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acrossthelake wrote: It looks like it's going to be tough to have a successful career and children.

acrossthelake wrote:

IAFG wrote:

acrossthelake wrote: It looks like it's going to be tough to have a successful career and children.

pretty sure it's actually a myth.

The possibility of both? Yeah. Eh I figure I got 6 years between graduating law school and turning 30. Kids can wait till early 30s...

dominkay wrote:When are lady lawyers supposed to have babies? The advice I've gotten from the legal eagles I know is: not before law school (too early), not during law school (too hard), and not for the first few years after law school (would preclude making partner). That accounts for most of my childbearing years.

So, give it to me straight, TLS: are successful legal careers and motherhood mutually exclusive?

katjust wrote:The best time to have babies is when you can take care of them and be there for them. Take this from someone who has kids and is in law school.


Wait until you can work only part time or not at all, or until you have a husband/wife who can do that.

sophistry wrote:

dominkay wrote:When are lady lawyers supposed to have babies? The advice I've gotten from the legal eagles I know is: not before law school (too early), not during law school (too hard), and not for the first few years after law school (would preclude making partner). That accounts for most of my childbearing years.

So, give it to me straight, TLS: are successful legal careers and motherhood mutually exclusive?

Every female partner at the firm I currently work at had babies only after becoming partner. Funny enough, the majority of them got pregnant immediately after becoming partner. I'm guessing they would agree with the sentiments above.

Adopt?

chicagolaw2013 wrote:I'm hoping after I get my feet wet (for, let's say, 3 or 4 years), I will aim for #1.

Hoping to have at least 2, if not 3 or 4, kids, so with graduating at 28, 3-4 years puts me at 31-32. That gives me 8ish years to 40, when I better close up the baby shop.

Long story short: The man and I better start humping like rabbits on a damn timeline HAHA.

EDIT: I just realized how absolutely insane having 3-4 kids sounds now...my life for the next 15 or so years is going to be quite interesting.

dudders wrote:I'll be 28 when I graduate law school. I'm 25 now and know I want a couple kids down the line. I'm certainly not ready today, but it sometimes creeps me out/panics me a little to think that I'll probably be pushing 35 by the time i COULD have kids. ... I optimistically hope for the work my ass off for a few years/pay off debt, then start a family life-plan, but it is weird to be already worried that I'll end up being one of those people at retirement age whose kids are still in college.

smartblonde87 wrote:I have been wondering this same thing all year. My husband is worried to death. I'm thinking 2L summer would be a great time to have a baby

A new study from Washington & Lee University shows professional women are walking away from motherhood and marriage -- more than the general population.

She says, while four-fifths of senior male lawyers have children, only two-thirds of senior women do, and there is a similar break from marriage.

"There aren't careers where you can't have children. There are careers where women can't have children. So the question is, are we going to design careers so that only men can have them if they want a conventional family life? Or are we going to design careers so that either men or women can have them if they want a conventional family life?"