New York Lawyer
November 18, 2004

Q:
I'm a 2L and am going to work at a large New York law firm next summer. I have recently been told that if I want any work-life balance later in life (such as when/if I have kids) then I should specialize in something like real estate, personal planning, etc. The problem is that if I want to work in one of these smaller practice groups once I join this big law firm full time after graduation, I have to focus (almost exclusively) on working with that practice group this summer and hope I receive an offer from that group.

As a 2L I hardly feel ready to decide which practice group is right for me. Is it true that specialization will help my work/life balance? Is it too early to worry about this? Thanks.

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A:

It�s early, but it�s amazing how decisions made early in life can reverberate for years thereafter. So while I wouldn�t suggest that you agonize too much over this, it�s not inadvisable to think about it now, especially if the only way to get in with your preferred group is to work with them during the summer. In that regard, ask the firm if they would be open to you dividing your time between two groups, so that you can get a sense of more than one practice area.

Be careful about decisions that you make based on one overriding criterion, such as work/life balance. While some people make the mistake of erring too much on choosing an area they are passionate about and ignoring the work/life consequences, there�s an equal danger of overrating the importance of lifestyle and winding up in a practice area you hate. So a better thought process is: determine the practice areas you genuinely enjoy, and do the work/life equation thereafter. (I don�t think specialization per se helps your work life balance; specialization is an imperative so that you can carve out a distinct identity for yourself, which makes it easier to become a partner, get business, and so forth.)

Another approach is to start talking with people who are already in practice to find out what they like and don�t like about their work. At this point you probably have some idea of areas you prefer, but (obviously) the reality of practice is different from law school. Therefore, picking the brain of a round-the-clock M&A specialist, or a more placid trusts and estates practitioner, and finding out what they actually do on a day-to-day basis can help give you some clues about whether you might enjoy various practice areas. It helps to have some notion of the tasks you most enjoy and what you perceive as your strongest skills, so do some thinking along those lines as well.

I�m intrigued by this question because I have talked with so many people (in all industries, not just the law) who have wound up in middle age as specialists in an area they don�t like, highly paid, trapped due to family concerns, and wondering how in the world this happened to them. So it does pay to be intentional about the choices you make, even at a young age and seemingly with many options open.

Sincerely,
Holly English