I'm in law schoool guys
Originally Posted by arjunz
Hey, if u dont mind me asking.. what kinda ungergrad degree did you get? and how exactly did u finish up in 2 years. I know its possible.. but i'm just wondering how.. Congrats man!
Originally Posted by terryw
congrats hope you get in a good school
Originally Posted by vlm7
A friend of mine just got a job at a large NYC firm - he has a target of 60 billable hours per week. Is it worth it? You be the judge.
I'm thankful I'm inhouse.
I'm thankful I'm inhouse.
Originally Posted by b00stedjustin
in the d.c. area it is 70 and they don't let you take a vacation for the first 3 years you are employed.
Originally Posted by terryw
i know a few people graduated from UMD Compsci working for MS right now as developers, none of them work anythnig close to 90 hours, they all work regular 40 hours weeks like anywhere else...
Originally Posted by Espresso
The money is good but the quality of life is questionable.
...LOL...J/k
i dont know about this 70 billable hours thing, considering not every hour is billable. it sounds hard to believe cause thatd end up something like, you wake up, goto work for 16 hours go home and sleep for 4 hours, wake up and goto work again and work on weekends too.
I wouldnt know cause im not in the profession but that just dosnt sound like something thats humanly possible.
I wouldnt know cause im not in the profession but that just dosnt sound like something thats humanly possible.
Originally Posted by terryw
i dont know about this 70 billable hours thing, considering not every hour is billable. it sounds hard to believe cause thatd end up something like, you wake up, goto work for 16 hours go home and sleep for 4 hours, wake up and goto work again and work on weekends too.
I wouldnt know cause im not in the profession but that just dosnt sound like something thats humanly possible.
I wouldnt know cause im not in the profession but that just dosnt sound like something thats humanly possible.
To get 70 hrs a week = 14hrs a day x 5 days a week = 70
That means you work 14 hrs a day and you have 10 remaining hours a day to yourself..
except its 70 billable hours not work hours, usually 70% of the hours are billable.. thats around 100 hours a week, even if you are real efficient and can bill 80% of your hours its still going to be a 90 hour week. my friends in the law NYC frims are billing around 2400 hours a year, and thats considered a lot already. 60 billable hours = ~3000 hours a year its CRAZY. 70 is even crazier
*my point is that lawyers life isnt as bad as some people make it out to be, yeah they work tons of hours. but i cant see someone average 70 billable hour weeks consistently. I think a more realistic number is around 50 billable hours, which translate into 60-70 hour work week, much tougher than other professions, but not suicidal. 60 billable hours should be considered pretty extreme already.
*my point is that lawyers life isnt as bad as some people make it out to be, yeah they work tons of hours. but i cant see someone average 70 billable hour weeks consistently. I think a more realistic number is around 50 billable hours, which translate into 60-70 hour work week, much tougher than other professions, but not suicidal. 60 billable hours should be considered pretty extreme already.
Last edited by terryw; Mar 12, 2007 at 03:49 PM.
13 hrs a day (7am-8pm) for 7 days... they'd cater breakfast, lunch and dinner, but still awful... of course, being in rural Indiana helped in that you weren't really missing much and got laundry done at the hotel.
Remember, when you get your law degree you get to determine your future. I went to Fordham and most of my peers went on to the big firms. No question that the money is good.
Or you can do what I am doing (and I have been practicing for 2 years). Join a smaller firm that pays you on percentage of what you bill. Make sure they will allow you to get their client over flow. I suggest starting with family law and getting on the court appointed criminal list for your jurisdiction.
The family law will pay the bills until you get your name out and the appointed fees are not bad. Also, every time a retained client walks through the door with a simple misdemeanor it’s a grand. Felonies start at $3,000 and the sky is the limit.
If you have some extra time during the first year of your practice, get an xbox.
Or you can do what I am doing (and I have been practicing for 2 years). Join a smaller firm that pays you on percentage of what you bill. Make sure they will allow you to get their client over flow. I suggest starting with family law and getting on the court appointed criminal list for your jurisdiction.
The family law will pay the bills until you get your name out and the appointed fees are not bad. Also, every time a retained client walks through the door with a simple misdemeanor it’s a grand. Felonies start at $3,000 and the sky is the limit.
If you have some extra time during the first year of your practice, get an xbox.
Haha I've been doing a lot of reading and it looks like i will be working close to that 70-80 hours a week mark. From what I've read the first 3 years of working are basically just.. work .. work.. sleep. eat. work work work but everything is caterred to you. Breakfast,Lunch, Dinner and if you get into a larger firm many times they will chauffer you to and from your house. $130k is average for a higher end law school and can go upwards of $200k. Although I will probably have close to $100 in debt so my first 3 years will be paying for that. But then theres bonus's and thats where Ill be able to afford the e92 m3 haha. It's gonna be crazy though, If I graduate on time, I'll be 23 and hopefully making around 150k + bonus's. Maybe then i can afford to mod my car like you guys, i probbaly just wont have the time though
For you guys are in law firms, Im debating whether i want to do an internship this summer. Do you think its worth it or should i just have fun this summer?
For you guys are in law firms, Im debating whether i want to do an internship this summer. Do you think its worth it or should i just have fun this summer?


