Comments on: Confessions of a Recovering Tax Lawyer – 12 Things I Hate About Big Law

By: Lolabees

Lolabees — Thu, 12 Jul 2018 14:40:14 +0000

In reply to Anonymous. I agree that the environment does play a very relevant role in one's happiness. I hope you enjoy your new program, and wishing you the best! Life is too short to stay in an unhappy situation!

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Thu, 12 Jul 2018 07:48:24 +0000

It was interesting reading this article. I’ve practiced tax law for around 7 years in a leading law firm in Latin America and I share the same feelings. Time sheet is indeed terrible. The fact that 7 years of my life are registered somewhere is terrible, specially because I could check that and see how much time of life I’ve spent unhappy. In my personal experience, I decided to quit the law firm and went oversees for a (not in Tax Law). I then was invited for a PhD in Tax Law, which I’m about to start. I’m not sure if I made the right choice, but at the end of the day I think that leaving the law firm is, per se, a good thing. Altough taxation is not the most exciting thing in word, I think that the environment where you work play a relevant role in how happy or sad you feel, and law firms are likely to make you unhappy. For those about considering quiting tax law or even law in a broader sense, I recommend reading some books like “Life after Law” or “Leaving Law”. You will find them on Amazon.

By: Life In The Air - A Luxury Travel Blog

Life In The Air - A Luxury Travel Blog — Mon, 06 Jun 2016 01:43:44 +0000

[…] But, when we first met them in Singapore, and we were living in Bali, we called our lifestyle an early retirement. Something we were sort of proud of when chatting with a few people living the expat lifestyle. They worked the nine to five, while we had, happily, walked away from that lifestyle. In it’s place we had more freedom to do what we wanted, when we wanted, and where we wanted. To us, it was a reality that had me working a lot less than in my previous lawyer life. […]

By: Walking Tour Through Sofia |

Walking Tour Through Sofia | — Fri, 11 Dec 2015 03:15:55 +0000

[…] also a recovering attorney. He asked me what I disliked the most about the law. Have you read this yet? I gave him an earful, but it was therapeutic. I had not spoken about the law, and big law […]

By: Why I Left The Law to Travel - The Crying Game |

Why I Left The Law to Travel - The Crying Game | — Fri, 21 Aug 2015 11:51:30 +0000

[…] Things like 30 Days From Making Partner at the Largest Law Firm in the World – I Escaped. Or, Confessions of a Recovering Tax Lawyer – 12 Things I Hate About Big Law. Many of these posts were meant to encourage others to escape, or were to help me cope with my […]

By: Ryan

Ryan — Wed, 08 Oct 2014 04:56:15 +0000

The biggest problem here is that you are traveling the world to be happy as an alternative to practicing law. The mother of 6 or mother of none working in McDonalds for minimum wage probably in my opinion can’t afford going to Asia to get away. Complaining about a profession that has allowed you to travel the world seems a bit arbitrary in my opinion. Having experienced myself the nuances of poverty and the wealth of education. Suffering is in the eye of the beholder I guess.

By: Jay fullone

Jay fullone — Fri, 07 Mar 2014 14:46:29 +0000

Amber, sounds like you are still delusional about being delusional. Congrats on following your dreams, the problems is your dreams are corrupt. Just like all the people you work with, lipstick on a pig, is still a pig. Of course you guy’s justify what you do and how you do it, it’s what helps you justify it.

By: Amber

Amber — Mon, 27 Jan 2014 00:24:46 +0000

In reply to Scott. Scott, Thank you for your comments. I think this career can work for some, but not for me. And, you are right, you come into contact with all kinds of lawyers and all kinds of clients, both good and bad. Now, that I have been gone for over 18 months, I can safely say I have never regretted my decision, not one day! It sounds like you have not regretted your decision to stay in the law. So, both good choices!

By: Scott

Scott — Thu, 23 Jan 2014 19:02:22 +0000

I’ve practiced tax law for over 24 years at a high level and still generally enjoy the work – mostly sophisticated biz and financial transactions. Since I’m big law, I have to say that the best and the worst of it all relates to the other lawyers w whom I must interact. A few are both outstanding lawyers and people. I try to work with them as much as possible. Most of the rest are okay lawyers by big law standards, but without much of any attractive personality, to one degree or the other. So many, but not too many in tax though, really are driven by greed, or greed and power mongering, tho not really at an effective enough level to begrudgingly admire. Is more of a continual annoyance.

Clients are okay once it’s clear you know more than they do in your area despite their periodic bombastic proclamations to the contrary, and thus, know how to confidently deal with the high and mighty (just make sure you’re damn right!). These client issues just take time and experience and maturity.

A slight annoyance is having to train, over and over again, new generations of young clients as to how to use their lawyers (most don’t have a clue how to use this tool at their disposal) and also training new generations of young lawyers to think and act like lawyers must ultimately think and act like in order to be effective. Many young lawyer are caught up in the hype that surrounds media popular lawyers, not realizing that if you look closely at these media darlings you’ll quite often find a lawyer who possesses absolutely terrific fundamentals, but who also just happens to be a great marketer.

In the and, unfortunately, the old adage of the law being a jealous mistress remains steadfastly true – there is no way around it if you are to engage in legit law practice for an extended period. It will absorb large blocks of this, your one and only life. You have to decide what you want and how best and most efficiently to get it. There’re no shortcuts and freeebies in this industry, whether you’re big law like me, a solo practitioner, a judge, work for the state or are in house, they all require you to bring your game each and a every day.

By: Filip Savic

Filip Savic — Mon, 06 Jan 2014 18:52:46 +0000

In reply to Amber. Absolutely. I really enjoyed your article.