- Quickdraw McLaw
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What do you do when you start to get burned out or lose your passion for the profession? Do you take a vacation? Do you change things up? Do you change jobs? Does it get better? Do you go back to school? Do you run for judge?
Wallowing in regret can be very helpful in these situations. Throw in a little self-pity. Add a touch of self-hatred, resentment, envy, and procrastination. Then bake for 2-3 nights in an oven of cocaine and vodka and you've got yourself a real party.
Being a lawyer is not for the timid.
You had me until "cocaine and vodka." I'm more of a "xanax and weed" lawyer.
You both forgot "Go in hung over and take it all out on my staff."
@9:55 – Seriously, when I feel that way I like to pull my pony tail back real tight and walk through my paralegals' cubicles swinging a golf club around and asking who wants to get hit. It really instills an environment of fear and respect.
@10:51 – I would just have to stick that golf club right up your ass.
Find something else in the profession that interests me. Burned out on construction defect litigation, take up mechanics liens or construction financing law. Sick of foreclosure cases? Take up bankruptcy law. Find something new that interests and intrigues.
Go get a job in government. Three solid hours of work a day then you can jerk it in your cubicle all afternoon.
Especially the Nevada Supreme Court. Nice office, velvet curtains to rub one out and apparently an entire month of August to take off from doing anything while the Clerk enters orders in your absence.
The Court of Appeals has issued no orders of any kind since July 31. Maybe their Clerk takes August off too.
Mainly their clerks are moving on to real jobs.
Poker. Running home for regular nooners with the wife.
You mean you don't do it in your office with the secretary? Rookie…
My secretary is a man so no, I don't do it in my office with my secretary (not that there is anything wrong with it).
For me, when I get down on my work, drinking is the thing that makes everything infinitely more miserable. Which sucks because it's pretty much the first thing I want to do. I've been able to pull through the last few miserable periods without seriously thinking about quitting in the middle of the night by just laying off the booze.
Become a serial killer, but a cool one. Kill people everyone dislikes. For example, child molesters, the pharma Bro guy. Basically community service.
Pharma Bro is innocent! #FreePharmaBro
Free Vicki Greco
My friend works for me. How do I fire him? I have tried talking with him, but he still is being lazy and checked out. He is going through some personal shit, but it has been a year now and I don't want to pay someone who is not doing their job. More importantly, I am picking up the slack so now I am stressed out.
Tell him you're downsizing.
Move him from salary to per billable hour on a contract basis and then only pay him for the actual work which he performs. He will step it up or he will walk away.
I know this isn't helpful to you now, but I draw a line at hiring anybody I have a personal relationship with. No friends, no family, not even somebody I may see at church or networking meetings. That way I can fire them if I need to and pretend like I never knew them.
As for firing your friend, I like both of the suggestions above. Try to blame it on situations outside your control as much as possible. The "firm is going through a downturn" is always a good one.
Sleep with his wife.
Sounds like this isn't a friendship anymore, so why feel bad about firing this person?
11:38 is spot on. By defining him as "friend" instead of "person," you're begging the question about how you view the relationship. This is a person who was once purely a social friend but who is now your employee (for sure) and (perhaps) still your friend. If he's been screwing you over by not performing, you should reevaluate the "friend" part of the relationship. Unlike your minor children, he has no claim to your loyalty, and you have no duty to him. Why should you sacrifice yourself (and your family if you have one) to him?
I hired a relative. She's cool enough but all she does is cost me money. been over two years now, the only reason she still has a job is that I hate training up new people. But I'm guessing she's got until the end of the year before I just lose it and she goes. I'm guessing her christmas bonus will be a big hint that she needs to start looking. Never hire a relative, they feel entitled and don't care about anything but their paycheck.
Not wanting to train someone new seems like the #1 reason I hear that crappy employees are kept on – the devil you know kind of issue. Anyone else feel differently?
I solved the same issue by closing my practice. Once you've hired friends or family that's the only way out.
Hey, speaking of alcohol, cocaine, xanax, marijuana, illicit office sex, bankruptcy, and physical violence, does anyone know how Brian Bloomfield is doing?
Joking aside, I'm actually curious. Last I heard he was being hauled off to jail and permanently disbarred. He always seemed like a good dude, just made several BAD decisions.
He was disbarred in 2016.
Hauled off to jail? He was remanded and served three days. Get a DUI on a Friday night and you might spend more time in jail.
What is the latest on Vicki Greco?
Bloomfield is still working as a "paralegal". I'm sure he still says he's a telemarketer but he's full of it. He's still making decent money and still doing shady shit, but he's disbarred so the Bar sure as shit isn't going to do anything about it. Good dude, but can never get out of his own way.
Paralegal for who?
Depends on the reason that your feeling burned out or lost your passion. If its the particular firm that you are with and you already have tried taking some time off, change firms. If its the area of the law you practice in but still enjoy representing client, change practice area. If you like the area you practice in, but hate the clients, change side you represent or go in-house or government service. If you still love the law but hate being the gladiator, become a judge or mediator.
And finally… if you hate everything about the practice of law, change occupations… try being an author, golf pro, bartender, professional poker player, drug dealer, confidence man/woman, used car salesperson, etc…. You already have the experience necessary for those occupations
Whatever you decide.. wash it down with plenty of alcohol.
I know someone who tangled with a OBC about 18 months ago and it led him/her to step away from the practice. 20 pounds lighter, looks 5-7 years younger and never happier. If you are given the chance to get out of this alive, maybe not a bad idea to take it.
I have found that taking a week to get the fuck out of dodge is rejuvenating. Weekly maintenance with booze keeps it going in between vacations. Huge fan of VRBO, go somewhere sunny and just forget what you do.
Amen
More on dumbing down law schools:
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/10/business/dealbook/law-school-gre.html
"Law schools, which have been plagued by a shortfall of students in recent years, are changing their admissions requirements.
Two top-ranked schools — Georgetown University Law Center and Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law — this week joined Harvard Law’s recent move to make it simpler to apply.
Applicants can submit the results of the more widely available Graduate Record Exam, the GRE, instead of those from the Law School Admissions Test, which long has been entrenched as the numeric gauge of law school success."
Has Alverson Taylor landed in its new building yet? Any word on if the firm is undertaking BK to avoid the debt on the old building?
I'm not interested in discussing that firm or their ongoing drama and apparent financial challenges. And it appears even those who were somewhat interested have grown weary of this less than riveting subject.
It's hardly news if some law firm is so interested in projecting and maintaining the image of high success that they spend well beyond their means and wind up with a completely unmanageable monthly over-head.
If that is, at least in part, what is happening here, it is, unfortunately, quite common in the legal community. One individual firm should not be singled out for a very public discussion of their apparent financial woes, even if those challenges at this particular moment have allegedly reached crisis level. The firm will presumably turn the corner and greatly improve their situation over time. But if they do, it won't be discussed or reported. It will only be discussed or reported if they continue to suffer severe challenges and crisis.
Alverson Taylor has not been singled out. LSC, G&S, the list is long and all have been fodder for discussion. I have not sensed weariness, just a lack of news. You state "the firm will presumably turn the corner and greatly improve their situation over time." It will? What do you know that the rest of us do not know? Sounds like you have information, the type of information which this blog routinely discusses. If Alverson does turn the corner, it is and would absolutely be a good topic for discussion and reporting. If you know of other firms is similar straits, please do tell. So share what you know or admit that the schadenfreude of enjoying discussing the downfall of those other firms might be causing your weariness to come from this one hitting too close to home perhaps.
It would be nice to get updates on:
1. Alverson Taylor
2. Lionel Sawyer & Collins
3. Gordon & Silver
Why are there no updates? This is actual big news that belongs on this board. There are a lot of similarities with all three firms' situations that are highly relevant to the profession of law, especially in Las Vegas since it impacts how businesses are run and how they maybe shouldn't be run and therefore deserves its own thread on this blog. For whatever reason, these very important matters seem to have been swept under a rug. Everyone can and should learn from what happened at these firms. And I'm not even sure 50% of the information has come out. Come on…there must be some dissatisfied former employees of these firms that want to anonymously share what happened.
LSC got old and did not keep any talent from the bottom. Like so many firms, it got top heavy and capsized. G&S imploded while expanding–huge buildout and expansion for millions of dollars in light of work which was anticipated but then not awarded to it.
I agree with 4:33 PM. I too would like to see a thread on this. Where does the LSC bankruptcy stand? And did anyone from GS have to pay the lease that they tried to walk away from?
Thought there might be more to Easton Harris going quietly. And there was.
http://www.ktnv.com/news/contact-13/contact-13-former-attorney-indicted-for-theft
Crazy twitter picture: https://twitter.com/eastonkharris?lang=en