Thought I'd share with all of you my good news: I accepted an offer with a law firm for after graduation (and after I pass the bar).

This is the firm I've been clerking for off and on since May. They notified me prior to finals and the holidays that I had a standing offer, but that I could accept or decline when I was ready. After exploring and interviewing at other firms, some MUCH larger, I made my decision. I sat down with the head partner last week and discussed salary and benefits. It all sounded good to me (although, what the hell did I know? I went straight from college to law school, had loans to pay off, and had NO idea about the ins and outs of a 401K). I told him I needed a few days.

After talking it over with my parents and other attorneys, they all indicated OVER and OVER that I was a fool to pass up an offer like this. While out of the gate, I won't be making as much as my pals at the big law factories, my chances for a quick road to partner are high, as well as my chances for major economic growth as well.

My firm is small--only has 9 attorneys. But, it has a great reputation. They do a little bit of everything, but focus on business law and health law. I really enjoy the close-knit environment that they share--it's almost like a family. I indicated to them my interests in lobbying (something they don't do a lot of) and they told me that since I'm interested, they would throw as much lobbying work my way and not refer it to friends like they normally do. That's another thing I love about them--they are very interested in helping each person cultivate the law practice that they want.

Ethics are paramount at this place. They also aren't all about being slaves. Every single one of the partners came from what we call in Indianapolis as "the big 5" firms. And, while there are benefits to big firms, the members of my firm aren't interested in the slave mentality anymore. They all have families and while I've stayed late to work a few times, it's rare that anyone is there past 6 p.m.

There is also much collaboration at this place. And, while at a big firm I'd have an expert in every area at my fingertips, this firm kind of learns new things together. Asking for help is something that is encouraged.

Last week when I was working, I was asked to draft up a letter to a widower who had just lost her husband and advise her how to marshal her husband's assets so we could get to work on closing his estate. Through research, I found what I thought was an excellent chart on how to marshal assets, mark them, and get them ready for distribution or sale. I gave it to the attorney who gave me the assignment. She looked at me and said, "This is great, Lawren. And if this was a regular administrator, I'd use this in a heartbeat. But this is a widower. She has just lost her husband. We need this chart in letter form expressing not only instructions, but our condolences. It's important you remember who your audience is." Point duly noted by me. This is why I like them.

So, there's my story. With the job market the way that it is, I'm so lucky to be blessed with employment.

Posted by Lawren at January 22, 2004 01:17 PM

You Said