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For new associates can they get away w 4-6 hours of billing per day for the first week? Or is there an unwritten rule where any missing hours need to be made up for over the weekend? I dont want to risk getting canned/warned after a month.

The first week? Is this a serious post

Try the first 3-4 months.

i've never heard of anyone getting tested week by week. i think i billed maybe 45 minutes my first week. enjoy it while you can

Your stub year billables do not matter. The less you can get away with, the better off you are. Just make sure everyone knows you and likes you. Do not be that person freaking out about their billables. I know people who started in Sept and billed like 20 hours until February. Yes, they were watching television in their offices. No issue with this at all.

is there an unwritten rule where any missing hours need to be made up for over the weekend?

It's Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m. The managing partner, who has come into the office to pick up some files that he forgot to take home the evening before, spots the OP sitting patiently at his desk:

MP: Hey OP....uh.....what are you doing here?

OP: I'm waiting for someone to give me work.

MP: What are you working on?

OP: Oh, nothing. But I only billed 30 hours this week and so I need to make up the hours now.

MP: Wait, what? Did you not finish something you were supposed to finish on Friday?

OP: No, I finished all the work given to me. I just didn't bill enough hours so I came in this weekend to get more hours. Can you give me something to do that will allow me to bill 10 hours over the next two days?

MP: Yeeeeeeeaaaahhh...ok then. Let's talk Monday, OP.

Op here...

Senior associate showed me his first week billable from ywara ago which was under 10 hours... and then for 3 months had like 2-5 hours per day.

Goes to show how much of a noob I am.

So cringey.

You're not even admitted yet; you're essentially a glorified paralegal.

Anonymous User wrote:For new associates can they get away w 4-6 hours of billing per day for the first week? Or is there an unwritten rule where any missing hours need to be made up for over the weekend? I dont want to risk getting canned/warned after a month.

This is how I know its almost time to take the drive up north to see the fall colors coming in. So cute!

You're fine OP, just be accessible and stay chill, and mirror what all the other longer-term associates are doing (come in when they do, leave when they do), everyone knows there is a ramp up period for new attorneys, and it can easily take multiple months, maybe even longer. They hired you knowing this, its built into the system, so relax. As long as people aren't telling you your work sucks and that is why you're not getting more work, you're fine.

Not meeting your hours on the first week is not something someone will get immediately canned for, but they will be put in the list.

OP if your question is regarding accounting for time (because many firms need you to "bill" so much time a day or week to get paid) you just fill in whatever portion is missing with "Misc" or "Professional reading" or "training" or whatever and it's totally fine.

If this question is about your feeling like you need to justify your existence by working more your first week then it's a terrible question as covered above.

Seriously calm down. Some people don't get any work their first week or two. Just be available to do whatever you're assigned. Trust me, the work will come eventually. If you are still really slow after a month, you could consider discussing that with the assigning partner or your mentor, but if you freak out the first week, you will seem like a crazy person.

Also, as someone said, if you're at a big firm, billables in your stub year don't matter at all. Could be different at smaller firms.

Damn dude, that sucks. I wouldn't be surprised if they start trying to push you out by the end of the year.

also nobody actually cares how many hours per day you're billing or whatever metric you've just invented.

if you bill 1 hour on Monday and 20 on Tuesday and Wednesday, nobody is going to flag you as a poor employee who clearly has a case of the Mondays

Actus Reus wrote:also nobody actually cares how many hours per day you're billing or whatever metric you've just invented.

if you bill 1 hour on Monday and 20 on Tuesday and Wednesday, nobody is going to flag you as a poor employee who clearly has a case of the Mondays

For me it's Fridays that I'm horribly unproductive.