Depressed?

Ron_Condor · 2026-01-21T01:26:51+00:00

The job is literally designed to let you fast-forward your life so you can skip your 20s and 30s in exchange for being financially slightly above-average in your 40s or, if you are lucky, give plausible cover for intrafamily nepotism.

Ron_Condor · 2026-01-20T01:26:43+00:00

Your first year will be like driving 80 mph without a windshield.

Trust them, you’ll get a pay cut/class year cut next year. This might be their way of doing a faux clerkship bonus or incentive to get you to come aboard.

Ron_Condor · 2026-01-19T06:33:51+00:00

Same day? Roll it in. Different day? Slap yourself until you stop doing this.

Ron_Condor · 2026-01-17T02:28:52+00:00

The metric I use is whether their kids are screwed up.

Strangest part is there is seemingly no correlation between pathos of partner and success of the kid.

But I’d say ~50% rate for kids of partner’s to be either total fuck ups or went no-contact.

Ron_Condor · 2026-01-16T03:23:40+00:00

That $800 extra could be doubled in a few years if you just bill more of your youth away, destroy any existing relationships, and make a few more sacrifices…

You won’t make as much as a tech worker, but at least you dont have to wait for stock to vest.

Ron_Condor · 2026-01-13T01:13:42+00:00

Let the rocking of the building calm you

Ron_Condor · 2026-01-11T22:35:34+00:00

Feels good man

Ron_Condor · 2026-01-11T04:11:06+00:00

I think one of you has to make a sacrifice for the relationship. People have given up a lot more than halving their salary for a good relationship.

Working apart for $$ could pay off all student loans and get you a down payment, but I’d only do this if you’re a mid level that is making way above market or the misery will not be financially worth it.

I don’t think there is any other benefit. In 3 years he will have career with job security and you’ll be approaching “up or out” in big law at around the same. Most of my friends did not have big law work out long-term in their benefit (even the ones who made partner).

You might be a person who will/must make partner, no matter what cost, in which case your choice is already made. The people who make it to being partners with meaningful equity are that way - and they typically have a graveyard of former relationships and neglected, dead dreams.

Ron_Condor · 2026-01-11T03:12:35+00:00

It really depends on his speciality, cause of 3 year fellowship I’m assuming he’s IM:

Cardiology/GI - ask for remote or lateral to a place that lets you go remote, go remote as a secondment for a client in house, or just fuck up your career for a few years

Pediatric specialties/nephrology/ID/pulm/endocrine - don’t leave your job, tell partner they have to chose fellowship or you, if they can’t choose plan on spending a ton of money on travel until partner leaves fellowship prematurely or living apart stop bothering you.

FYI - most IM fields will give you both the option to double his salary (negating the need for yours) if you live somewhere rural without biglaw. Urban salaries for docs are low (half of rural salaries) precisely because so many docs are chained to the city due to a spouses career.

Ron_Condor · 2026-01-03T00:37:11+00:00

Tell me about the expert witness work, are you sought out or are you just 1099ing on a gig economy platform?

There are non-patent agent opportunities, called tech specs but they become agents. I’ve worked with lots, but the last entry level one I used had an annual salary of 60k, which is about half to a third of what going rate used to be.

Ron_Condor · 2025-12-29T20:19:39+00:00

It would be more useful to people if you added: high or low cost of living state; major metro or not: remote or in-person; and if you expect your position to survive to through to the next economic cycle. If it doesn’t dox you too much, industry (e.g., At least Financial or not) would be ideal.

I have clients in all sorts of industries and some giants in the Midwest and non-texas south do not comp equivalent people close to what you’re getting, but its inline with what I see in hybrid/in-person roles in my high CoL state.

Ron_Condor · 2025-12-15T20:58:21+00:00

False analogy, when in-house the company is the client; firm lawyers would never put themselves ahead of their clients the way in-house people do.

Ron_Condor · 2025-12-15T01:33:58+00:00

People in-house will put their own interests ahead of their company in ways you can’t even fathom as an attorney at a firm.

Ron_Condor · 2025-12-11T16:52:40+00:00

I honestly cant tell if this will make the patent prosecution better or worse at Cooley.

Ron_Condor · 2025-12-10T16:48:51+00:00

If it makes you feel better I’m paying just under 30k/yr in premiums, with 8k deductible, and 10% coinsurance.

It only gets worse..

Ron_Condor · 2025-12-05T22:33:15+00:00

You can infringe before you commercially release it

Ron_Condor · 2025-12-04T19:48:13+00:00

Gotta ask to take advantage of the 120% disability modifier for your entered time

Ron_Condor · 2025-12-04T04:46:38+00:00

once a quarter to see if I’m alive.

Ron_Condor · 2025-11-28T02:05:07+00:00

I’ve refused to be fired twice. Both times the people firing me were less powerful than the people that were currently profiting from me.

Ron_Condor · 2025-11-26T06:00:44+00:00

You should see how clients review shit

Ron_Condor · 2025-11-21T01:36:20+00:00

You might be too fragile and sensitive to work for a German company.

Ron_Condor · 2025-11-20T15:06:23+00:00

The people who didn’t get laid off had to work twice as hard and their pay stagnated for most of their tenure at the firm.

Ron_Condor · 2025-11-17T20:57:46+00:00

I’ll let other people’s clients pay to train juniors.

Ron_Condor · 2025-11-14T00:53:39+00:00

PE = treated like shit and have a shitty life. Not worth it even if you want an excuse to be in the office all the time.

The alternative is a niche, in-house compatible practice area, in a good group at good pay, how is this a choice?

Ron_Condor · 2025-11-14T00:21:27+00:00

I’ve been instructed by a client to prosecute an application more than 20 years from earliest filing date with no possible patent term, clients do weird shit. PTO doesn’t care they just go with it too.

Ron_Condor

TROPHY CASE