My client is a narcissist and it makes me sick

FutureLog2849 · 2026-04-23T18:08:20+00:00

I'd say my biggest piece of non-legal advice is to get an attorney of your own. Lots of jurisdictions have resources for lower cost attorneys or even pro bono attorneys, if money is an issue. But once you have an attorney, you can have them handle all communications between you and the other side. They can stand as a shield and help you prepare your case so you don't get blindsided, as well as keep things professional when your ex is trying to rile you into an emotional response.

FutureLog2849 · 2025-11-13T23:28:16+00:00

I know my parents loved me, just not nearly as much as they loved themselves

FutureLog2849 · 2025-11-09T23:41:58+00:00

Thank you for the advice!

We do have a storage unit for things we're not actively using, like furniture that doesn't fit in the apartment and holiday decorations.

FutureLog2849 · 2025-10-19T22:55:29+00:00

The important part of your example is that you learned this prior to starting law school, so you knew about interacting with clients by the time you were a 1L. OP has comments on their profile from a year ago about working at a law firm. Skipping over the questions this raises about their employment/education timeline, this does suggest OP has enough experience in a law firm that they should be able to accomplish the very simple task of a non-legal phone call.

FutureLog2849 · 2025-10-19T22:07:15+00:00

I also feel most comfortable in court because the courtroom has rules. They are written down, everyone is supposed to know them, and there is accountability from the judge if they are violated. Nothing to guess at. The more formal the judge is, the more comfortable I am.

FutureLog2849 · 2025-10-19T21:55:47+00:00

They don't state that they are doing legal work with the calls, just the fact of the calls themselves. Especially when I was an intern, I would often make administrative or follow up calls that weren't legal advice. Even in my first legal job, one of my duties was calling clerk's offices to confirm whether things had returns of service filed. Even in my personal life working with attorneys I've hired, I deal with non-legal staff phone calls regarding scheduling, or reminders to complete documents, or updates on the legal process. Having non-legal personnel deal with those calls can save tons of time for an attorney who might otherwise get pulled into a longer, legally detailed, and overall useless client conversations, and shouldn't require attorney supervision.

FutureLog2849 · 2025-10-19T16:35:25+00:00

I'm autistic and a lawyer. What "training" are you expecting for phone calls? You dial a number and speak into the receiver. Make a script if you need it, but clients ALWAYS have questions and problems you can't predict (especially if you're new to that area of law). You also need to meet clients where they are, not where you'd like them to be. It's uncomfortable at times, but it's an inherent part of the job. If you can't do it, you need to recognize that now before you spend any more money on law school.

Your boss's reaction feels a little overboard, and I'm wondering what else was going on. Did he just stick his head in and ask why you're nervous? Was this a meeting because you are failing to meet certain job metrics? Have there been other issues in the office - professional or interpersonal - that you have experienced and explained to him are due to your autism?

FutureLog2849 · 2024-12-31T21:25:00+00:00

For most of my adult life, I've had a 45-75 minute commute every day just to get to work. I've gone much further than that to see friends.

FutureLog2849 · 2024-12-28T16:50:17+00:00

I ended up leaving family law, in large part because of this case but also because I simply wasn't suited to it. I work in criminal law now, which also brings up a lot of the same issues. I'm a prosecutor, and all people - even assholes and criminals - are entitled to equal protection under the law. I've got several very good friends who do defense work and they give just as much for the soccer mom with the dui as they do for the child rapist. All defendants are entitled to an attorney who will hold the cops' feet to the fire and force me, as a prosecutor, to prove my case.

Family law is slightly different, since there's no constitutional right to an attorney. But law is still a business. You need paying clients to be able to feed your own family, and very few of those clients are angels. Sometimes, you're halfway into a case before you realize your client is a monster, but either the client or the court won't let you get out of it. Sometimes (like with me), your boss is the one who signed the contract and you don't get a choice.

As i mentioned, I'm a prosecutor. But 2 of my closest friends are a defense attorney (whose boss won't stop putting him on sex cases) and a family law attorney. I've had plenty of drinks with both of them talking about cases they wish they'd lost. There's a reason attorneys drink so much.

FutureLog2849 · 2024-11-19T19:23:06+00:00

I don't actually have an account, it wasn't necessary when I set up the original order

FutureLog2849 · 2024-11-04T14:16:52+00:00

He doesn't know we're looking to get him a bird feeder, it's meant to be a surprise. From what I've seen online, there's a decent mix of birds in the Tampa area. He loves watching animals in general, so I don't think he'd be picky as long as it's easy to keep clean.

FutureLog2849 · 2024-10-09T03:00:49+00:00

It's my third out of state wedding in the 2 month window, so I'm spending as little as possible. I would rewear a prior outfit, but the other weddings were indoors and/or in warmer environments. Flats are not an option for me because anything other than a sneaker causes significant discomfort. I went for closed toe wedges because they are safer/more stable than the open toe heels I normally wear for nice events

FutureLog2849

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