Top Law Schools

I currently work at a small firm as a legal assistant and will be C/O 2017 from somewhere in the Bay Area (haven't decided where yet).

I love my small firm and my colleagues. We're *very* profitable for a four person team (me and three attorneys) and have about 100 active clients. We have awesome lifestyles --- we all take unlimited vacation time and each work between 30-55 hours per week, depending on case flow and client needs. Our clients are happy and so are we. Is this normal?

Is there some secret to the Big Law semi-obsession on these forums that I'm just not getting? Is it about prestige and money?

Is there any reason I shouldn't want to pursue small law in this fashion? I'm contemplating attending a T2 that I really feel well suited for rather than higher ranked schools that I feel "blah" about. I just want to be happy. My primary source of income is not my employment and I don't aspire to high income if it requires me to work too hard and be a miserable sad sack.

I want to be a happy lawyer with enough clients to have a thriving small practice and to still be able to take a week off to go to Burning Man each year. Does anyone else feel this way? Is anyone taking the less ambitious path because they love law, want to be lawyers, but don't want to work themselves into an early grave?

was this post released from some kind of time capsule because fyi law school costs like $50k/year now

So the school will be super cheap and the firm has guaranteed you a job after graduation?

If so, then go for it.

Anonymous User wrote:I currently work at a small firm as a legal assistant and will be C/O 2017 from somewhere in the Bay Area (haven't decided where yet).

I love my small firm and my colleagues. We're *very* profitable for a four person team (me and three attorneys) and have about 100 active clients. We have awesome lifestyles --- we all take unlimited vacation time and each work between 30-55 hours per week, depending on case flow and client needs. Our clients are happy and so are we. Is this normal?

Is there some secret to the Big Law semi-obsession on these forums that I'm just not getting? Is it about prestige and money?

Is there any reason I shouldn't want to pursue small law in this fashion? I'm contemplating attending a T2 that I really feel well suited for rather than higher ranked schools that I feel "blah" about. I just want to be happy. My primary source of income is not my employment and I don't aspire to high income if it requires me to work too hard and be a miserable sad sack.

I want to be a happy lawyer with enough clients to have a thriving small practice and to still be able to take a week off to go to Burning Man each year. Does anyone else feel this way? Is anyone taking the less ambitious path because they love law, want to be lawyers, but don't want to work themselves into an early grave?

Totally my plan. Worked small law in home state (but I'll never go back there). I'll be going to NU for nearly free to minimize debt. I plan to take a job that I like, as my debt will be manageable for almost any income. I think that the big law or bust mentality here on TLS is partially fueled by ppl who associate lawyering with prestigious things. Mostly, tho, I think TLS does a good job of informing ppl that if you go big debt, you probably should go big law, and that is only a likely possibility from schools A,B,C, et cetera. I liked law, wanted to be a SCJ, then decided I like law enough not to dedicate everything I have to the goal of being an SCJ, but instead just to practice and enjoy life. I live in the bay now, and I wanna learn more about your firm! PM me, if that isnt too ludicrous.
If you have a job lined up, go to LS for free. Or can you just take the bar, if you want to stay in CA?

whereskyle wrote:

Anonymous User wrote:I currently work at a small firm as a legal assistant and will be C/O 2017 from somewhere in the Bay Area (haven't decided where yet).

I love my small firm and my colleagues. We're *very* profitable for a four person team (me and three attorneys) and have about 100 active clients. We have awesome lifestyles --- we all take unlimited vacation time and each work between 30-55 hours per week, depending on case flow and client needs. Our clients are happy and so are we. Is this normal?

Is there some secret to the Big Law semi-obsession on these forums that I'm just not getting? Is it about prestige and money?

Is there any reason I shouldn't want to pursue small law in this fashion? I'm contemplating attending a T2 that I really feel well suited for rather than higher ranked schools that I feel "blah" about. I just want to be happy. My primary source of income is not my employment and I don't aspire to high income if it requires me to work too hard and be a miserable sad sack.

I want to be a happy lawyer with enough clients to have a thriving small practice and to still be able to take a week off to go to Burning Man each year. Does anyone else feel this way? Is anyone taking the less ambitious path because they love law, want to be lawyers, but don't want to work themselves into an early grave?

Totally my plan. Worked small law in home state (but I'll never go back there). I'll be going to NU for nearly free to minimize debt. I plan to take a job that I like, as my debt will be manageable for almost any income. I think that the big law or bust mentality here on TLS is partially fueled by ppl who associate lawyering with prestigious things. Mostly, tho, I think TLS does a good job of informing ppl that if you go big debt, you probably should go big law, and that is only a likely possibility from schools A,B,C, et cetera. I liked law, wanted to be a SCJ, then decided I like law enough not to dedicate everything I have to the goal of being an SCJ, but instead just to practice and enjoy life. I live in the bay now, and I wanna learn more about your firm! PM me, if that isnt too ludicrous.
If you have a job lined up, go to LS for free. Or can you just take the bar, if you want to stay in CA?

Nice! Glad to hear that there are others on here who are interested in small law lifestyle. I did a few months of self study (found a mentor who paid me to study at work and was approved for self-study by the CA Bar) but then felt like I wasn't really getting the breadth of experience I wanted. Law school is a rite of passage. It's expensive but sounds fun and will partially form the basis of my professional identity. Hence my strong desire to attend the school that's the right fit for me.

I have a standing job offer from my firm. I've also been asked to continue consulting with her 1-2 hours per month during law school. I didn't have this offer when I stopped self-study or I may have continued. The only drawback is that I'm not certain I want to work in family law. I don't expect to find such a compelling offer from someone I like so much again, but I am curious about other practice areas.

I'm also a musician. I'm more competitive at drafting declarations than songwriting and don't really consider music a viable career path, but I do strongly value being able to have substantial time for my recording projects. I cannot ever imagine a life that doesn't involve committing time to music. I'm hoping to maintain a career in law, have a significant (20 hrs/week) musical life, and to acquire a sexy husband. Too much to ask?

More more more! I would love to hear about anyone else's small law aspirations!

BigZuck wrote:So the school will be super cheap

?

BigZuck wrote:

BigZuck wrote:So the school will be super cheap

?

Yes.

I thought this thread was going to be about banging someone you work with at a small firm. Leaving disappointed.

Anonymous User wrote:

BigZuck wrote:

BigZuck wrote:So the school will be super cheap

?

Yes.

BigZuck wrote:then go for it.

/thread

No use continuing the straw man any further. I am well qualified to say that on behalf of TLS, we approve of your life choice. YOLO, enjoy.

Why aren't more people on TLS talking about whether to go to law school if they have a guaranteed post-grad job?

LeDique wrote:Why aren't more people on TLS talking about whether to go to law school if they have a guaranteed post-grad job?

I don't quite get her story, and it's not clear to me she really has a standing offer of a guaranteed post-grad job, but whatever. It's probably a good thing that her primary source of income is not her employment and that she has the financial independence to do whatever she wants.

I initially thought this was going to be a thread about boutique firms (again), but just a humble brag for those guaranteed employment.

dead head wrote:

LeDique wrote:Why aren't more people on TLS talking about whether to go to law school if they have a guaranteed post-grad job?

I don't quite get her story, and it's not clear to me she really has a standing offer of a guaranteed post-grad job, but whatever. It's probably a good thing that her primary source of income is not her employment and that she has the financial independence to do whatever she wants.

Yeah, I'm surprised everyone is focused on the guaranteed job while ignoring the fact that she already has another "primary source of income." Shit, if I didn't have to worry about money, I wouldn't "work too hard" either.

I'm mostly surprised no one has pointed out a 0L is abusing the anonymous feature in this forum.

What do the lawyers in your firm make?

kalvano wrote:I'm mostly surprised no one has pointed out a 0L is abusing the anonymous feature in this forum.

This is a reminder that if someone is abusing the anon feature, please report it by clicking on the red exclamation point in the bottom right of the post, please do not comment on the abuse in the thread. Further, it's not inappropriate to post anonymously when posting information about a current job/firm.

That said, you're absolutely right that an 0L is not allowed to post in the legal employment forum. I'll move this to the correct forum since there are a number of responses, but OP, please read the rules stickied at the top of the forum because in future the thread will just be locked.

It's much, much easier to get a biglaw job than it is to get a stable small firm job that pays well and offers a comfortable work-life balance.

Tiago Splitter wrote:It's much, much easier to get a biglaw job than it is to get a stable small firm job that pays well and offers a comfortable work-life balance.

That, and there's no prestige in working for a four person law firm here at TLS. This is top-law-schools.com after all. If you aren't busting your chops for that S&C shoulder bag or chasing oil spills in Steve Sussman's cowboy boots, you're doing it wrong.

Whats the consensus on joining a 4-9-person firm that recently opened in a large metro area as a satellite office of Am 100 BigLaw? It was not a merger, but the partners from the firm moved there and opened the satellite office. Would this be considered a great opportunity or a risky situation to join them early on?

Jchance wrote:Whats the consensus on joining a 4-9 firm that recently opened as a satellite office of Am 100 BigLaw in a large metro area? It was not a merger, but the partners from the firm moved there and opened the satellite office. Would this be considered a great opportunity or a risky situation to join them early on?

Both. But no risk, no reward.

Anonymous User wrote:I currently work at a small firm as a legal assistant and will be C/O 2017 from somewhere in the Bay Area (haven't decided where yet).

I love my small firm and my colleagues. We're *very* profitable for a four person team (me and three attorneys) and have about 100 active clients. We have awesome lifestyles --- we all take unlimited vacation time and each work between 30-55 hours per week, depending on case flow and client needs. Our clients are happy and so are we. Is this normal?

Is there some secret to the Big Law semi-obsession on these forums that I'm just not getting? Is it about prestige and money?

Is there any reason I shouldn't want to pursue small law in this fashion? I'm contemplating attending a T2 that I really feel well suited for rather than higher ranked schools that I feel "blah" about. I just want to be happy. My primary source of income is not my employment and I don't aspire to high income if it requires me to work too hard and be a miserable sad sack.

I want to be a happy lawyer with enough clients to have a thriving small practice and to still be able to take a week off to go to Burning Man each year. Does anyone else feel this way? Is anyone taking the less ambitious path because they love law, want to be lawyers, but don't want to work themselves into an early grave?

What is the practice area your firm concentrates on? How does the firm do financially?