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If you are dissatisfied with your
career in law, you are hardly alone. Every study
conducted in the last twenty years shows that attorney
dissatisfaction is a growing, and disturbing,
phenomenon.
The seminal 1990 ABA survey of
attorney satisfaction conservatively estimated that 23%
of all lawyers were dissatisfied with their careers. A
John Hopkins study that same year found an alarmingly
high rate of attorney depression. In a 1992 poll, 70% of
surveyed California attorneys expressed their desire to
begin a new career. Recent surveys by the ABA among
young lawyers show that dissatisfaction is not
attributable to longevity; at least 25% of young,
not-yet-jaded lawyers are somewhat or very dissatisfied
with law practice. It seems highly unlikely that they
will feel more satisfied five, ten or fifteen years from
now.
Lawyers’ complaints are myriad, and
include brutal work schedules, the tedious nature of the
work, job stress, fear of financial instability, public
lawyer-bashing, a lack of balance between work and life,
the “commodization” of legal services, and compensation
not commensurate with effort. Revealingly, though, the
highest compensated attorneys, typically big-firm
lawyers, are the most dissatisfied with their careers.
Thus, while increased compensation may paper-over the
root causes of dissatisfaction, money alone is unlikely
to be the antidote we hope for.
It is time for you to reassess your
career if you agree with any of the following
statements:
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I spend more time with my
Blackberry than with people I like.
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The last book I read for fun was
“Prosser on Torts.”
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I schedule romantic interludes
around motion practice.
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I have difficulty falling asleep
in the bedroom, but not in the boardroom.
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I dream about doing something
else and wish I had a life.
You may be unaware of your career
options, or even that you have them. Fortunately, we
are not. We know that you can take control of your
future and create options to make your legal career
financially and psychically rewarding. Call for a
free lawyer to lawyer consultation.
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