Partner trying to get me fired

[Anonymous]

This happened to me, and I echo other posters that you should start looking for another job just to see if there is something better out there. I assume OP is an associate and not a parter, someone in a superior position. A partner is still a partner, the employer, and has much more power than an associate. Most associates, most people in general, are replaceable. If this partner has enough pull, you're screwed. For me, I was a senior associate, up for partnership in a year, when I brought in two big clients. I needed to cross sell the , because they needed work in other areas of law in addition to mine. I assume the way the business model worked was I would be billing attorney, getting all the credit for the client as the originator because I was originated. But a partner who I asked if she would get on our team, and to whom I also explained I was bringing in the client and I was leading the team, went behind my back to the head partner of the firm for her to be the billing attorney, and had meetings with my client without my knowledge and lied to the client that I wasn't available for the luncheons. All over maybe $500,000 in billable a a year. I couldn't believe it. I didn't back down. I needed this client to make my case for partner. I had courted the client, and the inhouse at the client picked our firm because he liked working with me, had never met the partner until he signed the engagement letter. In the end, the female partner threatened to leave the firm over it, said she would leave and take all her portables and associates somewhere else. She was out for blood and I didn't even know her. I had been doing her a favor. And in a matter of a month, the writing on the wall was made clear........and I was the highest billing associate in my practice group in all offices, around 2,800 in billable and 200+ in non. It sucked.

1) do you have relationships with other partners, ones with more voting power? Do you have a mentor there? You may need to ask them for advice. Not about whether to get a new job but whether they think your prospects for advancement are good....

2) law firms are a for profit business, and power comes with receivables. Doesn't matter if you billed over 300 hours past your target, what matters is if you're making the firm money (how much over your cost [salary + benefits + overhead] was collected based on your billing). Do you have your own clients? Could they be portable?

3) get your ducks in a row, life isn't fair. Neither are law firms.