So, who's going to cover for you when you are in court? From experience, the answering machine will lose you more clients than a cheap suit. Typing your own pleadings will keep you in the office about 20 hours/day. It's a recipe for quick burnout. Better to get hired as an associate somewhere, preferably the prosecutor's or public defender's office, so you can make your mistakes, and you will make mistakes, on the taxpayer's time: when you screw up as a prosecutor, don't worry, he'll do something again, and then you'll really nail him. As a public defender, when you screw up, he/she gets a new lawyer and a new trial, and you never have to deal with him again, and he/she gets convicted again anyway -- unlike private practice.tubalawlisa wrote: I think you guys are making the same point on describing horns to others as I make when I explain why I will not hire any office help when I finally endeavor to open my own practice... My reasoning is that if I am representing someone, either in court or on paper, I want the work to be my OWN. I don't want to chance hiring someone, without a law degree, to write documents, do research, etc. People are paying ME - I want to keep the money, and I don't want to risk any damage to MY name. Personally, I don't have my degree yet, so I wouldn't trust ME with someone else's fate in front of a judge! Malpractice insurance is too expensive.
Like you, I was young, idealistic, and foolish once. Now I'm just not quite so young, so I don't practice anymore. Much less stress that way.
