Reply to Can I salvage my career after SAHM 22 years?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I am not in a position to hire anyone right now but if I were, I would hire someone like you for a junior lawyer position. And I would do it gladly. You have the same prerequisites any junior lawyer would have (law school isn’t helpful anyway), and I would expect personal maturity and organizational skills. [/quote]

Same.  I work at a small law firm of former BigLaw lawyers.  We have high standards but can't compete in hiring with BigLaw.  The associates we've hired the past 5 years have all been terrible despite having good grades from respectable law schools -- can't write, no ability to figure things out on their own or problem solve, can't analyze a case correctly, complain about 2 in-person days in the office.  I can only conclude that there has been a brain drain from law to STEM fields.  I've been thinking lately that what we really need is a SAHM former lawyer with good credentials heading back to work.  I can train someone within reason to write or read a case but I can't figure out how to get someone to problem solve or take ownership of a project who does not seem to have that chip.  I've been practicing for almost 30 years and the decline the last few years has been notable.

OP I think the suggestion to be CASA volunteer is a good one -- just to get you back in the mindset of advocacy and being around lawyers.  If you have some money to throw at the problem, it might be worth checking out some LLM programs.  I'm normally not an advocate of these, but in your case if you can go and do a year of law school and get good grades it might get your confidence up, and you will at least have something on your resume to show you are serious.

Don't do document review -- it's the worst and it won't get you where you want to go.  Tell everyone you know you are looking -- maybe a solo or small firm will pick you up to do some temp overflow work or something.  Get your foot in the door.  Even if you are in your 50s you could still have a 10-20 year work life ahead of you.  Law is one field where ageism is less of a problem -- I work with plenty of crusty old lawyers who are at the top of their game.  Good luck!

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