Big Law Paralegal - What am I missing? Forum

[hill1334]

Hi all,

I work at a v10 law firm in NYC as a litigation paralegal in a two year paralegal program for recent college graduates. Unlike a lot of those who started with me in summer 2013, over half of whom have already quit, I actually like my job thus far. I am presently working on applying to law school this fall, and I would be interested in working in big law for a few years. Personally, I think I have had a fairly intensive experience working as a paralegal, which has given me a fairly strong idea of what being a junior associate in big law is like. I regularly work 60+ hour weeks, come in almost every weekend, and work very closely with numerous associates and some partners at the firm on a wide variety of tasks (some fairly substantive, some a lot less so).

My question for TLS is this: as a paralegal, what aspects, both positive and negative (though I expect to hear more of the later), of working as a lawyer in big law am I not seeing/experiencing? We don't have access to our work email once we leave the office, so while I am typically at work for 12+ hours a day, at least when I do leave the office, I have some privacy and freedom. Also, I suspect that, as I don't regularly work directly under partners and my work is not as substantive, I don't feel quite the pressure to perform that lawyers in big law do on a day to day basis.

Thanks!

edit: for grammar

[cookiejar1]

You're missing the burden of crippling debt.

[J-e-L-L-o]

Are you paid hourly or salary? Serious question.

[hill1334]

Are you paid hourly or salary? Serious question.

I have a base salary and full benefits, but I am not overtime exempt, so I am also paid time (my yearly salary divided by 35 x 52) once I go over 35 hours in a week and time and a half once I go over 40 hours in a week (which is pretty much every single week). While I have a guaranteed income and I get paid vacation and sick days, it often feels more like I am a salaried employee.

[Mack.Hambleton]

so its like biglaw without the money.. sounds wonderful

[hill1334]

so its like biglaw without the money.. sounds wonderful

Haha, yeah to some extent I guess--definitely not something I would want to do forever. Though you can make 75k-90k fairly easily, which is not bad for a job right out of college.

Overall, I think it has been a fairly positive experience, as I have a fairly good idea of what I would be getting into if I went into a big law.

[GOATlawman]

Getting paid overtime was fucking clutch. Even if you make less in the end, knowing that when you're stuck working on a Saturday you're getting paid time and a half for every minute you're there is pretty sweet.

Also peace of mind when you're out of the office.

Expectations are also pretty lulzy for a para as far as work quality/ability to figure things out yourself