Lawyers: What's Your Typical Day? Forum

[Anonymous User]

Maybe this is a weird request, but anyone here working at a biglaw satellite office in a tertiary market? What is it like there?

It seems like they are run like their own separate firm, except with the financial support and connections to the larger parent firm still intact.

Does this mean that the hours are more like a midlaw office? There are about 25 attys at this particular office out of a 550+ atty firm.

[Anonymous User]

Maybe this is a weird request, but anyone here working at a biglaw satellite office in a tertiary market? What is it like there?

It seems like they are run like their own separate firm, except with the financial support and connections to the larger parent firm still intact.

Does this mean that the hours are more like a midlaw office? There are about 25 attys at this particular office out of a 550+ atty firm.

FWIW I worked at a mid-law firm, in one of their satellite offices (there were only two of us in that office). I still had the exact same billing requirement at that point. I know that is not exactly what you asked, since it is not big law, but just thought I would throw it in

[Anonymous User]

Maybe this is a weird request, but anyone here working at a biglaw satellite office in a tertiary market? What is it like there?

It seems like they are run like their own separate firm, except with the financial support and connections to the larger parent firm still intact.

Does this mean that the hours are more like a midlaw office? There are about 25 attys at this particular office out of a 550+ atty firm.

FWIW I worked at a mid-law firm, in one of their satellite offices (there were only two of us in that office). I still had the exact same billing requirement at that point. I know that is not exactly what you asked, since it is not big law, but just thought I would throw it in

No, I appreciate your input! Thank you for the perspective.

[Anonymous User]

Junior biglaw general lit with a spouse and toddler that I like to spend time with: (large, non-NYC market)

5:00 - Wake up, shower, make coffee

5:30 - put in an hour or so of work on little things like proofing documents I was working on the night before, answering emails, etc.

6:30 - get dressed, wake kid and spouse, get kid changed and ready while we sing songs, read, hang out, and spouse makes breakfast & gets ready for their day

7:45 - leave for work from suburbs, I don't do work on the morning commute unless it's something that can't wait.

8:45 - get to work, get coffee, enter time from yesterday, attempt to file and organize emails, get a game plan for the day. since i try to leave at a reasonable time, i find it's worth taking some time to really map out my day to avoid the time suck as much as possible.

9:30 - start whatever task is most urgent or due that day. The way my schedule works, I have a couple larger cases I work on and can handle anything from proofing partners or sr. associates work, drafting smaller motions and sometimes briefs, research projects. A lot of my work as a jr. assoc. is being responsible for documents, and being responsive to requests from partners quickly. But I also never know when I may get a call from a partner I work with asking me to pitch in on X case they're also handling.

12:30 - run and grab lunch. a lot of working parents magazines suggest packing lunches, but I really enjoy a chance to stretch my legs and get outside for a bit.

1:00 - get back to desk, eat and continue working.

5:30 - figure out what i can work on from home and what i will need to pack up and bring with me. leave. with the caveat that if it's a crazy time in a case, or something urgent crops up there are days I stay and work late at work, but those days are uncommon.

6:30 - get home, play with kid, eat dinner, keep and eye on email just to make sure I don't miss something urgent, give kid bath, hand off to spouse to put to bed.

9:00 - log back on, work another couple hours on whatever I didn't finish up at work. Respond to emails that rolled in, make sure I didn't miss something I need to work on that night.

11:00 - fall asleep on the couch, spouse wakes me up, go up to bed.

Some days I don't hit a full 8 billable, but most I do. I work roughly 4-6 hrs on the weekend even though I don't have to on this schedule, but every couple weeks if things slow down I like to take advantage and come home super early and weekend hours give a nice cushion to do that.

[paraguayfargus]

Junior biglaw general lit with a spouse and toddler that I like to spend time with: (large, non-NYC market)

5:00 - Wake up, shower, make coffee

5:30 - put in an hour or so of work on little things like proofing documents I was working on the night before, answering emails, etc.

6:30 - get dressed, wake kid and spouse, get kid changed and ready while we sing songs, read, hang out, and spouse makes breakfast & gets ready for their day

7:45 - leave for work from suburbs, I don't do work on the morning commute unless it's something that can't wait.

8:45 - get to work, get coffee, enter time from yesterday, attempt to file and organize emails, get a game plan for the day. since i try to leave at a reasonable time, i find it's worth taking some time to really map out my day to avoid the time suck as much as possible.

9:30 - start whatever task is most urgent or due that day. The way my schedule works, I have a couple larger cases I work on and can handle anything from proofing partners or sr. associates work, drafting smaller motions and sometimes briefs, research projects. A lot of my work as a jr. assoc. is being responsible for documents, and being responsive to requests from partners quickly. But I also never know when I may get a call from a partner I work with asking me to pitch in on X case they're also handling.

12:30 - run and grab lunch. a lot of working parents magazines suggest packing lunches, but I really enjoy a chance to stretch my legs and get outside for a bit.

1:00 - get back to desk, eat and continue working.

5:30 - figure out what i can work on from home and what i will need to pack up and bring with me. leave. with the caveat that if it's a crazy time in a case, or something urgent crops up there are days I stay and work late at work, but those days are uncommon.

6:30 - get home, play with kid, eat dinner, keep and eye on email just to make sure I don't miss something urgent, give kid bath, hand off to spouse to put to bed.

9:00 - log back on, work another couple hours on whatever I didn't finish up at work. Respond to emails that rolled in, make sure I didn't miss something I need to work on that night.

11:00 - fall asleep on the couch, spouse wakes me up, go up to bed.

Some days I don't hit a full 8 billable, but most I do. I work roughly 4-6 hrs on the weekend even though I don't have to on this schedule, but every couple weeks if things slow down I like to take advantage and come home super early and weekend hours give a nice cushion to do that.

How do you manage on only 6 hours of sleep? Do you make up for it on the weekends?

[Anonymous User]

Any food and drug law attorneys?

[Anonymous User]

*bump*

[JAYINSD]

Junior biglaw general lit with a spouse and toddler that I like to spend time with: (large, non-NYC market)

5:00 - Wake up, shower, make coffee

5:30 - put in an hour or so of work on little things like proofing documents I was working on the night before, answering emails, etc.

6:30 - get dressed, wake kid and spouse, get kid changed and ready while we sing songs, read, hang out, and spouse makes breakfast & gets ready for their day

7:45 - leave for work from suburbs, I don't do work on the morning commute unless it's something that can't wait.

8:45 - get to work, get coffee, enter time from yesterday, attempt to file and organize emails, get a game plan for the day. since i try to leave at a reasonable time, i find it's worth taking some time to really map out my day to avoid the time suck as much as possible.

9:30 - start whatever task is most urgent or due that day. The way my schedule works, I have a couple larger cases I work on and can handle anything from proofing partners or sr. associates work, drafting smaller motions and sometimes briefs, research projects. A lot of my work as a jr. assoc. is being responsible for documents, and being responsive to requests from partners quickly. But I also never know when I may get a call from a partner I work with asking me to pitch in on X case they're also handling.

12:30 - run and grab lunch. a lot of working parents magazines suggest packing lunches, but I really enjoy a chance to stretch my legs and get outside for a bit.

1:00 - get back to desk, eat and continue working.

5:30 - figure out what i can work on from home and what i will need to pack up and bring with me. leave. with the caveat that if it's a crazy time in a case, or something urgent crops up there are days I stay and work late at work, but those days are uncommon.

6:30 - get home, play with kid, eat dinner, keep and eye on email just to make sure I don't miss something urgent, give kid bath, hand off to spouse to put to bed.

9:00 - log back on, work another couple hours on whatever I didn't finish up at work. Respond to emails that rolled in, make sure I didn't miss something I need to work on that night.

11:00 - fall asleep on the couch, spouse wakes me up, go up to bed.

Some days I don't hit a full 8 billable, but most I do. I work roughly 4-6 hrs on the weekend even though I don't have to on this schedule, but every couple weeks if things slow down I like to take advantage and come home super early and weekend hours give a nice cushion to do that.

This sounds horrible. Do u even have gym time?

[smallfirmassociate]

Any food and drug law attorneys?

Yeah, all I do is food and drugs, but this thread has been informative and you really shouldn't take it OT.

[Anonymous User]

Anyone in Entertainment, especially transactional?

Anyone in Administrative Law? Like FDA, FCC, yada yada.

[Anonymous User]

Junior associate; Entertainment, primarily transactional (talent + media), large boutique, major market (LA/NYC).

8:00 - wake up. check e-mails if any came in during the morning, answer if necessary or flag for follow up.

9:30 - get to work. go over to-do list, prioritize major items. get started on larger projects (talent/services agreements, IP licenses, promotions work)

10:00 - smaller client matters start flowing in, which I deal with over the course of the day (copy review, advising on digital media/branding, addendums and amendments to agreements and licenses)

11:00 - otherwise mornings are pretty slow and i'm working off previous days work

12:30 - run out for lunch, come back, eat at desk

1:00 - partners start unloading new work (more large agreements, licenses etc)

1-4 - partner meetings and turning in/going over previous agreements/licenses for review. 95% of my work is 24-48 hour turnaround. entertainment industry moves fast and these agreements, unless they're particularly complicated, usually get drafts or revisions out in a day or two. all told, with negotiations and client calls they'll take a few weeks but rarely more.

5 - wrapping up smaller assignments (getting back copy review comments and summarizing research/advice, maybe putting stuff off until a later date)

5:30 - 7:30 - head start on the next day's larger projects.

7:30 - head home.

8:30 - 10:30 - usually nothing, but occasionally some follow up with clients/partners.

Compared to my experience in biglaw, the matters in entertainment are much smaller but far more numerous. I juggle close to 10 matters a day, and week to week many of those are recycled out. I very rarely have 1 or 2 major deals taking up my day/week.

[Anonymous User]

Junior associate; Entertainment, primarily transactional (talent + media), large boutique, major market (LA/NYC).

8:00 - wake up. check e-mails if any came in during the morning, answer if necessary or flag for follow up.

9:30 - get to work. go over to-do list, prioritize major items. get started on larger projects (talent/services agreements, IP licenses, promotions work)

10:00 - smaller client matters start flowing in, which I deal with over the course of the day (copy review, advising on digital media/branding, addendums and amendments to agreements and licenses)

11:00 - otherwise mornings are pretty slow and i'm working off previous days work

12:30 - run out for lunch, come back, eat at desk

1:00 - partners start unloading new work (more large agreements, licenses etc)

1-4 - partner meetings and turning in/going over previous agreements/licenses for review. 95% of my work is 24-48 hour turnaround. entertainment industry moves fast and these agreements, unless they're particularly complicated, usually get drafts or revisions out in a day or two. all told, with negotiations and client calls they'll take a few weeks but rarely more.

5 - wrapping up smaller assignments (getting back copy review comments and summarizing research/advice, maybe putting stuff off until a later date)

5:30 - 7:30 - head start on the next day's larger projects.

7:30 - head home.

8:30 - 10:30 - usually nothing, but occasionally some follow up with clients/partners.

Compared to my experience in biglaw, the matters in entertainment are much smaller but far more numerous. I juggle close to 10 matters a day, and week to week many of those are recycled out. I very rarely have 1 or 2 major deals taking up my day/week.

Does the novelty of the work keep you interested through your 11-hour days, or does that wear off after a few months to the point that it just sucks like any other 11-hour a day job?

[Anonymous User]

Junior associate; Entertainment, primarily transactional (talent + media), large boutique, major market (LA/NYC).

8:00 - wake up. check e-mails if any came in during the morning, answer if necessary or flag for follow up.

9:30 - get to work. go over to-do list, prioritize major items. get started on larger projects (talent/services agreements, IP licenses, promotions work)

10:00 - smaller client matters start flowing in, which I deal with over the course of the day (copy review, advising on digital media/branding, addendums and amendments to agreements and licenses)

11:00 - otherwise mornings are pretty slow and i'm working off previous days work

12:30 - run out for lunch, come back, eat at desk

1:00 - partners start unloading new work (more large agreements, licenses etc)

1-4 - partner meetings and turning in/going over previous agreements/licenses for review. 95% of my work is 24-48 hour turnaround. entertainment industry moves fast and these agreements, unless they're particularly complicated, usually get drafts or revisions out in a day or two. all told, with negotiations and client calls they'll take a few weeks but rarely more.

5 - wrapping up smaller assignments (getting back copy review comments and summarizing research/advice, maybe putting stuff off until a later date)

5:30 - 7:30 - head start on the next day's larger projects.

7:30 - head home.

8:30 - 10:30 - usually nothing, but occasionally some follow up with clients/partners.

Compared to my experience in biglaw, the matters in entertainment are much smaller but far more numerous. I juggle close to 10 matters a day, and week to week many of those are recycled out. I very rarely have 1 or 2 major deals taking up my day/week.

Does the novelty of the work keep you interested through your 11-hour days, or does that wear off after a few months to the point that it just sucks like any other 11-hour a day job?

what a stupid comment. I bet you don't think some associate at a V50 doing due diligence all day is a "novelty". no, that's real work.

What I do is called legal work. clients need it. they pay us to do it. maybe instead I should screen the type of work first and say "this is a novelty. I won't do it. go pay someone else."

Your way of thinking is likely why so many lawyers are unhappy. "no matter what I do its going to suck so i should just do whatever they tell me to do or whatever other people think is most prestigious."

And to actually answer your question, there are always times where I have a ton of work and things are stressful, but I like the clients and the type of work and that makes it bearable. Entertainment clients like short turnarounds during the week but starting Friday at about 3pm things shut down for the weekend, so weekend work is rare. However i'm not on financings, which tend to be a little crazier.

[BrazilBandit]

Junior associate; Entertainment, primarily transactional (talent + media), large boutique, major market (LA/NYC).

8:00 - wake up. check e-mails if any came in during the morning, answer if necessary or flag for follow up.

9:30 - get to work. go over to-do list, prioritize major items. get started on larger projects (talent/services agreements, IP licenses, promotions work)

10:00 - smaller client matters start flowing in, which I deal with over the course of the day (copy review, advising on digital media/branding, addendums and amendments to agreements and licenses)

11:00 - otherwise mornings are pretty slow and i'm working off previous days work

12:30 - run out for lunch, come back, eat at desk

1:00 - partners start unloading new work (more large agreements, licenses etc)

1-4 - partner meetings and turning in/going over previous agreements/licenses for review. 95% of my work is 24-48 hour turnaround. entertainment industry moves fast and these agreements, unless they're particularly complicated, usually get drafts or revisions out in a day or two. all told, with negotiations and client calls they'll take a few weeks but rarely more.

5 - wrapping up smaller assignments (getting back copy review comments and summarizing research/advice, maybe putting stuff off until a later date)

5:30 - 7:30 - head start on the next day's larger projects.

7:30 - head home.

8:30 - 10:30 - usually nothing, but occasionally some follow up with clients/partners.

Compared to my experience in biglaw, the matters in entertainment are much smaller but far more numerous. I juggle close to 10 matters a day, and week to week many of those are recycled out. I very rarely have 1 or 2 major deals taking up my day/week.

Does the novelty of the work keep you interested through your 11-hour days, or does that wear off after a few months to the point that it just sucks like any other 11-hour a day job?

what a stupid comment. I bet you don't think some associate at a V50 doing due diligence all day is a "novelty". no, that's real work.

What I do is called legal work. clients need it. they pay us to do it. maybe instead I should screen the type of work first and say "this is a novelty. I won't do it. go pay someone else."

Your way of thinking is likely why so many lawyers are unhappy. "no matter what I do its going to suck so i should just do whatever they tell me to do or whatever other people think is most prestigious."

And to actually answer your question, there are always times where I have a ton of work and things are stressful, but I like the clients and the type of work and that makes it bearable. Entertainment clients like short turnarounds during the week but starting Friday at about 3pm things shut down for the weekend, so weekend work is rare. However i'm not on financings, which tend to be a little crazier.

I'm pretty sure he meant novelty as in "different, unusual", not "irrelevant, stupid"...

[rpupkin]

How do you manage on only 6 hours of sleep? Do you make up for it on the weekends?

I cannot stress this enough. If your reaction is like paraguayfargus's here, do not go into big law. If you have a big law job and a family, you will go through stretches of months at a time where six hours of sleep will feel like a luxury.

If you're the type who is miserable when getting 4-5 hours of sleep a night, forget about big law as a career.

[juzam_djinn]

I'm pretty sure he meant novelty as in "different, unusual", not "irrelevant, stupid"...

this. anon, that was a pretty embarrassing response

[Anonymous User]

I'm pretty sure he meant novelty as in "different, unusual", not "irrelevant, stupid"...

this. anon, that was a pretty embarrassing response

I understand he meant "different", and that is the whole point. The gist of his post was "your work is different than most lawyers. once that wears off I bet your job sucks like any other lawyers." That is what is problematic about the comment. I assume you realize that basically what he is saying is whether legal work is "different" or "unusual" likely has no bearing on how much a lawyer enjoys their job?

My comment about due diligence was to highlight that that is how people view "normal" legal work and so that is what they might as well aspire to, because anything "different" will suck just as much. I think thats a really sad comment, but not too suprising.

[juzam_djinn]

I'm pretty sure he meant novelty as in "different, unusual", not "irrelevant, stupid"...

this. anon, that was a pretty embarrassing response

I understand he meant "different", and that is the whole point. The gist of his post was "your work is different than most lawyers. once that wears off I bet your job sucks like any other lawyers." That is what is problematic about the comment. I assume you realize that basically what he is saying is whether legal work is "different" or "unusual" likely has no bearing on how much a lawyer enjoys their job?

My comment about due diligence was to highlight that that is how people view "normal" legal work and so that is what they might as well aspire to, because anything "different" will suck just as much. I think thats a really sad comment, but not too suprising.

I get that the legal profession is filled w/ disillusionment so it's easy to interpret the question that way.

But then again, the poster asked if it sucked like any other 11-hour a day job. He didn't limit it to legal jobs. I think most people just don't like to work a lot of hours, regardless of what the job is. What I took from it was the guy being genuinely curious as to whether the particular industry you were in kept you engaged despite the long hours. It seems like it might be working for you, and I admit that's refreshing to hear amidst all the negativity out there.

[Anonymous User]

District Court Clerk

6:30-7:15 Wake up, depending on Sleep Cycle App and how much I want to sleep
8:00-8:45 Roll into work at some point in this range
8:45-12:00 Work on pending motions, write legal memos or draft orders, work on any issues with sentencings, pleas. If a trial is going on, I'm sitting in the courtroom half paying attention to that, half working on other pending stuff
12:00-12:30 Lunch with Judge
12:30-5:45 Same as before
5:45 Leave for the gym unless we're still in trial or there's something very, very urgent going down.

[Anonymous User]

I'm pretty sure he meant novelty as in "different, unusual", not "irrelevant, stupid"...

this. anon, that was a pretty embarrassing response

I understand he meant "different", and that is the whole point. The gist of his post was "your work is different than most lawyers. once that wears off I bet your job sucks like any other lawyers." That is what is problematic about the comment. I assume you realize that basically what he is saying is whether legal work is "different" or "unusual" likely has no bearing on how much a lawyer enjoys their job?

My comment about due diligence was to highlight that that is how people view "normal" legal work and so that is what they might as well aspire to, because anything "different" will suck just as much. I think thats a really sad comment, but not too suprising.

I get that the legal profession is filled w/ disillusionment so it's easy to interpret the question that way.

But then again, the poster asked if it sucked like any other 11-hour a day job. He didn't limit it to legal jobs. I think most people just don't like to work a lot of hours, regardless of what the job is. What I took from it was the guy being genuinely curious as to whether the particular industry you were in kept you engaged despite the long hours. It seems like it might be working for you, and I admit that's refreshing to hear amidst all the negativity out there.

Fair enough, perhaps I reacted to the TLS-wide cynicism a little too much.

But I did answer the question, anyhow. I don't find my hours long, but I think thats a combination (1) having lots of smaller matters and (2) finding the work and clients interesting. I would encourage people to seek out work and clients that they find interesting because it makes the work far more enjoyable and engaging.

[juzam_djinn]

Yeah that's a good point. Do you think you enjoy your clients b/c of the work they're involved in, or do clients in the entertainment industry have a personality/culture that makes them more enjoyable to work with? Or maybe both?

[Anonymous User]

Yeah that's a good point. Do you think you enjoy your clients b/c of the work they're involved in, or do clients in the entertainment industry have a personality/culture that makes them more enjoyable to work with? Or maybe both?

I think its both. I got into this type of work because I wanted to do transactional IP with a focus less on tech and more on media, so this is perfect for that and has lived up to my expectations. But I also fit with the speed of entertainment clients: grind all week, get stuff done, turn stuff over quickly, and then have nights and weekends to enjoy. This is distinct from banking where the clients work even harder than the lawyers so there is literally no downtime. Entertainment clients tend to be more informal and less hierarchical too. My experience at biglaw when the clients were banks was that certain clients refused to speak to or e-mail with jr associates. i have not experienced that at all in entertainment. I'm jr and i have dealt one-on-one with people in all positions/corporate ranks, which I not only enjoy but it makes things easier.

[resilience99]

Any big law healthcare. Read other post but would like another perspective.

[racic22s]

Anyone focused on IP particularly with copyright and publishing? In-house or a firm that handles that?

[Anonymous User]

Yeah that's a good point. Do you think you enjoy your clients b/c of the work they're involved in, or do clients in the entertainment industry have a personality/culture that makes them more enjoyable to work with? Or maybe both?

I think its both. I got into this type of work because I wanted to do transactional IP with a focus less on tech and more on media, so this is perfect for that and has lived up to my expectations. But I also fit with the speed of entertainment clients: grind all week, get stuff done, turn stuff over quickly, and then have nights and weekends to enjoy. This is distinct from banking where the clients work even harder than the lawyers so there is literally no downtime. Entertainment clients tend to be more informal and less hierarchical too. My experience at biglaw when the clients were banks was that certain clients refused to speak to or e-mail with jr associates. i have not experienced that at all in entertainment. I'm jr and i have dealt one-on-one with people in all positions/corporate ranks, which I not only enjoy but it makes things easier.

How did you transition from biglaw to entertainment boutique? Did you start building those relationships in law school?