Is Corporate Law worth it?

alwaysamom
Wed, 30 Nov 2011 15:52:58 +0000

Alex, it’s a difficult question to answer. He has had a wonderful career with interesting work and the financial rewards have been more than we could have ever imagined in our wildest dreams. That has provided us with the ability to do things for our families, our charitable causes, and our community, which is very satisfying. The one part of it that I wish had been different is how hard he has had to work but my wish is really about him and not me. I wish that he hadn’t had to work those long, long hours for the past 30+ years but that’s the nature of the job as well as his nature. I supported him in every way I could, and I think that it’s important to have a supportive significant other, especially if you have a family. In our experience, and this is clearly anecdotal, the combination of a good and happy home life and a successful and rewarding legal career at a large firm, has had a common ingredient and that is a stay at home significant other. My career allowed for some flexibility in that I can do what I do at home and I have done so throughout our married life. When my children were young, I was able to adjust accordingly because I wanted to be the main caregiver. It was important to us that we were not both working long hours and our children being raised by someone else. I am fully aware that not everyone feels that way but it was how we wanted our family life to be structured and it worked for us.

Cartera is right about landing a good in-house position. My H left his large firm after 20 years to go to a client as GC. Most of the lawyers who are in the senior positions there and work for him did, indeed, work at large firms first. These positions are very competitive and lots of experience is a definite requirement, at least at his employer, as I’m sure is the case at most large corporations and financial institutions. One comment about the difference in remuneration. Although it would appear that most will take a cut in pay if they’re leaving a large firm, it does not always end up working out that way. Taking into account bonus, stock options, other perqs, as well as an excellent pension can more than make up for any initial cut in pay, over the long term. There are lots of variables here, clearly, but if you’re leaving a large firm with experience and going to a senior in-house position, it will likely make good financial sense in the long run.