Q for lawyers: Would you take this job if it fell in your lap?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Never mind -- totally misunderstood -- not legal as in not strictly a lawyer job, right? it sounds promising, but if your husband enjoys practicing law and wants to continue, he should definitely carefully weight the pros and cons. Then again, as you say, the legal profession is oversaturated and competitive, and if your husband doesn't want to be part of the rat race anymore, this option sounds good...

I thought the same thing - and also thought that the first few PPS were remarkably dense for glossing over the "not strictly legal" aspect of the job (lawyer for the Mob? Pimp? Con man?). Turns out I'm the dense one. Next time, I'll finish my coffee before forming opinions . . .

[Anonymous]

Why is this even an issue, $145k vs $150k is a no brainer. It's a difference of $5k a year, less than $500 before taxes /month, it's nothing after taxes, plus the job is more stable and has better hours. SIGN SIGN SIGN

[Anonymous]

As you know, thelegal field is very uncertain now and is likely to be so well into the future. I went in house a year ago and it was the best decision I ever made. I still smile every Tuesday morning because I am not calculating hours.... If the new job is interesting and challenging I say he should go for it. Your household income is fine for a 2k mortgage.

[Anonymous]

Family time is almost priceless. Together you have a HHI of nearly $300k. That's pretty damned good, especially if your mortgage is only $2k (lucky you!). Can you tell us a little more about what the new job would be? We might be able to opine about whether it leaves the door open for him down the road to return to law.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why is this even an issue, $145k vs $150k is a no brainer. It's a difference of $5k a year, less than $500 before taxes /month, it's nothing after taxes, plus the job is more stable and has better hours. SIGN SIGN SIGN

I thought OP was implying that H could make a lot more money if he was able to successfully hustle for business. Personally I'd still take the new job but just making sure the issue is framed correctly.

Also, OP, what's the health insurance like at the new job? At many firms the health insurance isn't very good so unless you have good coverage at your job you might get some of the lost salary back by way of reduced premiums and better coverage.

[Anonymous]

OP: With your salary, I would definitely do this. Does DH have ANY track record of hustling or starting his own business? Or is this something he thinks about in theory? If he has no clue about it, I would go with the stable approach.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes, it is. And there's a great psychological value in not having to bill your time! But I agree that the important question here is whether he wants to continue practicing law. That's the part that's hard to go back to.

I am also in the legal industry and I totally agree with this "not having this pschological pressure to bill your time"!!!
Honestly, if I were him, I'd take it.

[Anonymous]

Lawyer here. I think he could safely leave the law for a 1-2 years and then go back, if he really wanted. But I agree with the vote for stability, especially since it doesn't sound like your family will need him to get large raises.

[Anonymous]

Well, I personally hate being a lawyer, so I am biased but I would say go for it!

[Anonymous]

OP here. Thanks so much everyone. I really appreciate the valuable input. My DH is leaning more and more toward taking the job after pondering it for a few days. I'll update the post once he decides (in case folks are interested). Thanks again.

[Anonymous]

145k is a great income. THis sounds like a no brainer. A more interesting job with more family friendly hours and roughly the same salary. Why are you even asking here?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thank you so much for the honest input, and for stating it in such a nice way.

For the PP who asked, I do work at a job that makes also about $145,000/year (depending on the bonus situation from year to year). It's not totally stable (as no job is really 100 percent stable unless you work for yourself), but it's decent and I have back-up plan ideas in case I ever needed to find a new job.

We have 2 kids, and a mortgage of $2000/month. We try to be frugal, but are not as disciplined as many of the top-notch savers who post on this forum. To me, if we could have a HHI of $300K for the next 10-15 years (God willing), and just save and save, I think we'd be in decent shape.

DH has a lot of hobbies that he likes to do with the kids, which argues for taking the new job. Although he recognizes the need to hustle to drum up business, he is not especially fond of the prospect of pitching himself for work. (His brother is in the sales field and is very successful, but my DH is more introverted.)

Question for all: $145,000 still seems like a decent income, no?

I think $145K is a decent income. Like your DH, I am an introvert and would be very unhappy if I had to hustle for work/network all the time. It would deplete and depress me.

Money is important, but so is contentedness in day-to-day life. If the prospective job is a better fit for your DH in terms of his nature/personality, then he should pursue it. He could maintain his law license because, well, that's just the smart thing to do.

And he could try to negotiate that salary upward a bit. It couldn't hurt to try.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Question for all: $145,000 still seems like a decent income, no?

$145,000 is absolutely a decent income, and trading $5000 a year for more stability, less stress, and more family time sounds like a great deal to me. I am also not a hustler type. I like practicing law, but would never want to have to drum up my own clients.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Question for all: $145,000 still seems like a decent income, no?

$145,000 is absolutely a decent income, and trading $5000 a year for more stability, less stress, and more family time sounds like a great deal to me. I am also not a hustler type. I like practicing law, but would never want to have to drum up my own clients.

+1. OP, I am in the same situation as your DH (minus the job offer). I would take it in an heartbeat. actually, if you DH does not take it, I would be interested

good luck!

[Anonymous]

lawyer here, on the partnership track at a big firm and make 160k a year. i just got glowing reviews from the partners (it is review time). i love what i do.

i would take this job.