Leaving Biglaw - Single - what do I do now? Forum

[MidW13]

I'll keep it short and sweet.

I'm 27 with no family. I do not have a S/O. I have low 5 figs in the bank from my biglaw salary and not a single dime of debt. I've already decided that I hate law, I hate where I live, and since I have no obligations I can go anywhere. I want to see what suggestions others would recommend as potential next careers. FWIW, I love people and sales. I just feel like I'll be leaving the firm life in a few months and really don't know what is next.

[rpupkin]

I hope you realize that you're asking a bunch of people who couldn't think of a better answer than: become a lawyer.

[Desert Fox]

I'll keep it short and sweet.

I'm 27 with no family. I do not have a S/O. I have low 5 figs in the bank from my biglaw salary and not a single dime of debt. I've already decided that I hate law, I hate where I live, and since I have no obligations I can go anywhere. I want to see what suggestions others would recommend as potential next careers. FWIW, I love people and sales. I just feel like I'll be leaving the firm life in a few months and really don't know what is next.

Sell things to biglaw, like translation services.

[TLSModBot]

Off the top of my head:

1. Use your knowledge of the law to commit THE PERFECT CRIME
2. Travel abroad - and foment dissent/stage coups
3. Bring back Disco
4. Write a tell-all memoir of the junior associate BigLaw experience. Name names.
5. Bum Fights. On Ice!
6. Experiment with cooking until you've made the perfect taco.
7. Travel with renaissance faires. Help bring a more 'authentic' experience by covering passerby in manure and syphilis
8. Netflix and all the Ice Creams
9. Start a Law School
10. SO MANY CATS. RESCUE ALL THE CATS.


Seriously, though - consulting or some auxiliary legal services business is a great way to go from practice into a more stable but decent paying job. I worked in Discovery before law school - in management you can make six figures, work reasonable hours, and have a pretty good career.

[dixiecupdrinking]

Goddamn would it be depressing to leave biglaw to be a discovery vendor for biglaw.

Open a bar. Good way to blow those five figures.

[mvp99]

Goddamn would it be depressing to leave biglaw to be a discovery vendor for biglaw.

Open a bar. Good way to blow those five figures.

I know someone who owns a bar in a small town and it pulls in 20k on a good night. Doesn't make you rich but I don't think excess money is the key to happiness anyway.

[TLSModBot]

Goddamn would it be depressing to leave biglaw to be a discovery vendor for biglaw.

Open a bar. Good way to blow those five figures.

Curious about that - do you have experience with Discovery vendors or is this just prestige-whore trash talk? I worked at one for 9 years - couldn't break into management which is one reason I left for law school.

If you make it even into lower level management in a big discovery outfit, you're looking at 6 figures, 45-50 hour weeks, remote work opportunities, etc. It's pretty sweet.

The main gripe is working for lawyers (ha!) who neither understand what you do nor care. Discovery technology is going in some interesting places - we may be able to eliminate manual review entirely within the decade using predictive algorithms.

If you're coming off of high-end appellate lit work or something of the like, then fine - Discovery may seem banal. But the technical process of getting a large number of computers, email shares, loose media etc. collected, processed, culled, and eventually sorted down into a small manageable corpus of documents for final use in depos, trial, etc. is really fascinating if you're at all tech inclined. Plus considering that you'll be be doing doc review or similar as an associate anyway early on for all Lit practices and even certain M&A stuff like HSR second requests.

[dixiecupdrinking]

I haven't done it but I know how we treat our vendors, and I know what it's like to deal with this stuff on the firm side. I can see how it would be interesting to the right person, but my reaction is more to the notion of leaving big law just to have the same toxic personalities as your clients instead of your bosses.

[Desert Fox]

Not being the person in charge of it. Being the person who SELLS it. The BMW sales guy isn't doing oil changes.

[TLSModBot]

DF - that's not always true. I've done both technical work and been the guy on pitches. Pitches can be annoying AF especially when you're going in more or less cold, but I agree that the sales work is way less interesting/fun than the tech/case management side.

There's a misperception here, though, that the 'clients' are always BigLaw. Increasingly, the clients are the actual end-clients. We work with the law firm but do not sell to or through them. It can get bad if the firm really wants you out and replaced with their own people, but the majority of people I've worked with are actually class acts.

We're not dealing with partners often - we're usually working with mid-level associates. Overworked, but largely understanding and friendly people. Plus, if you can save time on Discovery or help them find key docs, they'll generally be pretty appreciative.

It's still peripheral to BigLaw, but no overbearing partners, very few crazy late nights, and decent pay.

[kalvano]

Become a shady drifter
Become a bartender on a Carribbean island
Sell cars

[Anonymous User]

I'll keep it short and sweet.

I'm 27 with no family. I do not have a S/O. I have low 5 figs in the bank from my biglaw salary and not a single dime of debt. I've already decided that I hate law, I hate where I live, and since I have no obligations I can go anywhere. I want to see what suggestions others would recommend as potential next careers. FWIW, I love people and sales. I just feel like I'll be leaving the firm life in a few months and really don't know what is next.

How long have you practiced for? If you really like people, but hate practice itself, maybe apply to be a legal recruiter? Though I think perhaps trying to get in with a vendor or some kind of discovery service company would be a great idea. You could use your knowledge of the law firm environment to your advantage, without the stress of working in that environment anymore.

[jingosaur]

Become a shady drifter
Become a bartender on a Carribbean island
Sell cars

I feel like by becoming a lawyer and doing these three things, you hit for the "things you can do with a liberal arts degree" cycle.

[los blancos]

The main gripe is working for lawyers (ha!) who neither understand what you do nor care. Discovery technology is going in some interesting places - we may be able to eliminate manual review entirely within the decade using predictive algorithms.

TBH I'm honestly shocked that any client is still willing to pay for old-school "put eyes on every single doc" review. It's asinine and there's really no reason for it.

[Big Shrimpin]

good 4 u dooder

lemme live vicariously thru u

[seespotrun]

Yeah, at least let me fuck your wife a couple times

[Big Shrimpin]

Yeah, at least let me fuck your wife a couple times

underrated poast

[MarkfromWI]

Move to SoFla/the Caribbean, buy a boat, and open up a fishing charter. You get to spend your days on the water, in the sunshine. Not to mention, "hey, do you wanna see my boat?" is a pretty solid pickup line.

[Anonymous User]

Move to SoFla/the Caribbean, buy a boat, and open up a fishing charter. You get to spend your days on the water, in the sunshine. Not to mention, "hey, do you wanna see my boat?" is a pretty solid pickup line.

Buddy of mine literally did this. Went to law school, decided he hated the law, moved to the beach, now operates a successful charter boat business.

[Anonymous User]

Move to SoFla/the Caribbean, buy a boat, and open up a fishing charter. You get to spend your days on the water, in the sunshine. Not to mention, "hey, do you wanna see my boat?" is a pretty solid pickup line.

Buddy of mine literally did this. Went to law school, decided he hated the law, moved to the beach, now operates a successful charter boat business.

Yeah, I know a legal refugee who runs a bar in St. Barths

[februarybartaker]

I'll keep it short and sweet.

I'm 27 with no family. I do not have a S/O. I have low 5 figs in the bank from my biglaw salary and not a single dime of debt. I've already decided that I hate law, I hate where I live, and since I have no obligations I can go anywhere. I want to see what suggestions others would recommend as potential next careers. FWIW, I love people and sales. I just feel like I'll be leaving the firm life in a few months and really don't know what is next.

I think you need to answer more fundamental questions before asking "what career?"

Example Questions: How much time are you willing to devote to work per week? What kind of lifestyle would you like to live (middle-class, upper-middle, etc.)? Where do you want to live/what do you want to be doing/do you want a family/significant other in 5-10 years? Are you willing to go back to school?

The above questions (and other related inquiries) should eliminate many job options. Consider your desire to work with people/be in sales subsequent to the self-evaluation. It might facilitate the decision process.

[Anonymous User]

Go do teach English abroad or TFA or peace corps. Did it and loved it. You're single, no debt, and free of big law. I think most of us here envy you.