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Updated: Nov 1, 2018 25 Comments · by

Previously, on Corporette…

Previously...

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Kat Griffin is the founder, publisher, and editor-in-chief of Corporette. You can read more about her here.

Comments

  1. Anon

    Early threadjack, sorry! I need advice. I’m a 2L doing an internship with a high profile non-profit that I would love to work for after law school. I am working on a project that builds on some research done by a first year attorney on my team. As I am going through the work I keep finding places where I am 90% sure she read the statutes incorrectly. My doubt only comes from the fact that I am a law student with less experience so maybe I am missing something. How should I handle this? Should I ask her directly? The problem is that its not just one thing but more like 10-15. How do I approach her without it looking like either I am an idiot for not seeing why she was right or that I think she did a poor job. I’ll need to meet with our team on this issue in probably a week or two. I don’t want to throw her under the bus publicly. Help!

    • Cat

      I agree with your instinct to just talk to the first-year about it, and absolutely privately first. The hardest part will be starting the conversation – I would probably say something like “Jane, while I was working on Project X, I was referring back to some statutes that were cited and I was wondering if we could discuss the reasoning behind a few conclusions. Sometimes I read the statutes differently and I’d like your guidance on the analysis.” The goal is to (1) keep the overall tone positive and (2) avoid strong negative statements about her work – passive voice is your friend. Also, in the event that you DID miss something, you’ve set up yourself well to get useful feedback.

      • Godzilla

        Agree with Cat’s advice. Also, it’s totally ok to look like an idiot as a student – the point is for you to learn (exclusive of whether you’re right in this/any situation or not). It’s easy enough to say, “Would you mind explaining this to me? I’m trying to understand/I don’t see what I’m missing.” It makes you look diligent, which you are, and gives you the opportunity to actually engage your coworker, which is something you need to learn how to do for the rest of your career. And for some personal jazz thrown in, I’ve ALWAYS appreciated it when an intern brought a mistake to my attention and my higher-ups have always appreciated it from me. Of course, massage egos as necessary.

  2. anonymous and happy

    Ladies,

    I’ve posted on here before as I’ve been interviewing for a job, and yesterday after they offered me the job, they asked me to propose a salary for negotiation. As a small firm in a small city, there wasn’t a clear benchmark.

    I’ve never had to negotiate salary/benefits before. I did some research and made a list of what I wanted, and what I’d negotiate in terms of salary v. benefits. I found the number I’d be highly satisfied with, and then I added 20% to that to have comfort. That definitely put me at the very top of the area’s salary range. I made a list of strengths I was bringing to the firm, reviewed my negotiation tips, and made the call.

    When I gave the number, I heard the partner suck in air and my heart sank. But – after a long, sleepless night…I got the call this morning and they agreed to the full number! (-$500, on principle I guess) I am shocked, thrilled, and overwhelmed. I would have happily accepted the job for $15K less, and my bottom line was $20K+ less. So, suffice it to say, I feel like I just got a huge bonus!

    I am sooooooo happy and overwhelmed! I didn’t dream I could receive this kind of salary. Thanks for the support and advice over the past few weeks, everyone.

  3. Baby DC Attorney

    Related to one of the posts above…if I’m getting about a $3K tax refund, should I use that to fully pay off my credit card? (16% interest rate, I think) or to open a Vanguard Roth IRA account (I think 3K is the minimum deposit to open one)?

    • ADL

      Pay off the credit card.

      I’d then suggest looking into a Roth IRA at your local credit union (and join your credit union, if you aren’t a member); minimums are usually a lot lower.

    • karenpadi

      Credit card. And put whatever is left over into an emergency-only savings account. For bonus points, if you can, adjust your direct deposit to put money directly into savings every paycheck.

      By building up a $3k cushion, there will be no need to rack up credit card debt when an emergency occurs. Then, “borrow” the $3k from your savings (0% interest), and–important part–pay yourself back just like you would the credit card company.

    • Sconnie

      Credit card. The peace of mind you will get for paying that off is priceless.

    • Bluejay

      Credit card. The annual interest you pay to Chase is a lot more than the annual interest that $3K would collect in an IRA.

    • Homestar

      Huh, sounds like you may have made up your mind, but I’ll be the lone one out and say you should consider sticking it in the IRA. Getting started young is so important. You’ll find a way to pay off the credit card much easier than you will find a way to come up with $3K to hit the minimum for the IRA. From a pure economic standpoint, your money is better spent paying down high-interest debt. But from a behavioral standpoint, you are less likely to save up that $3K again and it will be too easy to just let retirement savings slip another year. So I’d go for the IRA and make a commitment to add to it periodically.

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