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Working in BIGLAW isn't

By nathan (Fri Apr 27, 2012 at 09:38:38 AM EST) (all tags)

A highly-paid job.

It's actually two highly-paid jobs.

Context: I'm well on my way to my first 250-hour month. Apparently after that, you get to do a 300-hour month. Billable, not worked, of course (billable = worked * 0.8 for me, roughly.)

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Working in BIGLAW isn't | 16 comments (16 topical, 0 hidden) | Trackback

do you like your life? by lm (2.00 / 0) #1 Fri Apr 27, 2012 at 09:54:21 AM EST

It seems to me the real question is less how much you make and more how much you get out of your mode of life.

There is no more degenerate kind of state than that in which the richest are supposed to be the best.
Cicero, The Republic

honestly, i really love my life by nathan (2.00 / 0) #4 Fri Apr 27, 2012 at 11:34:39 AM EST

I'm in the unusual position of being able to allow my wife to stay at home with our kid, and they both love it -- homeschooling was definitely the right choice for him. Also, as an immigrant with no family money, I have to make money just to keep my head above water. I was telling another associate, an Orthodox Jew, that back in 2006/2007 I'd settled on law, accounting, or medicine, and he said, "That's funny, I didn't know you were Jewish!" But that very good joke contains a serious point: Jews and now Asians have traditionally gone into those fields because they provide a way of quickly establishing yourself.

I wasn't very secure for a long time, and it really hurt. Now I can afford my rent, a gym, a metropass, and the occasional bottle of hooch. Can't tell you how good that feels.

[ Parent ]

and the time to use/enjoy any of those things ? by sasquatchan (2.00 / 0) #8 Fri Apr 27, 2012 at 04:51:01 PM EST

[ Parent ]

: my family's happiness and well-being is by nathan (4.00 / 1) #10 Fri Apr 27, 2012 at 05:47:31 PM EST

The main thing that makes me happy. If I had a lot of free time, I'd probably just squander it on stupid bullshit.

I have very basic needs, myself. A few books (most of which can be obtained cheap or free,) 3 45-minute workouts/week, adequate food and shelter, a chess set -- I lived on less than $10k/year throughout college, my rent was $300/mo in Toronto.

[ Parent ]

At least you get TV shows made about you by georgeha (4.00 / 1) #2 Fri Apr 27, 2012 at 10:21:53 AM EST

You never see shows about debug/support engineers, working hard to get a patch out so a customer can print their junk mail.

: it's a mixed bag by nathan (2.00 / 0) #3 Fri Apr 27, 2012 at 11:28:47 AM EST

There are lots of shows about us, but they're all wrong. DENNY CRANE!

Not many scenes of conference calls where some douchey banker's saying, "I want to change the amount of the reserve fund! Yes, I know it's 3 a.m. and we're pricing at 9:30 a.m.! No, I don't care that the rating agencies will have kittens!"

Also, there's no such thing as a BIGLAW plaintiff's firm. There are prestigious plaintiff's boutiques, of course.

[ Parent ]

The question is by anonimouse (2.00 / 0) #5 Fri Apr 27, 2012 at 12:42:50 PM EST

do you get paid an hourly rate, or a fixed salary?

Girls come and go but a mortgage is for 25 years -- JtL

salary, of course by nathan (2.00 / 0) #6 Fri Apr 27, 2012 at 12:58:58 PM EST

Although there are hours bonuses for every 100 over your minimum billables. My firm has a relatively high bonus requirement for hours worked, but pays relatively high bonuses once you hit that level. All in all, pretty fair.

Side note: when you're a bit fried, there are lots of hilarious ways to typo "Wells Fargo." Try it sometime... Also, I narrowly escaped sending an email to someone whom I apparently believed was named "Geroge."

[ Parent ]

the issue is by aphrael (2.00 / 0) #11 Sun Apr 29, 2012 at 10:53:44 PM EST

that even with salary, there's an expectation that you bill a certain number of hours. failure to meet that expectation can lead to negative social consequences and, in a worst case, the door.
If television is a babysitter, the internet is a drunk librarian who won't shut up.
[ Parent ]

agree. also, no class-year promotions by nathan (2.00 / 0) #12 Mon Apr 30, 2012 at 02:53:12 AM EST

For people who aren't in good standing, ie, minimum billables.

[ Parent ]

btw, guess where i am right now by nathan (2.00 / 0) #13 Mon Apr 30, 2012 at 02:59:45 AM EST

[ Parent ]

(Comment Deleted) by anonimouse (2.00 / 0) #14 Mon Apr 30, 2012 at 03:55:47 AM EST

This comment has been deleted by anonimouse

[ Parent ]

Answer by anonimouse (2.00 / 0) #15 Mon Apr 30, 2012 at 03:56:22 AM EST

In the office, billing your comment time on Husi as "performing research for a client".

Girls come and go but a mortgage is for 25 years -- JtL
[ Parent ]

: lol, 180 response by nathan (2.00 / 0) #16 Mon Apr 30, 2012 at 11:13:02 AM EST

Sadly, I don't get to bill time fixing my own screwups.

[ Parent ]

based on the wikipedia article... by gzt (4.00 / 1) #7 Fri Apr 27, 2012 at 04:40:50 PM EST

...mentioning your probable salary, at this point I'd say it's two well-paid jobs, not two highly-paid jobs.

: i agree with that correction by nathan (2.00 / 0) #9 Fri Apr 27, 2012 at 05:44:44 PM EST

Call it two middle-class jobs, yielding a combined lower-upper-middle-class income.

[ Parent ]

Working in BIGLAW isn't | 16 comments (16 topical, 0 hidden) | Trackback

-	Not bad at all	0%
-	World's smallest violin	37%
-	Eat it, scumbag	0%
-	You deserve worse	12%
-	Why don't lawyers ever get bitten by sharks?	25%
-	They now use lawyers rather than rats for lab experiments because...	12%
-	What do you call 10,000 lawyers at the bottom of the ocean?	12%
-	What do lawyers use for birth control?	0%
-	WIPO	0%


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