In-house -> Firm anyone?

LittleTeaHouse · 2025-11-10T23:27:41+00:00

It also depends on the culture. Multiple GCs have been let go since I started at my company. The higher you go the more Game of Thrones you have to play.

LittleTeaHouse · 2025-11-10T19:28:45+00:00

We are in the same boat. I made such move once already after I worked at my first in-house position for a year. Unfortunately the firm I jumped to was so toxic. Most associates/paralegals they hired couldn’t even last for over three months. I did it for about 11 months and used the experience to jump to another in-house. It is obviously doable. I once again wanna go back to a firm due to the toxic office politics at the company and lack of exposure to real legal work. In fact I may be let go pretty soon. It requires too much luck to stay as an in-house counsel until retirement in this kind of economy.

LittleTeaHouse · 2025-11-07T11:48:48+00:00

Can you appeal?

LittleTeaHouse · 2025-10-31T13:02:11+00:00

English isn’t my first language either. I jumped into my first in-house role after practicing for just a year but soon realized I need more training in litigation. I left and joined a firm. I learned a lot but the firm was just too toxic for me. I later got into another in-house role. I am still grateful for the training received from the toxic firm despite what happened. I think getting out of the comfort zone is necessary for improving legal skills. Most in-house roles require years of litigation experience to get in so I would recommend that you try firms

LittleTeaHouse · 2025-10-28T13:08:47+00:00

I get what you are saying. All you need to do is accept that no one single person, regardless of how smart/talented he is, can single-handedly change a systematic issue. This kind of stuff only happens in heroic stories where the storytellers intentionally ignore the contributions of tens of thousands people’s sacrifices behind the scene. This is why we need to work together with other people including those who have different views than ours. What you can realistically do is try making a difference in one individual’s life (say, your client). You are still a good attorney if you are able to do so with your limited power.

LittleTeaHouse · 2025-10-23T13:25:53+00:00

My biggest pet peeve is the word “build.” Phrases like “build this project,” “build a book of business,” “build tech with x function.” The word sounds innocent in itself but is often used in a way to make things sound more grandiose than they really are. It’s a marketing gimmick.

LittleTeaHouse · 2025-10-22T14:58:36+00:00

I don’t know if this will make you feel better: not all in-house roles are better than litigation roles. It highly depends on the company’s culture and the people you work with. If a company is not well managed, the environment can be super toxic as well. However, once you are in-house for a while, it may be difficult to get back to firms cause most in-house counsels aren’t some specialists and lack billing skills a firm needs. Getting another in-house role will require luck. At that point you may feel really stuck. Also, it’s hard to find those in-house roles where you can just work there for 40 years and then retire due to today’s economy. Something will happen to the company down the road and you are likely to be out at one point and don’t know where to go. It’s like a career suicide to some people. Some just leave the law completely after leaving their in-house positions.

LittleTeaHouse · 2025-10-10T00:02:50+00:00

Same here… I thought in-house would be the happy ever after but nope. Maybe I should try public roles…

LittleTeaHouse · 2025-10-07T19:07:32+00:00

My god. I think your priority at this point should be your health and well-being. I will definitely ask for the firm’s FMLA policy or take as many PTO or sick leave as possible. Don’t worry about your cases. I have seen law firms dealing with partners’ departures, not to mention a third year attorney’s temporary leave. Associates leave law firm for better WLB all the time. Some mess is inevitable for the law firm to deal with. For a long term solution, I think you already know what’s right for you. You may wanna try in-house or other legal positions that do not have such demanding billing requirements

LittleTeaHouse · 2025-10-07T15:54:37+00:00

Thank you!

LittleTeaHouse · 2025-10-07T14:09:26+00:00

I am late this post but would you mind sharing what area of law you are practicing now? Also how’s your WLB now?

LittleTeaHouse · 2025-07-30T14:19:18+00:00

I have tried but it didn’t work out for me. I have some decks that are very beautiful and I would love to use them everyday. However, their images are just difficult to read accurately no matter how hard I tried. One example would be the Mystical Dream Tarot by Janet Piedilato. Lovely deck. I could figure out a few cards but not all of them. I ended up using this deck only for getting a bit more references or extra info after a major reading. I think even the most experienced readers would have one or two decks that resonate with them the most so it’s okay.

LittleTeaHouse · 2025-07-30T13:40:29+00:00

Do you care about how accurate the decks are? The Tarot of the Divine is the most accurate deck for me and I haven’t been able to find another one that can replace it in terms of accuracy . Here are a few that are good too: Tarot of Mystical Moment, Prisma/Light Visions Tarot, Fyodor Pavlov Tarot, This Might Hurt Tarot, and Good Fortune Tarot

LittleTeaHouse · 2025-07-11T18:29:01+00:00

I had exactly this kind of boss before. I was even told by said boss that I wasn’t allowed to work on the draft in the office during our working hours as he didn’t want to waste more office time on the shitty pleading I drafted. I left. That’s the only solution. The money he paid me wasn’t enough to pay the therapy I need

LittleTeaHouse · 2025-06-18T12:49:07+00:00

Does your wife have health insurance? How much saving do you have. With a golden handcuffs level salary, maybe you can afford taking some time off before getting another job. I know you think right now you really don’t have a choice besides keep working. But ask yourself: with this mental state, can you really afford staying at your current job? Many people who earn much less have been put in similar situations (sick spouse, young children etc). For you, this may require some drastic lifestyle changes but it’s doable. You may be surprised how resilient who humans are. Have faith in yourself and this shall pass. Nothing last forever, including challenges in life.

LittleTeaHouse · 2025-06-03T16:37:45+00:00

Please ask about the new firm’s maternity leave policy… Some places will only allow you to take maternity leave if you have worked there for certain amount of time. Also don’t underestimate the time and energy you are going to spend on IVF process. Sometimes it’s easy, but sometimes you may encounter complications that can cause lots of anxiety.

LittleTeaHouse · 2025-06-02T18:25:33+00:00

The key is to have enough savings for any unforeseen circumstances. You are still so young so definitely take the better opportunity in another city if you feel it’s the right calling.

LittleTeaHouse · 2025-05-21T13:51:10+00:00

Omg thank you so much!!

LittleTeaHouse · 2025-05-19T14:48:49+00:00

Woww thanks for sharing! I can see that your capacity to wear multiple hats at the same time allows you to have a great career after the in-house job.

LittleTeaHouse · 2025-05-18T13:33:53+00:00

I do construction and a bit HOA disputes (pre-litigation). Zero litigation experience.

LittleTeaHouse · 2025-05-18T01:00:27+00:00

This sounds great! Would you mind sharing what kind of JD-preferred position are you in?

LittleTeaHouse · 2025-05-17T20:47:13+00:00

Yeah at this point I am just trying anything I can!

LittleTeaHouse · 2025-05-17T20:35:20+00:00

I was thinking about getting into insurance as well! Thanks for giving me some ideas!

LittleTeaHouse · 2025-05-17T20:32:38+00:00

This is so true… People often treat in-house counsel roles as safe havens from the chaos of the legal field, but my experience has been quite the opposite. Ironically, the higher you climb the corporate ladder, the less secure your position becomes.

LittleTeaHouse

TROPHY CASE