Anonymous wrote:Anyone have tips for relating? I'm a paralegal in BigLaw who adores the partner I work for. She is all around a great person to work with. The junior(first year) associate I assist on the other hand is a royal pain in the ass, micro-manages to a T and wants more energy than warranted devoted to his work. I don't know how to manage, it's so bad that the mere sight of him makes me want to vomit. We have only been working together for 2 months so I'm giving it time before I go to HR, don't want to cry wolf. Besides, I fear that HR will tell me to suck it up.

How do I manage in the meantime?. I went from loving my job to being grossly annoyed the moment I walk in the door. Should I just quit?

Duh. Tell the partner what's going on.

Agree that the associate might need some guidance on how to manage and use your time. This can either come from you if you feel comfortable or from the partner. But I would frame it in that manner. The kid is like 24-25 and has probably never had to do this.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Pssh, a good paralegal is way more valuable and hard to come by than a first year associate.

As a veteran BigLaw lawyer, I think you should have a candid discussion with your partner. Most partners I've worked with over the years would take your side, particularly because it is a well known fact that first year associates are largely worthless and need to be put in their places.

This. Signed former biglaw lawyer who worked with his fair share of great paralegals and crappy associates.

BigLaw partner here: +1. Unless you are known to be a difficult person--which some paralegals are--you should do fine with this. Also, are there any mid-level or senior associates you can go to first? That is what they are there for.

Anonymous wrote:OP here, thank you all for your suggestions, I will give it some more time before going to the partner so that I can properly document my gripes. The associate is one of those who will delegate wiping his ass if he could, he would then proceed to email you several times telling you how EXACTLY he wants that ass wiped. The micromanaging is unbearable, as if I don't know how to do my job or don't have anything else to do.

If I were the partner, I would be pissed that you are basically waiting around so you have more to bitch about.

PLEASE take the advice of others on this thread and manage up (give him input as to how you work best, open lines of communication, feedback on his interaction with you). It is highly unprofessional to deal with this in such a passive-aggressive way, and even if the partner likes you, you may not always work for someone who will overlook this unprofessionalism (in which case, you'll be sorry you didn't work on resolving this so you have some skills and experience yourself). The first-year associate has the excuse of being wet behind the ears. What is your excuse for not developing your communication and managing up skills so you can deal with this situation head-on instead of "documenting" it and making your partner deal with it?

I'd suggest you first try to have a candid conversation with the associate. Invite him outside the office for a cup of coffee. Explain to him how to maximize your working relationship, and how a solid relationship will be best for BOTH of you. Tell him how you work best, and ask him how he works best. Make it an adult conversation, not a childish gripe session. Make sure it's a two-way street, and not just you complaining to him, because I'm betting he's just as irked by you!

Maybe opening the lines of communication like that will help improve the relationship. However, if it doesn't work, then when you go talk to the partner, you can tell her how you tried to work the situation out by yourself. She will appreciate that you've tried to solve it yourself, rather than simply expecting her to meditate the squabble.

Above all, keep all your complaints and discussions professional. Don't complain about the associate's general attitude or his condescending smirk, because that's too subjective for anyone to fix. You want to be focused on the work product you're both able to deliver to the partner and the client, because that's what will really get the partner's attention.

Although it's good if everyone on the team likes each other, liking each other is not ultimately critical to getting the job done. Being an adult means learning to work effectively with people you don't always like, but still getting the job done.

Good luck!

BTW, I'm a BigLaw partner who has managed several teams with associates and paralegals, and dealt with similar conflicts many times over the years. Maybe other people might approach the situation differently, but what I'm describing above is exactly what I'd want one of my paralegals to do in a situation like this. If you first try talking to the associate, and he's not receptive, and then you come to me to explain the situation, I'll know you've done all you can do. My next step will be to invite the associate out for a cup of coffee, so I can explain to him how he needs to behave in a professional environment.

OP here, thank you all for your suggestions, I will give it some more time before going to the partner so that I can properly document my gripes. The associate is one of those who will delegate wiping his ass if he could, he would then proceed to email you several times telling you how EXACTLY he wants that ass wiped. The micromanaging is unbearable, as if I don't know how to do my job or don't have anything else to do.

Anonymous wrote:Don't go to HR. If he needs something and you are unable to assist tell him, "I'm sorry I can't help you with that right now, I'm busy with a project that BOSS LADY assigned. If you'd like you can go to her to discuss."

He won't go to her. If it gets too bad, you will need to speak with her directly. Have examples so that it's not a case of you being dramatic or making generalizations.

Yep.

You may want to get a sense of where your associate stands in the pecking order as well. If he is a Golden Boy, you may want to tread more carefully but I suspect he's insecure and is just an ordinary first year.

Be specific in how he is being unreasonable, just don't let folks chalk it up to "personality conflict" (this isn't one of those, is it?)

Go to the partner and tell her that you are having trouble interacting productively with this associate. She is probably already aware of problems with him. While it is your job to manage upward, it is also her job to manage downward and she is in a stronger position. Have specific problems in mind that she can address with him instead of vague complaints.

First year associates are about as valuable to the firm as janitors in terms of billings and profits and time spent. Tell him in no uncertain terms that you do not have time for him. Let him be the one to complain, not you.

I will also add that first year associates tend to micromanage more at the beginning since they lack the confidence and are under lots of pressure to perform when they often dont know what they are doing. And he probably doesn't yet know what you can do well and cannot without lots of direction. So give it some time. And It might be worth talking to him directly, discussing with him what you can do better and more efficiently without being micromanaged.

Former first-year associate here. I never knew how much I could ask my secretary to do. I'm not a micromanager, but I didn't know what her workload was from the other lawyers she supported. I might have given her too much without knowing it, or broken other unwritten rules.

I never had that problem with the paralegals, because they always had very defined roles. They told me just what they did and knew much better than I how to do it. In telling me so clearly, they also implicitly told me what they didn't do.

If you can find a way to educate this young 'un on how he can best "use" you, you'll make your life much better as well as those of every paralegal and assistant who work for him in the future.

Perhaps other paralegals in your firm can give you advice on how to train up the newbies?

As a long time biglaw paralegal/paralegal administrator, I'll say the only time in my entire career that I lost my cool and yelled at someone was a first year associate. And then the first year ran to the partner to tell him that I had yelled at him like a little tattle tale on the playground. The partner and I laughed about his ridiculousness for years.

They are clueless. You have a great working relationship with the partner. Ask her what she thinks. Odds are good that you'll be there long after the crazy associate is gone.