I Am Not a Lawyer

Corporate Counsel has a good column today entitled “Big-Firm Associates: Where They Go And How to Keep Them.” The observations in the article should not themselves be much of a revelation for people who’ve worked in the legal world for a while. Associates are unhappy to be given drudge work and no time to spend with their families and friends, corporate clients don’t like paying for inexperience, partners are too focused on their own work to worry about experience for associates, etc. However, I’m interested that the authors spread their suggested solutions across all groups involved: Associates, partners, clients and law schools. And I’m intrigued by their recommendation that associates pursue secondments.

But most of all, I’m just happy that someone’s thinking this issue through. Market forces by themselves don’t seem to be enough.