On becoming an attorney

I've been feeling a tad uninspired in the blogging department. Chalk it up to starting back to work and daycare and the hum drum of everyday life. So, I'm going to work on one of my resolutions - posting about being an attorney.

Law school is the most terrifying, confusing, anxiety-producing thing I have lived through. It deserves its own post - but I'll summarize briefly.

Law school teaches you lots of things. The difference between civil and common law. The fact that the trial court in New York is called the Supreme court. The fact that the Bill of Rights only restrains the Federal and (sometimes) State governments - a fact that will annoy you the rest of your life as people talk about how their employer is infringing their right to free speech. (Another lifelong annoyance - clients asking you if you can help them "file criminal charges" against someone.) You learn the intricacies of challenging a federal regulation as being beyond the authority of the agency to enact. And you learn approximately .01% of what you need to know to be a real live practicing attorney.

This was particularly true for me as I became a corporate attorney without having taken any corporate classes. Yes, not a single one. That fact made my first four or so months of working pretty hellish. I had to confess that, no, I hadn't heard of Revlon duties. No, I didn't know how to form a corporation. No, I didn't know the tax effects of taking an S-election.

But I truly doubt that law school would have prepared me for what I do on a typical day. For example - first year you are required to take Contracts. It is one of the scariest classes for all first years. But the really crazy thing? You never ONCE read an ACTUAL CONTRACT! Not in the entire class.

Much of the advice I'm asked to give is practical, with just a flavor of the law. Much of my research is done by picking up the phone and calling a bureaucrat somewhere, instead of logging onto Westl@w. I spend my days reading detailed contracts and then trying to put them into terms that the client can understand, all the while knowing the significance of an indemnity clause or prevailing party fees will be somewhat lost on them.

I like what I do. But what I do looks nothing like Law & Order or Boston Legal or any of those shows. It's reading very long documents, reviewing piles and piles of paper, answering client's questions, and hoping I keep partners happy.