Throwaway account just venting and asking for advice as its affected my mental health.

I got my first job in the industry a couple years ago as a paralegal at a small Medical Malpractice Defense firm, but in august 2023 I was let go because i was overqualified due to already passing the bar at the start of 2023 and they had someone else in mind for the position who would remain at the paralegal position longterm. Currently I volunteer in multiple departments of my state's pro bono program once a month per department. I’ve been applying to 3 or 4 jobs a day, and even though I’ve been going to interviews every few weeks including multiple second interviews, I haven’t been able to find work since august and it’s really affecting my mental health and wearing me down. It feels like if I don’t find a job by this august (a year since my firing), I'll never get a job. Any insight or advice would be sincerely appreciated.

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Hi,

I'm looking for general advice on how to restart my working life. To make a long story short:

• I graduated from a Tier 2 law school in 2017, high honors, law review, and started a good job in the legal field.

• Unfortunately I was also a raging alcoholic and did not pass the bar exam. I was able to stay in my job because it didn't require a license. After 2 years though, my alcoholism progressed to the point where I didn't care about my job anymore and I quit with no notice.

• I wandered around the proverbial wilderness for a while, working retail and restaurants or just unemployed, until I finally hit bottom last year.

• I voluntarily went to a detox unit for a little over a month, and from there to a six-month halfway house. I did great there, got a "get well job" in retail which I still have, and a sponsor and home group in AA. I completed the halfway house program and moved into independent living a month ago.

So that's where I'm at. I have a law degree and would have had great references from those days, but I burned the bridge at my last law job and haven't talked to anyone from my law school internships or school in years. Since I also don't have a license and would have to retake the bar, I feel like the ship has sailed on being a lawyer and am not looking at jobs there.

But, I don't want to work my "get well job" in retail forever.

My basic question is, what kind of work am I qualified to pursue? Everyone and their mother tells me to be a paralegal, but they don't understand law firms don't want to hire JDs as paralegals. It feels like the JD is hampering me more than anything, especially without a law license to go with it.

I'm basically trying to find a new career path, and hear if anyone else has come back from something like this.

Hi all,

Has anyone here made the switch to legal recruiting? Any tips or pointers for making the jump?

I'm thinking pretty seriously about it, but I realize I have no context for this decision other than a sort of pie-in-the-sky: gee, that sounds nice. I.e., helping friends get better jobs ... while the reality is probably much more of a grueling numbers game.

Any thoughts or advice would be appreciated.

Separately, I'm wondering if I can help friends get jobs at different law firms when I'm employed at a competing law firm. I don't know if that violates some sort of ethics rule somewhere, but I have to imagine it does.

If anyone has encountered or experienced something similar, please let me know.

Thank you in advance!

I've been looking for a group like this for quite a while, so I figured I'd introduce myself a little. I practiced primarily in criminal defense (mostly public defense) as well as juvenile defense, parental rights proceedings, drug court, and employee rights law. I stopped practicing law this year for a number of reasons, all of which were killing me quickly. Primarily, I could not stand the interdisciplinary aspect of the field. Lawyers, often within the same firm, treat one another like crap. I found that as a woman in a niche area dominated almost entirely by men, other female attorneys viewed each other (and myself) as competition or even obstacles in the path blocking their way to success. As if the number of spots was limited.

I found that, in my region, the self-policing of ethics is nonexistent in the field. Even grazing the topic of reporting ethics violations (per the rules of professional conduct) is often met with threats of termination or career blacklisting.

I myself was essentially cornered into a position in which reporting an attorney I worked with was mandatory. This situation included illegal drug use and solicitation of drugs from clients, violent explosive behavior, false information filed in Court documents, etc. The state bar association did nothing, and that is the norm here.

I took time off to recuperate and to try out some temporary positions helping children with disabilities. I quickly learned that I needed to remove myself from all work in which the primary function is to care for and be responsible for another human being and their health. I could not NOT overcommit and over-connect.

I decided if I can't help in such direct ways, I would find another way to be of service. I now work as a Greenhouse Specialist for a full production (we do everything on site, down to making the soil) greenhouse, tree nursery, garden store.

I did need to push through, what my therapist deemed the "ego death" of leaving the legal field. But I made it through with some specific tricks suggested in therapy. I no longer feel the need to respond to "what do you do?" with the initial disclaimer if "well, I used to practice law...". Everyone once in a while I feel sorrow over the fact that I cannot continue in that field and also be healthy. These moments typically come in relation to my husband's work (he still practices as a managing public defender), or in moments in which I encounter former colleagues from the field (i.e. they come to shop at the Greenhouse).

Overall, I am SO much happier and no longer define my identity on my career, but rather the impact I chose to make on the world and the people around me.

I landed at the current job sort of serendipitously: when I was truly hitting the final downward crash of extreme burn out, I often spent my lunchbreaks at the greenhouse business that I currently work at, in order to balance myself to survive the remainder of the day. The atmosphere is everything the law is not: peaceful, validating, unassuming, collaborative, authentic, creative, etc. I could feel my soul settle in in this place in a way I'd never found, and didn't believe possible in the legal field.

I am ultimately VERY grateful for my time in active practice, because: 1. I love learning for the sake of learning and always have 2. Life is far more rewarding and productive when you know your rights and viable solutions 3. I met my husband (he was my 3L law school orientation leader when I started as a 1L), and 4. the sheer number of times I heard from a client "this is the first time anyone has treated me like a human being."

Thank you for creating this group - happy to connect anytime!

Hey All - former lawyer. Practiced for less than a year at a good firm in NY. Left to build an investment business (now across 8 states). It was very successful for the first 6 years but the last year has been challenged by higher interest rates.

As of late I have been having a lot of imposter syndrome and feeling a lot of emotions:

1. had I stayed in law I would have had a linear relationship to work input and output

2. little to no travel

3. chance to learn a lot more from others and make mistakes in the safety of not being on full display constantly

4. diversity of clients so that I wasn’t reliant on any single one

5. follow a proven path that works vs constantly having to be creative

Any words of encouragement would be helpful. In law you can rely on yourself to make your destiny. In my business a team contribution is required to be successful and our team has been tested in the last 12-18 months and several really disappointing in their contribution.

Thank you all in advance.

I was affected by the economic layoffs as my firm deals with predominantly tech industry. I’ve been unemployed since April of this year and wanted to know if anyone had any leads/info on job opportunities. I’m looking for remote opportunities or hybrid opportunities in the DC/MD area. I’m also willing to transition to other practice groups that accept any state license.

I have a few criminal cases, and around here we do "jury final pre trials". Basically, it's a cattle call before the jury calendar starts to set cases for trial, continue them, or plead them out.

This was part of my practice i used to enjoy. The thrill of the unknown, all the lawyers there to convive with, the adrenaline rush, etc, the last minute wheeling and dealing, and horsetrading. All the defendants packed in there and the unpredictability that brings.

None of the above appeals to me anymore. Guess that's how i was able to be a public defender as long as i was. Yesterday, as i sat waiting for my case to get called, I felt none of that. Like, NONE. It was just another thing to get over with until I could get out of there and back to my office.

I feel a bit sad, but i'm relieved that i can put criminal law behind me as I move forward.

I will stop taking any new cases at that point. My plan is to have everything wrapped up within 3 months. I don't do a lot of work on retainer, so any ongoing clients will be referred out and motions to wd filed and heard. My colleague wrapped up his practice in 4 weeks when he got appointed to the bench. And that was a longstanding practice that he took over from his old business partner, very similar to me.

Given my book of business, I would like to "sell" my practice, but that would require me taking on an associate and gradually transferring it all over to them. I don't have the patience to deal with an associate. Another option to get some bigger firm to absorb mine, but again, i don't want to work for anyone. Any tips on this would be appreciated. Selling a practice eludes me. People come to my practice TO SEE ME. I am the product. It's hard to get around that.

I figure in three months, that is enough time for me to send out all the "bye bye" letters and extricate myself from this and take the signs down.

I fully plan on filing for unemployment as my business pays into the system, as do I personally. This is still a murky area for me. Insights here welcomed!

There is a 3rd party involved in this, which is my partner. He is in a similar boat, except around the same time, he will be retiring from law enforcement with a pension. We plan to get married prior to that so i can be on the retiree health insurance plan. Even if our relationship goes tits up, I'm still getting out but being HAPPILY married to him when i do would make things a bit more easier.

That puts me at April 1 2027. Just in time for house selling season. My offspring will graduate in May. I'll put the house up for sale when he graduates. I live in a high-demand area, so assuming the economy isn't total shit, I should be able to move my house quickly.

It's nice to have A FUTURE to look forward to again. I haven't had this in years.

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I’ve been a solo lawyer for about 10 years. I loved working for myself.

However, I have grown disgusted with the other side lying and judges doing nothing about it. I have been on the LawyersTalk sub and want to apply for some contract jobs to bring some much needed money in as soon as possible. I work on contingency and haven’t made any money this year.

On top of this, one of my best friends, who is also a lawyer, has been berating me while trying to help me with a case. I was so overwhelmed with the work project that I just ignored them.

When the project ended I told them how they spoke to me was unacceptable. A few days ago they told me they didn’t have time to talk about it. I still haven’t heard from them. The same thing has happened before and they would always eventually apologize but the behavior didn’t change.

But now my problems with the law and my friend have come to a head. I am barely functioning and the work is piling up. I have long suffered from depression.

Opening my own practice and meeting this friend around 10 years ago really helped with the depression. I am single in my early fifties and don’t feel close to a lot of people. I have a few good friends and work for myself so am alone a lot. Usually this is okay because I am an introvert.

The idea of my work (being burnt out from work) and personal life (having to possibly end this friendship) crashing and burning has made me feel completely hopeless. I feel like a failure both personally and professionally. On top of all of this I have to move in the next few months, which is also very stressful.

I know my brain is not thinking correctly. I feel hopeless. I just want to give up. If it wasn’t for my pet I wouldn’t be here typing this right now. I was in therapy for about 10 years and take antidepressants. I exercise regularly and am in good health.

In sum I feel like a failure. I worry that even if I get the work thing under control I will still feel lonely. I feel like my loner tendencies are catching up with me. I worry that even if I meet a partner they will not want someone who does not have a lot of friends.

Any help appreciated. Thank you!

I admit this.

Apparently, its the "professional distance" that was the problem. So your s/o wants to "discuss the relationship" and their hurt feelings and your demeanor is that of professional distance and politeness. Not one of emotional engagement or empathy. It's like you are talking about the merits of a case, or settlement discussion with opposing counsel, instead of giving the matter the emotional engagement your partner wants.

Guy is gonna cry and say he has nowhere to go. Which is true. He burnt all his bridges with his addiction but seems to think my client should "let" him stay there for another 8 months without paying rent. Yes, he hasn't paid rent in 8 months. My client is a saint of a landlord.

I don't feel sorry for this guy. Rather, i'm tired of dealing with this kind of "reality" as part of my job. Lord knows i have my own problems to deal with. In this career, it's too damn easy to push YOUR problems to wayside because you make money directly dealing with other peoples problems. So you have no room for YOU. Yeah, i lived this and it costed me 3 months of psychiatrist bills, therapist bills and a stint on zoloft.

The stress and strain of this profession is equally felt. No one is exempt. Ever.

This is because of the immense responsibility we are tasked with and the consequences of when we don't, or can't meet that responsibility. No amount of dollars will take awatay that reality.

Personal relationships? LOL. Hell that could be a whole another subreddit.

This is a forum for attorneys in professional and personal crisis that stem from the rigors of law practice. This is for attorneys who are thinking about leaving the profession or downsizing their work life. This is for attorneys who have left the practice altogether. This is where we come together to show empathy, seek guidance, and to brainstorm concrete actions to help us stay in the profession or leave, and everything in between those two options.

This is not for the nuts and bolts of law practice. If you post here, it is because you are getting ground down and are seeking help and support and guidance.

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