter how important or how far planned in advance, at the last minute to satisfy some partner’s whim to work on something that (a) isn’t even urgent or (b) has become urgent only because the partner sat on it so long. Although, to be fair, this happens to my friends at small firms, too, so maybe it just depends on your partner’s managerial skills and compassion (or lack thereof).
• Also, even though you’re paid a lot, chances are equity partner salaries will outstrip even income partner salary by 10-20 times. That used to be unheard of, and I’ve seen the disparity do really damaging things to partnerships.
• Partnership ain’t necessarily all it’s cracked up to be.
Conclusion: My experience in BigLaw was a series of peaks and valleys where the peaks were decent but the valleys were really, really low. Overall, though, I had a good run. When I started my career, I never aspired to go in-house; I assumed I would make partner, and that would be that. A few years ago, I recognized that I didn’t want to be a partner at my then-law firm. I found a great job opportunity, and I jumped at it. I haven’t looked back.
Sid
Wow, there are a lot of valid and realistic points on here. First I will say that I HIGHLY recommend interning at a firm before deciding on law school.
I am a mostly-happy attorney practicing 4 years. However, like any job, you will have those days of unrealistic clients, demanding bosses, etc. I work in a small office doing IP work. I knew I wanted to do IP, which is part of the reason I’m satisfied in what I do. However, because of the economy, firms (including mine) have taken on some other types of work that don’t interest me (foreclosure, collections, etc). As a young associate, you will 100% be required to pick up some of these types of law that you may have no interest in doing in order to bill the hours for the firm.
The economic situation cannot be ignored- I know many that graduated when I did and still can’t find jobs. Of those that did, 99% of my friends from law school came out with a specific interest, yet ended up in a type of law they never considered just to get ANY legal job. Be prepared for that.
I have yet to find ANY younger attorney that 1) gets paid a lot AND 2) has the type of flexibility I have working 8-9 hour days. Usually its 1 or the other. Mine is the flexibility. At a small firm, I also have a lot more experience both in and outside of the courtroom, whereas my friends at big firms are still hunched over a desk doing research and writing only.
My biggest advice is to be realistic on why you want to go to law school, and what you will have to do to obtain the end goal for yourself. I would not go to law school to rack up debt if you have no interest in practicing law or just want to go back to school in general.
NYC
I haven’t had a chance to read all the comments yet, but wanted to chime in that I am a happy lawyer! Sometimes I think something is wrong with me, because I feel alone in being 5 years at a big firm and still enjoying it. But I feel challenged on a regular basis, believe I am given chances to grow and improve my skills, and I like the people I work with. The only times I have been genuinely miserable is when I’m working with someone I can’t stand or when I am wasting away working on something completely alone. At the most basic level, I think my happiness at work comes down to a) getting to use my brain and b) having some interaction with other people.
in-house
I am happy. See my name. I’m in-house pretty much from day 1 thanks to before-law-school experience in my area, higher ed. I started off making a little more than 1/3 of the BigLaw starting salary that some friends were getting. This was better than the $0 that a good number of my peers were getting; unemployed, only to become underemployed in non-legal jobs (not for lack of trying). But my work is varied, interesting, and new people I meet are always intrigued that “colleges have their own lawyers.” Plus, students, parents, and staff are only becoming more litigious, and the regulatory landscape is becoming more complex. Job Security. As a junior person, I barely work on weekends (and if I do, it’s probably my own fault with mismanagement of time), I have very stable hours (approx 8:30-5:30), and I carry a BlackBerry so I can respond…if I check it.
I have a few friends who are happy at BigLaw, but most of them aren’t. Maybe I’m just drawn to the types that wouldn’t be? It really depends on the firm, city, and practice group.
Fl Lawyer
I’ve been out of law school for 5 years and I have to say that I have always been happy in my career because I have a niche. It takes a specific personality to be a “litigator” and not everyone is cut out for that. If there is a particular subject you like, I suggest focusing your practice on that. For me, that was health care law (everything from regulatory issues to policy work). The other important factor is finding the right environment and people to foster your interests. I work at a firm that really values the type of work that I do, which makes the whole process so much better.
Lalala
I REALLY like my job, and I am happy with my career prospects. I am in higher ed and not a day goes by where I don’t deal with female lawyers.
It took 2 years to find this job out of law school and I totally fell into it, but I am glad I don’t actually practice law now.
anoninnyc
I will sound like a broken record, but it’s so important that it’s worth it: don’t take out loans for law school in amounts that will fundamentally alter the choices you make after law school. I took out a substantial amount in loans and I feel LUCKY that I got a BigLaw job, where I can afford to pay down my loans. But at the same time, I can’t afford to go anywhere else. If I didn’t have any debt, I would make substantially different choices. Your debt burden will shape your life in ways you can’t predict. Be very, very careful about taking on that burden.
Herbie
This. I try to explain it to people like this: do you think it’s realistic to have two mortgages? Is that how rich you really think you’re going to be, that you can afford two mortgages, pay for all your other necessities, and still have discretionary $$ to live the lifestyle you want? Cuz if you aspire to be a homeowner, that’s essentially what you’ll have in combination with your student loan debt.
M
I refer to my student loan debt as the mortgage on my brain. My husband and I basically live on one salary, with 75% of my pay going to pay down said brain mortgage. We do this because we want to knock it out as quickly as possible to save on interest and for peace of mind. If I was on my own with the same salary (which, admittedly, is not very high), I would not be able to pay down my debt so aggressively, and I would have the same standard of living as the administrative assistants working at my law school. I definitely encourage everyone to think long and hard about the financial ramifications when choosing a law school (or whether to go at all). I live comfortably, but it is no where near what everyone expects for “lawyer pay.”
lyla
I went straight to in-house after law school and have loved it overall. A few pros: I don’t have to keep track of my hours. I work very closely with management and am therefore dealing in both legal and business matters. I don’t have to write meaningless memos or articles. I get to experience regulatory work, lobbying, employment law, contract law, and a number of other areas on a weekly (sometimes daily) basis. I have one client to deal with – the rest of the time, I’m the client. And I can’t say it enough – hours, hours, hours. Monday through Friday, 9-5, barring something mega-huge going on.
I was one of the people who hated many aspects of law school. I have a very realistic/practical view of work and the law and felt that law school (and many times law firms) floss theoretical a bit much, to say the least. One of the many reasons I hated working in big law firms during my summers was that I felt as though I was constantly doing very unnecessary work for the clients. Now that I’m in-house I still feel that way. I don’t want a lengthy memo, I want the answer. Don’t try to bill me eight hours for editing said memo.
The downside to my job is that I don’t make the megabucks of big law, but I also am not poor my any means (though loan payments make me feel like it). I went to a good school but had no scholarships, so I’m in the upper-100K debt arena. It’s not a fun place to be. I put over half of my take-home pay toward those payments, and I don’t know when I will ever be able to afford to own a house or take care of anything more than a cat. My fiance (c/o 2009) is in a similar position money-wise, but he also is in a horrible midlaw job where he works biglaw hours and is paid half-market. Many of his classmates who were “indefinitely deferred” or laid off from their biglaw jobs are in the same boat (if they have a legal job at all). I would say the vast majority of my friends didn’t even end up getting jobs requiring a J.D.
YMMV, but even going to a good school for free doesn’t guarantee you a high-paying job or a job that in any way looks like what you thought you would have wanted out of law school. The situation my 3L year (2010) was that the career services office now was in the business of tempering your expectations and telling you what job you wanted rather than helping you get the job you want. That was the experience of many people I knew at other law schools as well. To my knowledge, very little has changed for the better since then.
Herbie
I’m fascinated that you’re 9-5. I really thought 9-5 in-house had gone the way of 3-martini lunches and unicorns… my group is 8-6 or 6:30.
anonInHouse
Great topic. As a 2007 law grad, I would say my answer has changed over the last year or so. I started out in NYC Big law and while some of the work was interesting, I was miserable mostly because of the folks in my group. I had thought I was in the practice area that I was most interested in, it wouldn’t matter that the folks were among the hardest to work with b/c I was doing something I loved. WRONG. Made my life miserable and made me question myself. That being said, I love my practice area and am glad I stuck it out and managed to now transition in-house to large international company. The pay is less than Biglaw but I have a range of interesting work, a great boss and better work-life balance. Still work through lunch but rarely work weekends. I am happy and can see myself continuing to practice as a lawyer if all this holds true for the next 20+ years.
Mother Lawyer
So many things change once you have kids. It’s hard to know what kind of mom you want to be (maybe even if you want to be a mom at all) when you’re just out of undergrad. At that time, I really didn’t give it much thought. But I wish I had. Law was a good match for me – until I had kids. Then I wanted to be with them more than I expected. And it’s tough finding a job that will allow for that – especially if you are in a niche practice area. Think about it, and be sure to talk to lawyers who are moms.
anonymous mom
Someone will surely quote Sheryl Sandberg, and say “Don’t leave before you leave!” But I find that in law, we’re all pretty interchangeable cogs. It’s hard to be indispensable in law, which means that when you have a baby, there’s no reason why the firm needs to keep you around.
Lobbyist
Graduated from law school 15 years ago. Loved it. Went to a top school, luckily paid for by my parents, so graduated without debt. I read quickly and like to argue/debate and found law school really fun. Many of my classmates were insecure and the the social part wasn’t ideal. Became a prosecutor. Loved it. Going to court was amazing. I now work in politics and no longer practice law but would not have my current job if I wasn’t a lawyer. I think lawyering is great for people who really want to be a lawyer. I never worked at a firm and did not think I would like the billable hours or the firm enviornment, and I think that’s a big reason I have had such a great professional life. I do think professional fulfillment is possible — you can find a job you love — and I do think its worth it to look until you find it (even if working for pay at a less than perfect job while you find yourself/your dream.) Good luck.
anon
As others have said, the question may not be whether you’d enjoy practicing law, but whether you’d be able to get a job in law. I’d recommend instead an MBA- people I know finishing a mid-range school in the Pacific Northwest last year all got multiple offers over six figures. The work isn’t any worse than law and has more latitude for doing different things. I’m a lawyer no longer practicting, much happier in my new field that is quasi-related.
Question for ladies with kids: I am having trouble with balancing work and pregnancy. I don’t have more than the usual symptoms at this point (3.5 months) but just find it trying to go to the office every day, drive, put on clothes and shoes that make me uncomfortable despite finding best possible options, not being able to lay down for a bit during the day, all of it. Yet, I love my job and don’t have any interest in quitting- I just hate the physical burden. I know it will pass in time but any advice? I feel so unhappy each day, I wish I could enjoy life. I can telecommute once in a while but don’t want to abuse that earlier when I might need it a lot later. Also, I love my job a lot, but I have been feeling resentful about the meager maternity and leave benefits. I feel like I should move past this as there isn’t any short-term solution- the USA has crap benefits on the whole, mine aren’t too far below average, and I wouldn’t want to switch jobs anyway especially during the pregnancy. I just can’t get over it and keep stewing over it. Help please!
anonymous mom
It is hard, especially if you have a rough pregnancy. (I had a hard time, with near-constant nausea and vomiting, so I know of which I speak.) With respect to the physical burden, you’ll probably feel better soon — I felt much better through the second trimester, lousy in the eighth month, and then fine again at the very bitter end. With respect to the emotional burden, I encourage you to think hard about all of your options in extending your maternity leave. Can you take FMLA in addition to maternity leave? Can you ask for extra unpaid leave? If you chose not to return to work, could your family swing it financially? What about part-time? You may decide to come back full-time, but the more it’s an option that you CHOOSE, as opposed to something you’re forced into, the better you’ll feel.
Signed, someone who felt like she was forced into going back to work too early, and has regretted it ever since
anon
Thanks. It was rough in the beginning with scary complications plus I was traveling internationally for work for over a month straight + other trips, so not easy. I could extend unpaid leave but am torn about extending leave, because I really like my job and don’t want to jeopardize it or be ‘mommy tracked’, and also think I could easily get bored at home. But, it’s more the pace of things- the haul of physically getting to the office day after day. And frankly the discomfort of any clothes other than yoga pants, which sounds minor, but makes a day feel like a week. It is a good point to make sure I’m choosing what to do though, which may come down to how I feel at the time. Unfortunately, we can’t have it all, sorry to say, at least with my specific energy levels at this time and career interests.
I appreciate the feedback.
MeliaraofTlanth
I’m a fairly unhappy lawyer.
My plan was never to be a lawyer, not permanently. My plan was to get my JD, work in BigLaw long enough to pay back a good chunk of loans accepting the fact it would be a miserable few years (and I went to a T10 school, so when I was applying in 2007, if you were breathing and not a complete moron and wanted one, you could get a biglaw job), and then use my JD to do what I really wanted to do, which was work in politics (I was getting the JD because it seemed like–and probably is– a very useful degree to have in politics). Well, I couldn’t find a law job at graduation, so I took a job in politics. I *loved* it (though hated living in DC, but that’s another story). Fine, I thought, we’ll just accelerate the plan and be perpetually poor thanks to the student loan debt but happy with my job. Then, due to elections, I lost that job. Moved back to the city I love (where the BF lives, as well). Found an actual law job in a field that theoretically should be interesting, and if I could stick it out for 5 years, probably will be. I pretty much hate it. Billing hours is the absolute worst (see post on that topic above), I get paid about half of what my friends in BigLaw make for what is quite frankly not that fewer hours (I have the same billable requirement as many biglaw friends), and yes, a lot of opposing counsel are just unnecessarily obnoxious. Part of it is just being new; I’m sure it will get better once I’ve been there longer. Part of it is unmet expectations. I was concerned about the debt before I went to law school and talked to a decent number of law students and lawyers about it. They all assured me that people from my school paid their debt back fairly quickly because they all got big law jobs and did I know how much bonuses were? Of course, no one saw the recession coming.
I also think about my prior job and just miss it so much (though the pay was truly terrible, but again, if I didn’t have law school loans, it would be entirely liveable). I think about my friends from college who went straight into politics instead of law school and the fact that they were a level or two above me from their three years of experience without the crushing debt load from law school, and I basically feel like I wasted 3 years of my life and totally screwed myself over. Will my JD be worth it 20 years down the road? Maybe. But it’s hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel.
Anon
sorry to say it’s not just being new… the opposing counsels don’t get better etc with time, they can wear on you more.
Backgrounder
@ MeliaraofTlanth – I feel the same way although I did not go back to get a JD. I did paralegal with the fed govt for two years straight out of undergrad when I thought I wanted to go to law school.
I decided not to go to law school but felt pressured to get some sort of graduate degree instead. I wanted to work for the federal government again (possibly State) and thought, at the time, that getting an MA in International Relations was a good idea (!!). While I went to a pretty prestigious school, I had the expectation that I would be able to get a government job fairly quickly after graduation (in 2008, mind you when the economy was still okay but headed towards the sh*tter) and find a public student loan repayment program to assist with the debt.
Needless to say NONE of this has happened yet so what I have now is lots of debt from grad school, no government job and am working in a private sector job where if I would have started straight out of undergrad I would be making six figures as a director all with minimal debt. It makes me REALLY question the value of the degree I have…