Okay, I’m somewhat “new” (2 yrs) at my firm and have had the same LAA since I got here. I’m a pretty independent lawyer and was out of big law for a spell. So, my initial expectations/needs were low. But this past year my practice has exploded and I’m busy as F. My LAA is a nothing more than the bare minimum effort person, and even when you ask for the bare minimum the LAA acts inconvenienced. Last year I gave a decent Christmas gift in cash. But this year, it’s just been not cutting it for me. Always having convenient conflicts when I have major deadlines, etc and despite me directly addressing the basic things I need greater attention to and take initiative without me telling giving explicit instructions, no change.

I’m pretty frustrated, actually getting pissed. I don’t feel as though I’m obligated to give a Christmas gift, or at least any of value but, I feel like an @$$hole. But, again, it’s been a growing and compounding problem.

What are y’all thoughts. And yah, I haven’t done anything yet because I’ve been struggling with giving anything.

Hello lovely people of Reddit. Help me find who can help me with notes and preparation for 3 year LLB CET? It’s scheduled for March 20 and 21st 2025 and I’m ready to compensate for your assistance with monetary value if desired or with a fantastic gift base upon your personality and endless coffee sessions(if you stay around Mumbai) while I prepare for the CET.

Got a ruling today after a hearing a few weeks ago. I feel the outcome is egregious, so much so that it undermines the court’s credibility let alone denies my client make-up time with his son. I need to vent and also want to see what others think about it.

I represent dad in a custody modification case. In August, we filed a petition to modify custody and a motion for contempt because mom took the son and moved 12 hours away. She lied to my client when she was planning to move and after the move she confirmed via text that she moved in spite of a valid custody order in place at the time. We have an evidentiary hearing a few weeks ago. Ruling comes out today. In its order, the court found that mom was in contempt of court for violating the previous order and denying my client his visitation time with their son. The court’s remedy to prevent further contempt: 4 days of make up visitation for my client. That’s it. No attorneys fees, no modification of the underlying custody order. Nothing. My client just missed out on 4 months of his son’s life directly due to mom’s actions. And all he gets is 4 days… Despite being a bad outcome for my client, it also undermines the court’s credibility. It’s a slap on the wrist for mom for essentially kidnapping and I think it will embolden mom to make further violations down the road. Honesty, my first thought was wanting to appeal it regardless of the outcome. Our higher court could overturn it, or it affirms and sets an insane example for future, similar custody disputes.

Does 4 days of make-up visitation sound like anywhere close to an acceptable deterrent for a parent violating a court order by permanently moving a kid 12hrs away and refusing visitation for 4 months? Please talk some sense into me. Feeling pretty demoralized for my client.

Hello,

I have an opportunity to discuss my salary with my firm after the holidays and I am seeking some advice regarding how to best sell my value. The issue I am having is that my law firm does flat fee Chapter 7 bankruptcy work as well as hourly work. It is hard for me to quantify the Chapter 7 flat fee work since, obviously, it is flat fee and no collections come out of it. Does anyone have advice on how to maximize my value in a salary negotiation setting?

For reference, here are my numbers and some additional information about the firm: I billed 2150 hours (which includes the flat fee time). We have no billable hour requirement, I am a first-year associate simply trying to learn a lot but also make myself valuable to the firm. I bill at $300/hour and my hourly rate will jump to at least $325/hour next year. I have brought in roughly $475,000 in collections YTD. I also have outstanding AR in the amount of ~$50,000. My personal collection goal for next year is $500,000.

The firm has six attorneys, three partners and three associates. My annual salary is 105k. I have not received a bonus, however, I anticipate during this conversation in early January I will receive one, somewhere around the $5,000 amount. Overall, the partners have told me I am on partner track, my work product is good, and I have strong relationships with everyone in the firm.

I would like to ask for a raise during my performance review in January. However, I am unsure of how to sell to the partners that my value should be based on more than the $475,000 collections because of the hundreds of flat fee Chapter 7 work that I do for the firm, at their ordering. I'd like to jump from the $105k mark to at least $115k, but recognize that large of a jump likely requires me selling the Chapter 7 work.

Thanks!

I recently passed the CA Bar and had my first interview today at an AM100 after a long dry stretch. I am currently employed in a non-legal position and make enough money to keep me afloat during the job search (aka not in a real rush, but would like to get a job within a reasonable time frame).

I got the interview after a long period where the assistant wouldn't get back to me. I applied for an environmental law position but have interests in a few different fields (tech transactions, environmental, general corporate, and aspects of international law). I looked up the interviewing attorney and saw that he does admiralty and didn't think much of it because he is a managing partner and I figured he does the interviews. However, during the interview I realized I was being interviewed for a maritime law position (surprise!). I took maritime law, think it's interesting, but was just a little shocked. The interviewing attorney was actually very nice and personable and it was actually a, dare I say, fun interview. I left with a smile and not wanting to throw up.

My concern is that by accepting this position I am going to pigeonhole myself into this niche area of law and never be able to get out. I realize there are general transferable skills, but the specialization and the potential for lots of work in things like personal injury makes me nervous. I have zero interest in personal injury. However, collision, oil spills, cargo spills, wrecks, etc., are very much something I would take interest in and be excited to do.

It's only about four hours old at this point, and I've got varying advice from different people. Can anyone weigh in on this and tell me if this is the wrong move and if I'm going to get stuck? Would another firm look at me if I decide to move practice areas 1-2 years down the road and not want me? Basically, my concern is that I'm going to get stuck with a set of skills I may not necessarily want in a few years and become marketable to only a niche area.

Just looking for some advice. Also pls be nice, I have no idea what I'm doing.

I have a deal closing. It's supposed to close effective January 1, 2025 - that is what they want for a clean break on taxes.

We have been working on this for months. We agreed to have all documents finalized today because of the holiday. That requires reviews and redlines to be done BEFORE today. We agreed to this because I'm on vacation for the holidays and won't return until January 2nd. I was supposed approve all documents by today, and my boss would handle the signing of my approved documents on December 31st.

I got redlines last night at 7:04. I did not get all the closing documents. The documents did not reflect the agreed upon effective date of January 1st with an escrow agreement to January 2. My client does not want the sale in this tax year but also doesn't want to have to do partial taxes for 2025.

This was all agreed upon the first week of November.

The attorney I was dealing with just ignored me all week and sent me docs at 7:04 last night telling me she was handing it off to another attorney and deal with him. When I tell him this was supposed to be finished by today because of my vacation, he just flippantly says- "We're lawyers, we don't get vacations."

Fuck you, dude.

Now, I'll have to deal with this on vacation because it is not my client's fault. I'm seriously hoping they don't get it done because if they don't, he's not selling to them. They were getting a deal, and if he has to go into the next tax year, he's going to market the company and get a higher payout.

And the other side keeps condescendingly saying what a small simple deal this is. Then GET IT DONE jackasses!!!

I'm a solo with all 5-star Google reviews, but the first result when you search my name is a 1-star Yelp review from someone who wasn't even a client of mine. More than likely this review was an opposing pro se litigant who got their ass handed to them - I basically received the review shortly after a particularly noteworthy hearing. Yelp won't remove the review and it's coming up first in Google searches. I've been trying to bury that Yelp review, but obviously drama breeds clicks and it's hurting my business reputation. Any ideas? I've consulted ChatGPT, tried soliciting DIFFERENT reviews on Yelp, but nothing's helping!

New associate at a new firm with two paralegals. Love the firm just one issue.

Long story short, I have one paralegal who was borderline pushy about trying to form a friendship with me. This person would invite me places, try to gossip with me about other attorneys/staff, I always declined and made a note to keep this person at arms length because I’m not looking for friends and especially not at work.

However, on the flip side I don’t spend a lot of time caring about how my paralegals help me get things done-as long as it gets done. I’ve told this to both of them.

Well, pushy paralegal barely comes into work now. This person has been to work maybe 1 day this week and completed none of the assignments I’ve requested they help me with and I don’t ask them to do much because I prefer to verify things get done myself.

But now I’m realizing that I have to check/double check/attempt to remember what I’ve asked this person to do so that I CAN go and make sure it’s done. It’s annoying and I don’t know how I should proceed with correcting this behavior.

I’m new at the firm and don’t want to rock the boat. Also, we have a supervising attorney who loves this paralegal because she does performative hard work(work only when this person thinks people are looking and tries to form emotional bonds to distract from the lack of actual work being done) and he doesn’t see this person coming.

Since I am new, I don’t want to be combative or start any drama but my other paralegal is out working her by far and I feel like I am overloading the one that works hard.

I am leaning towards sending an email between the three of us…to discuss.

But how would you all address this?

I’m at a bit of a crossroads in my career and seeking advice from anyone who’s been in a similar position. My main concern is whether I should ditch PSLF for a private firm and if I’d come out ahead in the end. For background, I’ve been an attorney for a little over 3 years now. I started out in criminal law and now do civil litigation at a nonprofit. Overall, I prefer civil litigation and am hoping to pursue a role where I can explore more practice areas, particularly employment law.

My current role has been a mess for several months now (due to the organization, not me), doesn’t pay particularly well ($75k) and I see minimal opportunity for growth. For those reasons, I’ve been applying primarily to municipal law jobs in the city/county and employment law jobs at private firms. My goal is to find my niche as well as a job that I can see myself staying at for at least 3 to 5 years, if not longer.

Right now, I am in the process of interviewing at an employment law firm. I’ve been informed that the role is basically an in-house job for a client of the firm. No billing and salary is low six figures starting out ($110k-ish). I also have an interview for a municipal law position coming up next week. I know very little about the role right now, but I’m expecting the pay to be around $90k. This job would be PSLF eligible.

So here’s where things get difficult. I have $130k in student loans and around 2.5-3 years of credit toward PSLF. Naturally, if I can find a decent paying public interest job, I think that’s logically what I should go with. At the same time, this employment law gig doesn’t seem bad at all. Plenty of attorneys seek out in-house jobs and it’s possible that I could have one after only 3 years of practice. And even if I do have to pay off my loans in full, would I eventually come out on top by going private? Is there a greater likelihood for raises, bonuses, etc? I’m assuming yes and would obviously need to ask about this in future interviews, but I think the assumption makes sense.

I just have a lot of questions and I really can’t afford to make the wrong decision financially. Any advice is appreciated. If there are also questions or considerations that I should be bringing up when interviewing for these roles, please let me know. I have to do this right.

I was preparing for a hearing this morning and got a laugh at how the cross examination was styled. Sharing for anyone who needs a stupid little giggle on a Friday.

New attorney. Barred in November. My bosses sat me down for my quarterly review today and told me that maybe estate planning isn't for me.

Apparently my attention to detail is lacking, and they don't have confidence that I can manage clients on my own. They're also not sure if I belong there.

Feeling kind of defeated. Has anyone else got this talk and then come back from it? Any other areas of law to try? I thought Estate Planning was the easiest so if I can't do this, I'm worried about how I'll fare anywhere else.

Edit: thank you all for the support and the kind words and the direct messages. It's helped a lot.

Need advice on work attire? Trying to figure out what to wear for a work function involving clients? Need a recommendation for a good barrister wig and robes? Need a recommendation for a good women's white dress shirt? This is the thread!

Hi everyone, I filed an MSJ by the deadline, but yesterday, the court continued trial. I want to amend the MSJ to include evidence I think we'll finally get from the opposing party. Has anyone done this? Is it possible? I think it is, as long as we're within the statutory notice period, but I know the "only one MSJ" rule is being implemented in CA in January. Any suggestions are welcomed. Thanks.

I am a recently barred attorney in CA, I’ve been looking for a job for a month now and finally got an offer that matches all my wants besides the area of law the firm practices(Med Mal). Salary is the best offer I have gotten out of the 6 offers I received too. Will I be miserable doing defense med Mal or is this good to gain experience and a few bucks.

What is this transition like? Pros/cons? How often do you get to try cases at DA’s office, especially considering the new discovery rules in NY?

I have an opportunity to work as an assistant general counsel at a regional university. I’m currently in a general litigation position at defense firm. Anyone in-house at a university that can share their experience/advice?

I have 60+ actively litigated files. Your job is to make it possible for me to be responsible for all that without committing malpractice by reducing the amount of time I have to spend on them. When I ask you to prepare a report, draft a motion, etc., you should give me a finished product. If you give me a draft that I have to spend a few hours fixing, that kind of defeats the purpose of your position in the firm - I could have spent a few hours just doing it myself. Why would I continue to give you work over your colleague with half as much experience, who hands me finished products that I only need to review and sign?

Yours truly,

Frustrated partner dealing with your shitty, half-assed work the day before we all fuck off for Christmas.

P.S. - I'd just send it back to you and tell you it's not done, but the client wanted it last week, thanks for that.

Out of curiosity, how do you manage and cope? Knowing the nature of job that is very stressful and demanding, does it take a huge toll on mental wellness?

I am in a practice area that involves a lot of work with governing boards. Whenever I have to draft a document for the entire group’s approval, inevitably every single one of them has to weigh in on it and make some minor non-substantive edit, not a correction, mind you just a change. I’m fine with that, but inevitably, when they get billed for this, they go ballistic. Yesterday, for example, I had to make five separate non substantive changes to a document based on five responses that dribbled in over a period of several hours. I know when I bill for those five changes I’ll get called out on it and almost don’t even want to bill the time to avoid the drama.

That’s it. That’s the story.

I’m a first-year associate, and every case I handle is supervised by a senior attorney. I was assigned this particular case back in September, about six months into practice. Over time, the case was passed through four different supervisors, meaning there was a point where someone new was overseeing my work.

Yesterday, while reviewing the file, I realized that the Court had given us a 75-day deadline to conduct depositions of witnesses—starting from back in September. This means the deadline has long passed. I immediately went to my current supervising attorney to explain what had happened.

They assured me they weren’t upset with me but rather with how the case was mishandled during the transitions between supervisors. While their response was meant to be reassuring, I can’t stop dwelling on it. It’s been keeping me up at night.

I’ve been tracking my deadlines more consistently since I figured out what to look for and what pay attention to but I had no idea back in September :(

What’s the biggest mistake you’ve made at work?

I got a nasty gram from a somewhat unhinged and very unpleasant/unreasonable client. He was demanding copies of every document/correspondence, etc in his case like yesterday for a pro se appeal he was doing of an issue unrelated to my representation. Anyway…I wrote out my response and realized it was going to just make things worse. So I put my response into chat gpt and asked it to revise it to be professional and not emotional. The result was chef’s kiss. Nothing he could latch onto and come at me for, yet it got everything across that had to be communicated. And yet…a little part of me is dying inside bc I am happy that I had a way to dehumanize my communication with my client. But for my sake, it is what I had to do. I just hope he doesn’t come after me for giving him a “canned” response. God…I am having so many conflicting feelings about this. I guess I will see how he responds to this before I decide this is a good use of AI in the future! I feel like if I had used my original response he may have fired me which would have been good. Or he may have gotten more mad but kept me on, and I definitely could see this particular person making an ethics complaint against a lawyer who pushes back when he is a dick. He is very much a special snowflake whose mother told him he is entitled to everything. I think he will always be blaming everyone else for things going wrong in his life, and making as many problems for ppl who do not give in to him as he can. So, I am pretty sure that cold sterile unfeeling AI response is probably the best with him….i will update when he replies!!! 🥶

Long Story short, I have court tomorrow but my check out is at 11am from my hotel (was flown in for this) and the hotel I’m at doesn’t have a front desk, it’s a virtual desk, weird for sure.

I know I am 100% overthinking this but how bad is it going to be if I show up with a small duffel bag to court along my briefcase?

If anyone has suggestions lmk

I get by with a 21" (I think) monitor plugged into my laptop, but I want to upgrade.

Is a 32" overkill? Is 27" 'enough'?

Will different size monitors in tandem irritate me or does it become manageable?

I'm looking for factors I haven't considered when purchasing an additional (maybe even 2 monitors - and whether that's even necessary).