Memory Lane
It’s North Carolina State Bar taking time again! I recently had the pleasure of being on the local Bar Committee who was charged with interviewing Bar candidates for fitness and character in preparation for taking the State Bar. I had done this often before in my previous position as an Assistant District Attorney and found it innately interesting. There is something about talking to starry eyed, ambitious and nerve wracked Bar candidates that makes me very reflective of that time in my life; preparing to be an attorney. As I was interviewing these candidates, I found myself continuing to reassure them that they WILL pass the Bar and that it will be all good. I remember the consternation, fear and anxiety regarding the Bar, and that feeling that there was a chance I could never become what I had devoted my life and studies toward for the previous three years. Being this reflective helps to keep the work and challenges of the profession at my current level in perspective.
It is important to remember that there was a time that all that I could think about was becoming an attorney. That I had no clue or wherewithal to begrudge the woes of our profession or how to continue to keep my spirits when things got hairy. All I could think about was how much I wanted to be a part of the profession.
As I was reassuring the candidates to whom I spoke, it got me thinking about what other pieces of information I could extoll to them as they were on the precipice of joining the law gang. What were some things I wish I had known that no one told me prior to becoming an attorney? So often, people compile lists of things they “wish they knew …” as cautionary tales to those who seek to gain entry to some way of life or career. What would be on MY list if I engendered to make one? You guessed it! Here is my stab at a list of things I wish I knew before becoming an attorney:
- Not Everyone is Excited to Be Here
- I don’t know about you, but law school was not easy. It was mentally and physically taxing. It also required sacrifice. I loved my law school, but it was in a relatively remote location, far away from my family and most of my friends. So taking three years of my life to live apart from the most important people of my life to pursue this profession was a sacrifice. Not to mention a huge expense. So I always, foolishly, thought that once we all got over the proverbial hump and became attorneys, we ALL would be happy and grateful to finally arrive on the other side of the Bar. WRONG! I was totally floored to meet other attorneys who, from the very beginning, viewed our profession as drudgery and could not seem to find the light in anything that they were doing. What the fuck? You did all this work and made all these sacrifices to IMMEDIATELY hate what you do; actually, hate what you have become? That is some crazy shit right there, to me.
- Not Everyone is Willing (Or Thinks They Should Have) to Do the Work
- I assumed, as a baby lawyer, that since we had all worked so hard to be attorneys and we had exposure to what hard work could be as an attorney (going through the rigorous legal training that we did) that everyone would initially be ready to work. Ready to work hard, in fact. Boy was I wrong. It totally blew my mind how some new attorneys felt that the moniker that they had just earned relieved them from the duty and responsibility to do actual arduous work. Like, the receipt of their law license made them incapable of making copies or walking to the clerk’s office to file something. I have seen some spoiled and unimpressive attorney interns actually refuse to write a date on a shuck, nonchalantly tossing the file to the clerk and directing them to do it. Aw hell nah….
- You May Not Make That Six Figure Salary Out the Gate…Or Ever…..
- I think the assumption was (it may not be this anymore) that once you got your law license, you pretty much were guaranteed a large fat salary with an expense account. Yeah…not so much all the time. There is huge diversity in salary and compensation ranges for attorneys who newly pass the Bar. There is also huge diversity in what types of attorney positions we can obtain after passage of the Bar. There is a whole world of legal work apart from the ivory tower law firm associate job that nets you a six figure salary your first year of being an attorney. This is not necessarily a bad thing, in my humble opinion. But, it’s important that new baby attorneys are told this.
- You Have the Basics…But You Really Don’t Know Shit….
- Newbies need to understand that they DO have the rudimentary basics necessary to practice law….but not well. Just because you made it through law school and passed the Bar doesn’t mean you instantly know it all. Law school is good for giving you the basics and teaching you HOW to think as an attorney. Now, when you get out there, THAT is the time when you really learn the actual PRACTICE of law. You have learned the TENENTS of the law…now it’s time for you to learn the PRACTICE of law. So, it’s important to rest assured in the fact that you do have a good legal basis for which to approach your new profession, but that you also need to keep learning, keep humble, and keep working toward honing your skills as a practicing attorney. And please, please don’t fall for those bullshitters who get a few years under their belt and think that they now know it all. Good lawyers are always learning and recognize that they always have something to learn.
- Even Though You Don’t Know Shit, You Still Have Value and Something To Add
- Don’t get me wrong…you really know NOTHING of the actual PRACTICE of law at this point. But that doesn’t mean you have nothing to add nor do your thoughts have no value. One of the things that often happened to me was that since I was a baby lawyer, I was often dismissed by other more experienced attorneys. Don’t let this hurt your confidence. Unlike your more experienced colleagues, you are fresh out of law school and those tenants that we talked about are very fresh on your mind. Sometimes UNLIKE your more experience and older colleagues. So, just because you are a newbie, don’t totally believe that you have NOTHING to add to the special sauce because you just got the lesson that some others may have long forgotten and need reminding of.
- Not Everyone Thinks that the Rules of Professional Conduct Apply to Them…
- This is an important one. When you pass the Bar, some attorneys magically forget that there is a code of ethical conduct that we are supposed to adhere to. Don’t let those debaucherously ignorant colleagues poison you. I was stunned at how many newbies all of a sudden thought the Rules were a mere suggestion as opposed to strict boundaries to which we should all adhere. Don’t let the group dupe you into believing that the Rules don’t really apply. That is a lie. The State Bar is real and they will come for your ass if you don’t walk the straight and narrow.
There you have it! I brief primer on what little tid-bits I wish someone had extolled to me when I was a baby lawyer. I liked talking to those Bar candidates and welcome the time to do it again. It reminds me that no matter how many times I may have a bad week or dread a particular aspect of my job, I am forever grateful that I became an attorney. I do love being an attorney and welcome all whom are willing to do the work and respect the profession happily in to the fold.