The NY Times has an article HERE on the perks law firm associates are getting as firms get more competitive to land and keep the best (read: the ones who can bill 2600 hours a year) associates.
A long time ago, in a land far far away, we turned down an offer from a big firm and chose instead to move to Florida, where in our first year we earned less than we would have paid in taxes at the big firm. We have never looked back.
The practice of criminal law in Miami is rewarding, satisfying, and fun.
Query: right now: a big New York or Washington DC or Chicago law firm offers you 150 thousand a year, plus perks, plus year end bonuses of 25-50 thousand. In exchange you work 13 hours a day six days a week, fifty weeks a year, for 5-10 years at a chance to become a partner; do you take it?
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The "alternate" Broward Blog has a post HERE about a situation that may or may not have occurred in Dade. Quick summary: a Miami defense attorney allegedly kept quiet when a case being handled by a special prosecutor out of Broward appeared on Calendar and the Broward prosecutor didn't get notice of the hearing. Upshot is that with no file, the Dade Prosecutors eventually nolle prossed the case while the defense attorney said nothing.
Rumpole says: 100% wrong move. The very best thing a client can have is an attorney in court who the Judge and the prosecutor trust. It takes a lifetime to build a reputation, and one stupid act to wreck it forever.
Have good holiday weekend. Football picks Sunday to make up for the lack of year end bonuses.
17 comments:
The 150-K is great if you have the intention to stay only 1-2 years to make a few bucks to buy a house, get a BMW. Ya know those little things.
If you will make it to partner and do the 12 hour days you better have a good PPO for medical care.
Captain who is the incumbent for Group 18 ?
011 / 018 Sanchez-LLorens, Migna (NOP) Active
Migna is running in Group 18 I thought Judge Labora White had that seat?
Hey Rump. Maybe you didn't get that job because you cannot spell. It's "occurred" and not "occured." On the other hand, count your blessings. Want to know what every 80+ hour a week associate fantasizes about? Making partner? No. Having no debt, driving a 20 year old car, and having a makeshift office in the back of a massage parlor in some hick town representing every low life in the area, and then hitting the local municipal golf course every afternoon at 3 and then sitting in the bar eating a $3.00 cheeseburger and washing it down with $1.00 drafts. Life doesn't get much better than that.
Hey Rump - how about a piece on
whether the race of a client matters to the prosecutors, to
the judges and to the juries.
I for one have never lost a jury
trial involving a non-latino
white person. Does being white
help? Does being black hurt?
How does living in Miami effect
this?
IF THE LOCAL PROSECUTOR HAD NO JURISDICTION BECAUSE THE GOV APPOINTED AN OF TOWN PROSECUTOR, THE NOLLE PROSS WOULD HAVE BEEN NULL AND VOID.
YEARS AGO, A BROWARD PROSECUTOR LIED TO A DEF ATTY AND SAID THE COP WAS READY FOR TRIAL AND THE DEFENDANT TOOK A PLEA. TURNS OUT, THE COP WAS DEAD AND HE KNEW IT.
ASA GOT PROMOTED.
Not that it matters- but I do know how to spell occurred. I have tremendous problems with this blogger site. And for some reason when edit a post- when I spell check it, etc- and think I have corrected the errors- it reverts back to an old version. But you are a sharp eyed reader. However, if the post was not clear- I TURNED DOWN THE OFFER and chose to come to Miami.
CWT'S loss- Miami's gain.
I would rather be my own boss and
make 100k than be someone's lackey
and make 150K. It's a matter of lifestyle. As my own boss I am able
to see my kids after school. As my
own boss I am able to take time off
for errands, family emergencies, doctor's visits, etc. As my own boss I may make less money than with a large firm, but I am also in control of my own destiny. And
more importantly, I've never been
good at being told what to do so
the firm gig probably would not be a good fit. I love when these people in large firms call themselves litigators. Bro you're
a paper pusher. Stop the BS.
I once worked at the prestigious Winston & Strawn firm. Myself and 100 other persons had as our job to remove staples from documents and then place then in the proper order, right side up, for future scanning. It was a round the clock operation. I was in DC and got the job thru a temporary attorney placement office. I lasted 2 weeks on the night shift before quitting. It was at the time one of the biggest merger cases in history. Big deal. My point is that most work in large firms is so boring, pointless, often unethical, and devoid of any intellectual challenge or responsibility, that they have to pay well to get anyone to do it.corporate america litigation is boring. I also worked for 3 months once in NY for a giant prestigous firm where the 3 companies who ran the coupons in the newspapers business, it was about unfair competition, trade secrets, collusion. Can you imagine how boring it is to spend 4 years of your life on a case which will settle where people are fighting over the coupons in your sunday paper. To each his own but for me, having worked at some of these fancy places, a total of a about 1 year at the monster firms, it is for people who went to law school to accumulate benjamins as opposed to helping people or having an impact on society. And at those places, you complain or show ambition and they won't make you partner and almost noone makes partner unless they are connected to the IVY league or establishment anyway, unless you land a giant client on your own and how do you do that as a 30 year old, get a Bill Gates or Donald Trump to come to the firm. Do not be jealous of the people at Steel Hector or Greenberg, they are jealous of us but will never admit it as they drink at capital grille in their 1000 dollar suits.
hose of you who need help: CWT
CWT=Cadwalder, Wickersham, & Taft? Certainly one of the best New York law firms.
Cadwalader, eh? I'm thinking your real first name begins with a 'R', is that correct?
Rump-
I am the Broward ASA who was involved in the mysterious Nolle Prosse in Dade County. I am not going to name names, because I haven't received the transcript yet and I wasn't there. The story as reported is missing one detail: The Defendant was IC for a VOP I prosecuted several years ago and this case was a new substantive charge that was holding him. So not only was my case nolle prossed, but the VOP is screwed up and the Defendant was released from custody. I never gave the Defense attorney any inclination that this case was to be NP'd.
The reason we have Executive Assignments is so relatives of SAO employees do not get favorable treatment from the prosecuting district. Although the ASAs who flushed my case didn't know who the Defendant was, an outsider would say that the SAO employee's relative got a break- exactally was is not supposed to happen. I'll keep you posted on the details.
BTW: We like the 'other' Broward Blog. Kudos to whoever is writing it.
Cadwalader Wickersham and Taft? How very white shoe of you, Rump. If you keep giving out hints like this, you won't be anonymous much longer...
my goodness- are there no other firms in the US with the initials CWT????
Who was the defense atty that "stood mute" - who was the asa that nolle prossed the case?
To the individual questioning my sexual preferences, I reply: "Not that there's anything wrong with it."
Please tell us the name of the asa in Miami and the defense attorney who did that.
We will find out sooner or later.
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