Why are law firms inefficient with work assignments? Forum

[Anonymous User]

I'm a second year corporate associate. I just lateralled over from NYC to a firm in a secondary market. The move was mostly for geography reasons, but also because my hours at my last firm were insanely low. My highest month at my last firm was like 125 hours, and I had several months of under 100 in my year there.

I simply could not figure out why I wasn't getting more work. I would ask the assignment partners if they have anything and tell them I'm available, but then they would just tell me to use the assignment tracker and that they would get to me with stuff. Told me I didn't need to reach out to them every week. Ok, fine. All the mid-levels and seniors I would talk to and tell them that my hours are low would tell me to just "enjoy the slow times, one day you're gonna get swamped and you'll be thankful!" But then the slow times never stopped. I had personal reasons to move away from NYC anyways, so I started poking around and landed a gig at a top regional firm. "Great, a fresh start," I thought.

I'm three weeks in to my new job now and it's exactly the same as my old place. I haven't gotten an email that was actually directed at me in three days. I've done a bit of internal networking and have done a couple of small things with a couple more possibly on the horizon but I just have absolutely nothing to do right now. I've reached out the assigning partner, and got the same "we'll let you know" BS I got at my last job, I've talked to a couple of mid-levels and got the same "enjoy it while it lasts!" comments. At my last place I thought maybe I was doing a bad job and people were avoiding working with me, but I haven't even done anything at this new place yet for that to be the case.

What is wrong with these firms? How is it good business to waste nearly $20k on me to sit around and do nothing for a month? What else am I supposed to do? It seems to me reaching out to the assigning partner and doing internal networking is all that I can do. I feel like I'm going insane.

[nixy]

At least to my understanding, three weeks at the new place isn’t really comparable to a year at the old one. If people are busy and have a lot going on in matters that are well-developed and have deadlines, it can take a lot more time to get you up to speed and figure out what you can do than to just do it themselves. The general idea is that as new matters come up and you can get staffed on them from the beginning, you’ll get more work.

So three weeks with not much work doesn’t mean you’re going to be in the same position as at your last firm; you just need to give it a little more time. I’m not sure at what point it’s reasonable to say that the lack of work is a problem again, but 3 weeks in isn’t it.

[Anonymous User]

At least to my understanding, three weeks at the new place isn’t really comparable to a year at the old one. If people are busy and have a lot going on in matters that are well-developed and have deadlines, it can take a lot more time to get you up to speed and figure out what you can do than to just do it themselves. The general idea is that as new matters come up and you can get staffed on them from the beginning, you’ll get more work.

So three weeks with not much work doesn’t mean you’re going to be in the same position as at your last firm; you just need to give it a little more time. I’m not sure at what point it’s reasonable to say that the lack of work is a problem again, but 3 weeks in isn’t it.

OP here.

There has to be a point at which this is unreasonable. I let it rock at my last place and by the time I realized it was too late it was, well, too late. I really don't want to make the same mistake again and sitting around doing nothing for a month feels terrible given my previous experience. I just need to fight the boredom, one can only slack off so much.

[nixy]

At least to my understanding, three weeks at the new place isn’t really comparable to a year at the old one. If people are busy and have a lot going on in matters that are well-developed and have deadlines, it can take a lot more time to get you up to speed and figure out what you can do than to just do it themselves. The general idea is that as new matters come up and you can get staffed on them from the beginning, you’ll get more work.

So three weeks with not much work doesn’t mean you’re going to be in the same position as at your last firm; you just need to give it a little more time. I’m not sure at what point it’s reasonable to say that the lack of work is a problem again, but 3 weeks in isn’t it.

OP here.

There has to be a point at which this is unreasonable. I let it rock at my last place and by the time I realized it was too late it was, well, too late. I really don't want to make the same mistake again and sitting around doing nothing for a month feels terrible given my previous experience. I just need to fight the boredom, one can only slack off so much.

Again, I agree that there is a point at which it’s unreasonable. I just don’t think you’re there yet (is it three weeks or is it actually a month?).

It sounds like your previous firm just didn’t have enough work to go around and so it didn’t matter what you did and there was no “too late” where if you’d acted sooner you could have changed the state of affairs. I mean it’s possible it was actually because no one wanted to work with you, but that’s not what it sounds like from what you say, and in any case that wouldn’t really be a “too late” kind of thing either. Is there any indication that your new firm doesn’t have enough work to go around? Are other people there busy or similarly twiddling their thumbs? Ironically the busier they are, the harder it can be to integrate you into matters.

I get why you’re frustrated but I think your expectations are unrealistic based on your previous bad experience.

[Res Ipsa Loquitter]

Were you known for doing good work? Or more middle of the road performance? Are you a rising 2nd year (i.e. you have one year of legal experience) or a true 2nd year who has 2 years of experience?

[Lawman1865]

At least to my understanding, three weeks at the new place isn’t really comparable to a year at the old one. If people are busy and have a lot going on in matters that are well-developed and have deadlines, it can take a lot more time to get you up to speed and figure out what you can do than to just do it themselves. The general idea is that as new matters come up and you can get staffed on them from the beginning, you’ll get more work.

So three weeks with not much work doesn’t mean you’re going to be in the same position as at your last firm; you just need to give it a little more time. I’m not sure at what point it’s reasonable to say that the lack of work is a problem again, but 3 weeks in isn’t it.

OP here.

There has to be a point at which this is unreasonable. I let it rock at my last place and by the time I realized it was too late it was, well, too late. I really don't want to make the same mistake again and sitting around doing nothing for a month feels terrible given my previous experience. I just need to fight the boredom, one can only slack off so much.

Again, I agree that there is a point at which it’s unreasonable. I just don’t think you’re there yet (is it three weeks or is it actually a month?).

It sounds like your previous firm just didn’t have enough work to go around and so it didn’t matter what you did and there was no “too late” where if you’d acted sooner you could have changed the state of affairs. I mean it’s possible it was actually because no one wanted to work with you, but that’s not what it sounds like from what you say, and in any case that wouldn’t really be a “too late” kind of thing either. Is there any indication that your new firm doesn’t have enough work to go around? Are other people there busy or similarly twiddling their thumbs? Ironically the busier they are, the harder it can be to integrate you into matters.

I get why you’re frustrated but I think your expectations are unrealistic based on your previous bad experience.

I agree with Nixy's point regarding timing and your expectations. A year at your other firm is a lot of time and whatever the reasons for not getting work there, that is over and done with.

Regarding your current firm, I remember it took a month or two before I was busy when I lateralled to my new firm, so I think you should give it another 2-3 weeks before you start getting too antsy (and as you mentioned, you have already reached out to the assigning partner and talked to midlevels, so there's not much more I would suggest doing before annoying/bugging the higher ups).

Another good point that Nixy raised is to get a sense about how busy your peers and the group is generally. If you are in certain corporate practices, you might know that things have been slow for 5-6+ months now, so that may play a factor as well. In any case, good luck at your new firm.

[legalpotato]

Not that OP did this, but kind of funny hearing juniors complain and be nervous about the slow times, when this time last year everyone's hair was on fire and juniors were aggressively hiding from work.

[Lacepiece23]

Not that OP did this, but kind of funny hearing juniors complain and be nervous about the slow times, when this time last year everyone's hair was on fire and juniors were aggressively hiding from work.

It’s the cycle of biglaw. Just wait until the real recession hits and companies are no longer paying for first years.

[Monochromatic Oeuvre]

1. Law firms are inefficient in general because they're run by lawyers instead of businesspeople and by and large it's illegal for anyone else to do it. When staffing is run by practicing partners, it tends to be very low on their priority list, and when it gets delegated, it seems to always be to people who have been recently lobotomized.

2. You not getting assignments is probably not an inefficiency. Juniors are worthless (until proven otherwise) because they can't independently run anything. Laterals are unknown commodities (until proven otherwise) because no one has dealt with them. So, a junior lateral is probably gonna be the absolute bottom of the pecking order for work, and that's why your workload might not look anything like whoever you think your peers are. Law firms usually don't operate at 100% capacity, nor should they, because business activity is unpredictable and if it increases past your capacity your three choices are to overwork your associates (which will lead to them eventually leaving, compounding the problem), hiring laterals (expensive, in hot markets) or just turning down work (the most costly option). Compared to those outcomes, paying you $20k to scroll through Reddit for a summer is peanuts--you always want a little slack in your workforce. It may not always look like it from the dumb way your firm is probably run, but flexibility is actually a valued firm management goal.

3. Sure, if the bottom falls out of the economy, you'll be the first on the chopping block. But of course, you'll note you've been asking for more work forever and sent X amount of emails, blah blah blah. If that doesn't matter to them, you were always going to be the victim of the business cycle.

4. It sure sounds like you don't believe the people who tell you to enjoy the slow times while they lost because you might not ever get them back again, but it really shouldn't take any experience or wisdom to know that fucking around on the Internet all day for $225k is a gig you should hold on to as long as you can. Watch Netflix, read War and Peace, play online Parcheesi, whatever you can get away with on your firm's firewall. I continue to be baffled at how this was ever a complaint, or how people with absolutely zero instructions have no idea what to do with themselves.

5. Not making bonus as a first year at a firm with an hours requirement is super common (and it's not even all that rare as a second year) but I watched a lot of people panic about it, ask for more on their plate, and wind up drowning fast. Several of them burned out in 2-3 years. I'm starting my seventh and since day one have been of the opinion that it's best to not be known or thought of by anyone besides the payroll department. Firms are explicitly designed to grind associates until they're miserable. On average, you're an order of magnitude more likely to quit (usually because you're too busy) than to get fired (usually because you're not busy enough). The business model depends on you not realizing that.

[Lacepiece23]

1. Law firms are inefficient in general because they're run by lawyers instead of businesspeople and by and large it's illegal for anyone else to do it. When staffing is run by practicing partners, it tends to be very low on their priority list, and when it gets delegated, it seems to always be to people who have been recently lobotomized.

2. You not getting assignments is probably not an inefficiency. Juniors are worthless (until proven otherwise) because they can't independently run anything. Laterals are unknown commodities (until proven otherwise) because no one has dealt with them. So, a junior lateral is probably gonna be the absolute bottom of the pecking order for work, and that's why your workload might not look anything like whoever you think your peers are. Law firms usually don't operate at 100% capacity, nor should they, because business activity is unpredictable and if it increases past your capacity your three choices are to overwork your associates (which will lead to them eventually leaving, compounding the problem), hiring laterals (expensive, in hot markets) or just turning down work (the most costly option). Compared to those outcomes, paying you $20k to scroll through Reddit for a summer is peanuts--you always want a little slack in your workforce. It may not always look like it from the dumb way your firm is probably run, but flexibility is actually a valued firm management goal.

3. Sure, if the bottom falls out of the economy, you'll be the first on the chopping block. But of course, you'll note you've been asking for more work forever and sent X amount of emails, blah blah blah. If that doesn't matter to them, you were always going to be the victim of the business cycle.

4. It sure sounds like you don't believe the people who tell you to enjoy the slow times while they lost because you might not ever get them back again, but it really shouldn't take any experience or wisdom to know that fucking around on the Internet all day for $225k is a gig you should hold on to as long as you can. Watch Netflix, read War and Peace, play online Parcheesi, whatever you can get away with on your firm's firewall. I continue to be baffled at how this was ever a complaint, or how people with absolutely zero instructions have no idea what to do with themselves.

5. Not making bonus as a first year at a firm with an hours requirement is super common (and it's not even all that rare as a second year) but I watched a lot of people panic about it, ask for more on their plate, and wind up drowning fast. Several of them burned out in 2-3 years. I'm starting my seventh and since day one have been of the opinion that it's best to not be known or thought of by anyone besides the payroll department. Firms are explicitly designed to grind associates until they're miserable. On average, you're an order of magnitude more likely to quit (usually because you're too busy) than to get fired (usually because you're not busy enough). The business model depends on you not realizing that.

I agree with all of the above except point 1. I used to think this way. But now I do not. I think large firms have enough true business people injected into the firm to make decent enough business decisions. It would be terrible for the bottom line if lawyers suddenly adopted project management software and became efficient at turning around tasks.

It's much better if you train thousands of lawyers to believe that it takes a million drafts of documents and inefficient word processing software to complete those drafts. Then, when they become in-house counsel, you receive less questions about the bill because that is what those lawyers experienced and knew when they were at the big firm.

TLDR; inefficiency makes firms money.

[mr_toad]

All the above but also one thing I was told as a junior is that at least in my department assignments tended to be given out on a rotating basis to any junior without a full capacity workload, and that some of those deals just don’t take off, but you still have to wait until your turn comes up again to get another bite at the Apple. Obviously different everywhere but that is another possibility.

[Anonymous User]

If the market is not crazy, <100 hrs/month for a first year associate is something that just happens sometimes. It's not an issue as long as you communicate and don't refuse work.

[Anonymous User]

I'm a second year corporate associate. I just lateralled over from NYC to a firm in a secondary market. The move was mostly for geography reasons, but also because my hours at my last firm were insanely low. My highest month at my last firm was like 125 hours, and I had several months of under 100 in my year there.

I simply could not figure out why I wasn't getting more work. I would ask the assignment partners if they have anything and tell them I'm available, but then they would just tell me to use the assignment tracker and that they would get to me with stuff. Told me I didn't need to reach out to them every week. Ok, fine. All the mid-levels and seniors I would talk to and tell them that my hours are low would tell me to just "enjoy the slow times, one day you're gonna get swamped and you'll be thankful!" But then the slow times never stopped. I had personal reasons to move away from NYC anyways, so I started poking around and landed a gig at a top regional firm. "Great, a fresh start," I thought.

I'm three weeks in to my new job now and it's exactly the same as my old place. I haven't gotten an email that was actually directed at me in three days. I've done a bit of internal networking and have done a couple of small things with a couple more possibly on the horizon but I just have absolutely nothing to do right now. I've reached out the assigning partner, and got the same "we'll let you know" BS I got at my last job, I've talked to a couple of mid-levels and got the same "enjoy it while it lasts!" comments. At my last place I thought maybe I was doing a bad job and people were avoiding working with me, but I haven't even done anything at this new place yet for that to be the case.

What is wrong with these firms? How is it good business to waste nearly $20k on me to sit around and do nothing for a month? What else am I supposed to do? It seems to me reaching out to the assigning partner and doing internal networking is all that I can do. I feel like I'm going insane.

The market is slow, you're a junior and a lateral. I lateralled as a 4th year and it took me 3 months to ramp up.

I had 22 hours the 1st month, 60 the next and 110 the third before I got to full capacity in my 4th month.

I don't know what firm you're at, but it's likely not inefficiency - they just don't care that you're not busy. You'll cover your salary for them with two months worth in collections. When the work comes, you'll be profitable, and if the work isn't there right now, well you're the cheapest person to keep unoccupied.

[Anonymous User]

1. Law firms are inefficient in general because they're run by lawyers instead of businesspeople and by and large it's illegal for anyone else to do it. When staffing is run by practicing partners, it tends to be very low on their priority list, and when it gets delegated, it seems to always be to people who have been recently lobotomized.

2. You not getting assignments is probably not an inefficiency. Juniors are worthless (until proven otherwise) because they can't independently run anything. Laterals are unknown commodities (until proven otherwise) because no one has dealt with them. So, a junior lateral is probably gonna be the absolute bottom of the pecking order for work, and that's why your workload might not look anything like whoever you think your peers are. Law firms usually don't operate at 100% capacity, nor should they, because business activity is unpredictable and if it increases past your capacity your three choices are to overwork your associates (which will lead to them eventually leaving, compounding the problem), hiring laterals (expensive, in hot markets) or just turning down work (the most costly option). Compared to those outcomes, paying you $20k to scroll through Reddit for a summer is peanuts--you always want a little slack in your workforce. It may not always look like it from the dumb way your firm is probably run, but flexibility is actually a valued firm management goal.

3. Sure, if the bottom falls out of the economy, you'll be the first on the chopping block. But of course, you'll note you've been asking for more work forever and sent X amount of emails, blah blah blah. If that doesn't matter to them, you were always going to be the victim of the business cycle.

4. It sure sounds like you don't believe the people who tell you to enjoy the slow times while they lost because you might not ever get them back again, but it really shouldn't take any experience or wisdom to know that fucking around on the Internet all day for $225k is a gig you should hold on to as long as you can. Watch Netflix, read War and Peace, play online Parcheesi, whatever you can get away with on your firm's firewall. I continue to be baffled at how this was ever a complaint, or how people with absolutely zero instructions have no idea what to do with themselves.

5. Not making bonus as a first year at a firm with an hours requirement is super common (and it's not even all that rare as a second year) but I watched a lot of people panic about it, ask for more on their plate, and wind up drowning fast. Several of them burned out in 2-3 years. I'm starting my seventh and since day one have been of the opinion that it's best to not be known or thought of by anyone besides the payroll department. Firms are explicitly designed to grind associates until they're miserable. On average, you're an order of magnitude more likely to quit (usually because you're too busy) than to get fired (usually because you're not busy enough). The business model depends on you not realizing that.

Now that you’re a senior, how long do you plan on staying in big law? Are you going to gun for partner/counsel or just keep riding the train until burnout? Any plans with going in house? Only asking because it seems like you’ve navigated the big law journey really well.

[Monochromatic Oeuvre]

I’m just riding it out until burnout. Hopefully, my burnout will align with the economy (slow enough to stay light, but not enough to get fired in January) and just the natural associate life cycle all at the same time so that a particular time inherently will make sense.

My approach is not conducive to getting promoted, but I’ve lasted long enough to be able to leave the legal industry if I wanted to. I’m hoping it‘s just another couple years; if the market really takes a shit I guess I might be forced to do whatever, but so will everyone.