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BigLaw ganz unten: Aus dem Leben eines Temp Attorneys

Anlässlich dieser Meldung möchten wir hier auszugsweise einen lesenswerten Bericht aus den "Datenminen" wiedergeben:

I look around the room. many contract attorneys are ashamed to be here. They spend a large part of their days applying for permanent positions, both here and elsewhere.

Mindlessly clicking “open” on e-mail lists for months upon years is mind-numbing for those who took the LSAT with dreams of changing the world. Large firms don’t even let us participate in pro bono programs, as we are not covered by their malpractice insurance.

Stories abound of high-performing contract attorneys being promoted to associate. They are urban myths. A small minority (often those who pursue educational degrees beyond their J.D.) may become staff or “discovery attorneys,” positions that offer more responsibility with little increase in pay.

The reality is even worse: If I review 100 documents per hour (a very fast pace), I get paid the same hourly rate as if I review 30. More­over, each project consists of a finite number of documents; so the faster I work, the sooner I am out of a job and need to start hustling for the next project.

“Don’t work us out of a job,” a veteran contract attorney once derided me in private after I reviewed too many documents on the first day of a new project. And the firm is usually OK with this attitude; in my experience, speed and accuracy have always taken backstage to billable hours.

There is zero job security for contract attorneys. The supply of out-of-work lawyers far exceeds the number of contract positions available. If you fail to show up to work one day, you may be removed from the project. Contract attorneys are fungible.

Wallraff, übernehmen Sie!

Full post as published by jurabilis - German bLAWg from Berlin. on December 11, 2008 (boomark / email).