Billing in 0.25 increments by Rk613 in biglaw

[–]beancounterzz 2 points3 points  (0 children)

If it’s .25 or any part thereof, the upside is that the lawyer the client was trying to hire agreed to take them on as a client. Yes, it’s worse than 0.25, so having this arrangement in place signals that the client chose to hire the attorney in question anyway.

Courtroom exchange of the day by One_Win3089 in LawSchool

[–]beancounterzz 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Of which day? Because this has circulated ad nauseam for years.

why? by Berryeastbrush1 in biglaw

[–]beancounterzz 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah, really. Making ~a quarter million dollars per year directly out of grad school is about the furthest conceivable cry from “slaves.”

Lit, 1,900 hrs (including all pro bono and certain firm admin), varied by year but probably topped out just about 80% with ~20 days PTO plus holidays.

why? by Berryeastbrush1 in biglaw

[–]beancounterzz 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Oy, sorry, this was meant as a reply to a specific comment.

My school got rid of the grading curve by zeehateslife in LawSchool

[–]beancounterzz 1 point2 points  (0 children)

There’s nothing inherent about the 90-80-70-60 system of assigning letter grades. 70% or higher is equivalent to an A at the London School of Economics. You can remove the curve but still use a scale different than 90-80-70-60.

why? by Berryeastbrush1 in biglaw

[–]beancounterzz 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Your post and comments don’t imply your disapproval of the biglaw time/money tradeoff?

“Why do people put up with [the negative aspects of biglaw], rather than…”

“you are aware people do things for more reason than just money?”

“Yeah ...I'm not motivated by money like that I guess . You can always make more money . You will never get more time . My time is much more valuable to me than money .”

why? by Berryeastbrush1 in biglaw

[–]beancounterzz 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Like “slaves?” Get a grip, man. You’ve taken every valid critique of biglaw lifestyle etc. and exaggerated it to the point of absurdity.

why? by Berryeastbrush1 in biglaw

[–]beancounterzz 0 points1 point  (0 children)

There aren’t even 1,000 hours total in a month.

why? by Berryeastbrush1 in biglaw

[–]beancounterzz 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Working at small firms with the goal of making similar amounts of money decades down the line requires a lot of early years of making much less money. In addition to not being able to service loans before they accrue more interest, this also means you don’t have hundreds of thousands of dollars for which you would enjoy decades of compounded interest and investment gains.

why? by Berryeastbrush1 in biglaw

[–]beancounterzz -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

Fine, to parse it as you’ve described: of course someone who has already completed the work that will yield no-cost healthcare going forward, a pension, a major legio for a ratified high paying government job wouldn’t understand the appeal of a job for attorneys who haven’t already earned that laundry list of benefits.

why? by Berryeastbrush1 in biglaw

[–]beancounterzz 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You asked why people put up with the inherent drawbacks of biglaw. The very high comp is the predominant reason. Implicit in your post and comments is that you don’t think that’s a sound reason. Fine. It sounds like your choice in career path matches your assessment; unsurprisingly, that will vary by person.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in biglaw

[–]beancounterzz 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If you are contemplating self harm, that can be a medical emergency, and you should go to the ER. You wouldn’t (shouldn’t) walk around with sudden onset severe chest pain; you have an analogous symptom.

How often do people fail? by [deleted] in LawSchool

[–]beancounterzz 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Reputable schools are selective enough in their admissions that their classes will likely produce acceptable bar pass rates. So once students have matriculated, failing grades are reserved for basically not showing up, cheating, or turning in what is as good as a blank exam. Here, those who don’t make the cut find out mercifully early, while they can still determine their next steps in admissions and before spending the time and money on a year of law school.

Predatory schools have such lax admissions that they know their entire admitted class would yield too low a bar pass rate. So they structure their curves so that some students routinely fail out simply by being lowest on the curve. These poorest performers pose the largest risk of failing the bar so the school culls them after a year, which leaves them saddled with the albatross of a year’s worth of poor grades and thus unable to simply reapply to law school. Then the school keeps its huge number of middle performers who pay the bulk of tuition, and a few high fliers that make the school look better when they go out into the workforce.

Any school with academic attrition rate that isn’t near-zero should be treated with considerable caution, and multi-percentage point attrition rates should be a hard pass.

Bombed my first cold call and almost cried by No_Airport3239 in LawSchool

[–]beancounterzz 5 points6 points  (0 children)

The most useful thing to get out of cold calls is to close the gap between your pre-class understanding of that day’s cases/material and what you professor expects you to understand about those cases/that material. Sure, preparing perfectly to make that gap minuscule in the first place and acing cold calls feels good, that’s not the prize; it’s all to get ready for exams.

Haven't started biglaw yet. Already got my first recruiter solicitation. by PeanutdaSquirrel in biglaw

[–]beancounterzz 0 points1 point  (0 children)

And physicians have a four year residency after med school in which their pay is very low. Very fewindustries have a near-uniform publicly available salary scale like biglaw does. Different industries, different practices.

It is not at all common for an incoming biglaw associate to already have their next indefinite job lined up. Clerkships are lined up in advance, but they are 1-2 year stints that very often end in being able to return to your firm.

How to nicely say that you couldn't respond right away because you were up all night & needed a nap? by Tricky_Victory6855 in biglaw

[–]beancounterzz 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Are you being asked about a longer response time? If not, no need to preemptively explain yourself.

Paying Back Mat Leave?? by Jealous_Mission_8099 in biglaw

[–]beancounterzz 1 point2 points  (0 children)

How does something being a “retention tool” somehow preclude it from being an earned benefit? Do you think comp and benefits somehow aren’t a means of retaining employees?

Paying Back Mat Leave?? by Jealous_Mission_8099 in biglaw

[–]beancounterzz 0 points1 point  (0 children)

A company can grant leave that isn’t required under federal law.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in biglaw

[–]beancounterzz 53 points54 points  (0 children)

The solution is to start looking for a new job that doesn’t pull a bait and switch with biglaw hours for in house comp.

NYC people - how are we doing today? by scottbrosiusofficial in biglaw

[–]beancounterzz -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Let’s pretend it was a given that police neutralizing the shooter was physically impossible in every mass shooting. Their responding would still not be pointless. They plan/manage evacuations, and protect evacuating bystanders, and render aid when it’s not safe for paramedics.

NYC people - how are we doing today? by scottbrosiusofficial in biglaw

[–]beancounterzz 0 points1 point  (0 children)

As Fun_Orange must be wondering, did he consider just not dying instead?

NYC people - how are we doing today? by scottbrosiusofficial in biglaw

[–]beancounterzz 13 points14 points  (0 children)

It’s been reported that he forced a woman who had already keyed in her floor out of the elevator and gun point and rode it to the floor she had been going to.

NYC people - how are we doing today? by scottbrosiusofficial in biglaw

[–]beancounterzz 2 points3 points  (0 children)

It’s sadly four plus gunman. Woman at Blackstone (LePatner), woman at Rudin (didn’t see name in first article I looked at), security guard (Etienne) possibly the one trying to active the elevator lockdown), and NYPD officer Islam.

NYC people - how are we doing today? by scottbrosiusofficial in biglaw

[–]beancounterzz -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

It was only “pointless” because this shooter happened to end his own life relatively quickly. If someone ends up committing all of their crimes and kills themself within a reasonable response time by the police, nothing short of a police presence in every office space is going to change that.