Abandoning Billable Hours May Help Slow the Treadmill

If you read the Winter edition of The Philadelphia Lawyer, you might have taken note that average starting salaries for legal professionals, and particularly associates at the largest law firms, are projected to rise 4.2% on average. So it did not surprise me when I read an article that my Dad sent me, noting that at large firms with more than 501 lawyers, associate starting salaries increased to $160,000. And just today, my Dad sent me another article, Who’s Cuddly Now? Law Firms.  According to this article, many firms are starting to consider abandoning billable hours to slow the treadmill.  And it’s about time, too!  We’ve all seen statistics and heard stories about how lawyers are overworked, depressed and leaving. Thank goodness for those law firms (mine included) that have done away with billable hours to encourage work-life balance. As someone stated in the above-mentioned New York Times article, “Just because something always has been doesn’t mean that it always must be.” It’s time for our profession to rethink the way it does business and to catch up with other professions!

Insomnia

It was one of those nights. I just couldn’t sleep. Perhaps it was the butterscotch ice-cream coke float I had at midnight. Perhaps it was the excitement of working on different projects at my new job. Perhaps it was just stress. But I am sure I was not alone in not being able to fall asleep. Most adults have experienced insomnia or sleeplessness at one time or another in their lives. According to WebMD, an estimated 30-50% of the general population are affected by insomnia, and 10% have chronic insomnia. Apparently, stress commonly triggers short-term or acute insomnia. I also read recently that in a study of more than 100 occupations, lawyers had one of the highest rates of depression and reported stress. A few months ago, I wrote a blog about lawyers and drinking. I am almost tempted to write about lawyers and insomnia this time. But, nah…. I’m too wired to think straight. It’s a good thing I finished my brief yesterday!

How To Look Like a Lawyer

According to John Remsen, Jr. in ENOUGH IS ENOUGH: LAWYERS SHOULD LOOK LIKE LAWYERS!, it is no secret that people judge lawyers not only on our skills and abilities, but also on the image we project. Remsen points out that whether we like it or not, in our profession, image matters a lot, as first impressions are powerful and lasting.

Yet, according to Remsen, lawyers and law firm administrators are showing up for work dressed more and more casually nowadays. This trend is confirmed by The Remsen Report’s July 2007 Reader Survey, which asked about dress codes in the legal profession. Results from 233 lawyers across the United States who participated in the Reader Survey show the following:

How Do You Dress for the Office?
• I always wear a suit: 23%
• I prefer business casual, but wear a suit on some days: 58%
• I wear a suit only if I must: 13%
• Other: 8%

What Do You See as the Trend over the Past Five Years?
• More formal: 7%
• More casual: 71%
• About the same: 22%

Clearly, lawyers are “dressing down” these days.

But because first impressions matter (e.g., how we dress has everything to do with how others perceive our legal capabilities, and it has a huge impact on our success–or failure–with marketing and business development), Remsen gives the following tips, especially for younger attorneys:

• Pay Attention to How You Look Because Others Do
• Buy the Highest Quality Clothing You Can Afford
• Wear Colors that Look Good on You
• Find a Really Great Tailor
• Find a Good Dry Cleaner, Too
• Get Your Hair Styled on a Regular Basis
• Don’t Forget about Your Shoes (buy good quality and have them shined regularly).
• Wear Jewelry Judiciously (be classy but not showy)
• Stay Light on Perfume and Cologne
• It’s Better to Overdress than Underdress

Lawyers and Drinking

Why do so many lawyers drink so much?

Take last week, for example. A colleague sent me and several others an email that he normally sends out every week. “Reminder: Happy Hour. Tomorrow, it’s Alma de Cuba. Be there or be square.”

The next day, a friend (lawyer) called me. “Hey, my colleagues and I are going to El Vez for drinks after work, and you’re invited.”

Later that same day, another friend (also lawyer) sent me a text. “I know it’s late notice, but I’m out with some colleagues, and we’re in your neighborhood. Come to Rouge if you want to catch up over some wine.”

That same week, I went to two Philadelphia Bar Association receptions. One featured two free drink tickets and appetizers. The other featured an open bar (free, of course) and heavy hors d’oeuvres and desserts.

I didn’t go to happy hour with my colleagues. And I met up with only one of my friends and ordered a Coke. I went to the two receptions but had one cocktail at one (and I said no thanks when some friends of mine went to a bar after that reception for more drinks) and only drank water at the other reception.

“You’re no fun,” said one of my acquaintances because I chose not to drink any alcohol at one of the receptions. “You know, it’s open bar, and it’s free!”

“I know, but if I drink at every reception I go to, I’d be drinking all the time,” I replied.

“What’s wrong with that?” he joked. “Aren’t you a lawyer? Aren’t we supposed to be alcoholics?”

That got me thinking, do lawyers drink more than average Americans? Apparently, we do. I have read that alcoholism is more prevalent among lawyers than it is among the general public. In fact, statistics show that about 13 percent of lawyers drink several alcoholic beverages a day, where as (only) seven percent of non-lawyers are alcoholics. I also read in another study that one out of three lawyers suffers from alcoholism.

Maybe the rate of alcoholism among lawyers is double the rate of alcoholism among non-lawyers because of all these happy hours and receptions we keep getting invited to. Maybe we drink more because it’s our way of destressing when we have lots of deadlines and constant pressure to attract and retain clients. Maybe it’s the adversarial nature of the profession that drives us to drink. Or maybe we drink because we often feel as though we have no control over our lives, since we are often at the mercy of judges, clients, and partners. Or, maybe we drink because lawyers generally tend to be unhappy people due to the hours we have to put in (billable or otherwise). Or, maybe our profession just attracts the type of people who are prone to drinking.

Today is Thursday. Is anyone going to happy hour after work?