National Blog Posting Month

I have a feeling...

that this group and NaBloPoMo in general will be much more fun than any continuing legal education course.

Of course that's not saying much, is it?

I suppose I should say that I'm a law school and bar exam survivor but left the day-to-day grind of the legal profession after a 2-year clerkship. I still do legal research and writing, though, which means I also still pay bar dues--and that means I get to complain too, right?!

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Permalink Reply by BipolarLawyerCook on October 9, 2007 at 2:32pm: Absolutely! My husband actually went through 2/3 of law school before deciding that he would never ever ever use a law degree. I give him credit as "half a lawyer" (hey, passing the bar counts for something) and let him complain about the system, too.

I did a clerkship before private practice and still think back to the glory days of an underpaid but 8-5 job.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by sognatrice on October 9, 2007 at 10:04pm: Woohoo! I heart complaining, especially about the law :)

You know, I was lucky in that my clerkship actually paid OK--in fact probably a little higher than some of the public interest jobs that were floating around at the time. I had an awesome judge, a great office with huge windows and a view of the city in Philadelphia, and the best co-workers I've ever had.

In fact, if that clerkship could've gone on longer (as it was, the judge retired soon thereafter anyway), I probably would've stuck around a while more...oh, and my hours were 8:30 to 4:30. *sigh* Just lovely.

Wait, I'm supposed to be bitter...don't worry, it'll come back ;); ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Manda Brockhagen on October 19, 2007 at 6:35pm: I was practicing as a prosecutor for a couple of years when I decided to join the Peace Corps and move to Botswana - I really wanted to try and get and international edge, and frankly, I wanted a change. I thought I was just going to do some HIV activity coordinating and other stuff like that...which I did. But I also ended up meeting my future husband and just moved back to the States. I am currently "paying my dues" to Washington State, but toying with the idea of taking the Arizona Bar - "toying" is strong - it's a lot more like running away from the whole idea!; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by BipolarLawyerCook on October 19, 2007 at 7:12pm: I am enough of a masochist that I've taken three bars, but they really do get easier the more time you've practiced-- but I'm not taking any more, now that the universal "waiving in" number is close on the horizon.

I'm in the midst of my seven year itch-- we'll see what happens, student loans be damned (or deferred).; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Adverse Possession on November 1, 2007 at 12:46am: I am not actually in law school, but my husband is and I just started up a blog to write about the whole experience of being the partner of a law student. I've been thinking about doing this for a few months now, but NaBloPoMo kicked me into gear! Hope it's okay for me to be in this group - just let me know if I am not lawyerly enough to roll with this crowd!; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by sognatrice on November 1, 2007 at 12:56am: Well I'm certainly no authority here, but I say if you have to put up with a law student, you're in. Honestly, sometimes when I looked at partners of law students, I think they had it even worse than we did.

Can't wait to read more on your blog!; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Adverse Possession on November 3, 2007 at 9:36pm: Thanks! Law school sure does bring a whole new dynamic to the relationship.

I'll be reading your blog, too!; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by BipolarLawyerCook on November 1, 2007 at 5:40am: Oh, AP, bless you. Law school is a trying time for students and spouses. Bless you for working at it! I am looking forward to checking out your blog, and thanks for joining the group!; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Adverse Possession on November 3, 2007 at 9:34pm: Thanks for the warm welcome! It is indeed a challenge. Blogging will be a nice outlet, I think.

NaBloPoMo is such a great way to fine some fun new blogs to read, isn't it? I felt like my routine was getting a little stagnant.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by BipolarLawyerCook on November 1, 2007 at 5:41am: I had my first interview in the search for a kindler, gentler lawyer job yesterday. Won't post more so as not to jinx things, other than to say I hate job hunting.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Useless Dicta on November 1, 2007 at 6:25am: Ah law school, I think I'll have plenty to complain about and contribute :) I think that even after making it through my first year I still want to be a lawyer, but finding out that law school won't necessarily teach me anything that I need to know to be a good lawyer is a bit of a bitter pill to swallow...; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by BipolarLawyerCook on November 1, 2007 at 4:45pm: Yes, and no. You learn exactly enough background knowledge and a research methodology to allow you to learn all the crap you need to know on a daily basis. But, if they taught you how to bill, and maintain a life, lawyers'd be better served after school. : ); ▶ Reply to This