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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Early retired BL partner, read lots of your posts.  You're insightful and have helped me a lot.  Seems you had a manageable situation, but left.  If not for the crushing workload, then why?[/quote]

Thanks.  i tried to explain this before.  I'll try again.

I'm not saying I didn't work hard.  I did.  But the thing with Biglaw is that it's so all-consuming for so many of its participants that even when you're not being crushed with work, work will often still weigh on your mind.  Am I measuring up?  Am I slacking?  Should I be doing more?  Etc.  You are more defined by your position as a biglaw lawyer than anything else, and after a while it just takes a toll.

Beyond the work itself (and the pressure to feel like you should be working even when you're not), there's everything else involved.  The competitiveness of so many of your colleagues and clients.  The snobbery and elitism.  The fuddy duddies.  And then there's the work itself.  Yes, there were times when the work was interesting and rewarding and intellectually challenging, but most of your time is spent on drudgery.  And even when the work IS intellectually challenging, the primary reason for your existence is to assist in shifting large amounts of money from one huge corporate client to another.  Some folks may find personal satisfaction in that, but I never did.

I gave my firm and clients a couple months notice before leaving to "help ease the transition."   Right after doing that I had a conference call with opposing counsel to deal with yet another discovery dispute.  During the call it became clear to me -- with light at the end of the tunnel -- that not only was much of the work that I was doing in biglaw pretty meaningless, it was actually downright ludicrous.  I just couldn't do it anymore.  What a relief.

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