Meet the profession AKA an exercise in self-degradation

In the midst of doing some highly productive study for evidence I have decided to put a stop to such momentum and blog.

Recently I attended a ‘Meet the profession’ evening being held by the Law Student Society. As a member of the society I was more or less obliged to part with the $40 and schmooze/brown nose at the event. Maybe it is 4 years of law school which has made me more than a little cynical about such events or maybe in past careers I have had to build a business with actual networking not a contrived and sterile event that leaves me feeling like I wasted my time.

Firstly I must qualify the above statement by telling you that I can see some benefit to attending the event, but only if you are looking for an insight into what it is to work at various firms, and even then to take what you are told with a grain of salt.

The evening starts with various people with either blue name cards (who are the ‘profession’) or white ones (who are the ‘students’) milling around awkwardly, however as the free wine and beer took its hold things got a touch more loose and social. Law students seem to be a desperate bunch, with each one of us trying everything we can to make sure we are not still working at a fast food joint or retail outlet once we have our law degrees. The students then start trying to ‘make an impression’ on these lawyers, however after a little digging it became apparent many of the lawyers were recent graduate who would hold little or no ‘pull’ come application time. I found this game to be depressing and hardened my resolve to be my own boss.

It is about this time of year applications for clerkships open and close, it’s a cruel game where students apply to as many firms as they can ‘tailoring’ each cover letter to the firm to make it sound like they handpicked the firm to apply to because they really wanted to work at ‘Medium to Small Not Very Interesting Firm’. The clerkship game makes me feel ill. Not because of all the work being put into it with the slim to tiny chance of getting a clerkship where you will then be pitted against 15 other clerks all vying for the same 2 positions. No, it is because we are reducing ourselves to begging for the opportunity to put into practice what we have been killing ourselves studying to do.

Instead of walking out of the evening feeling like I had met key people I want to form a close professional relationship in that they may ‘put in a good word’ for an application. To me it was a law version of the Hunger Games. (stop sniggering at my poor, pop trash taste in books)

I am also very aware I am in the privileged position to go to such an event with no view of networking because I have an excellent job I will very happily stay at once I graduate.

Now to regain that momentum I lost. – Obiter

More than I can handle

The job generally is really, really good. The team I am with is both supportive and fun, could not ask for a better position. However I was given the option of being sent to a different town for a month and being ‘instructing clerk’ for a large trial. How could I say no! Even though it is the pointy end of semester and I have more that I can poke two sticks at anyway. But I like to cause myself as much stress as possible so the obvious answer was HELL YES!

I regret that. Now I have the ICC moot, Jessup, trying to write weekly for Survivelaw.com, Exam notes and preparation on top of being in a different city 4 nights a week. If work was only 7-5 or court hours it would be fine, but as I am living with the barristers I am their bitch 24 hours a day. I loathe it. There are two barristers a Senior who has been practicing for 20 years and a Junior who has been doing it for a whopping six months. The Junior is making my life a living hell it goes beyond the arrogance of the barrister and solicitor crap to a personal level where he treats me like scum. I have worked with horrible people but this douche takes the cake.

I am so eager to make both of them happy tho, I do not have any carriage of the case so in court the best I can do is hand them pens or a folder if I can find it first. Because of my almost total uselessness I am going over and above in every respect and the Junior is abusing it and me. The result is I am very, very highly strung and it is taking its toll. I have managed to leave the Senior barristers luggage somewhere that was not the unit, so he had no clothes in the morning…oh yeah I fucked up.

Then the week was peppered with other minor mistakes the Junior has blown out of proportion in a bid to get me the sack (this guy is apparently a homophobe). But the best one is where I crashed the work car into the car front of me on the way to court, to be fair it was only a bump and there was no major damage caused. However the Jnr is crying whiplash, he even had me book a doctor’s appointment for him... what a cock. The thing that really gets me is that I was sure my foot was on the break! Stupid European car, my car may be a bomb but it least I know how firm the peddle is when you break to a stop.

I hate this so much. I have had a really good run of things the past few months but everything is now taking a turn for a not-so-good. I am sure I will bounce back, I always do but I am just not feeling it right now.

There has been so much good stuff I wanted to blog about but I have not time 
I have too much to do to be writing a blog – Obiter Ovum

Running up hill

It’s week three and things look OK. This is a mirage, I know it, but I am still drinking that sand.

Lucifers Corner Office.

On my way out yesterday I was informed that currently there is not space in the office (two new solicitors starting) and I am not needed…until my uni holidays. That’s great news! I was freaking out about how I was going to maintain the insanity of working 45 hours a week on top of all my study. Now I don’t have to worry about it and I have a summer (winter really) clerkship lined up. On top of all that, the solicitor who has come from the Glass Tower was really sad to see me go, said all these really great things about my work and that is was a shame I am leaving for a while.
I have had such an interesting 4 months there. Learning so much, and actually doing legal work. I am already excited about going back!!


Subjects

Property Law A

I freaking love this class! Maybe it is because I used to be real estate agent (I was 18…why did people allow me to sell their homes!?) and a Mortgage Broker (21…I was good with people…not so much with the whole number thing) but am enjoying it all the same.

Equity

Also really lapping it up. I think I am getting more from my law subjects then I did last year for a few reasons. Firstly, the learning curve is not 90 degrees, I know how to find/read/note a case. Secondly, I have soo much more time with only 2 law subjects. So much more time.

Policing in context

My old man is a cop, I find this subject interesting if nothing else. I have no real interest in a career in the service but a policing major is a much better choice than a criminology major (for me anyway, I hated the psychology subjects).

Introduction into criminal research

I can see the utility of this subject. In fact it might be a great subject however the text book is a nightmare. I usually would not slam any book or text in this blog but this book makes me physically sick when I think about having to read it (for goodness sake, I read a contracts text book – cover to cover last year) “Research Methods for Criminal justice and Criminology” so poorly written. There is some really great content and examples however it is too hard to read, it is as if the author got all excited with all this stuff and just crammed it into a book without thinking about how to structure it. This one subject is going to ensure a very, very long semester (the unit co-ordinator and lecturers are fine, it’s just that freaking text).

No more 6am starts for this egg, I can drink on weekdays again!! Yay! – Obiter

Minor Panic Attacks

I have little heart palpitations when I look at my weekly schedule. I have painted myself into a ‘I can do that’ corner. Between the chef job, the clerking and classes I have about half an hour a week to do everything. It is probably more than that but when I look at the calendar in outlook plus my normal commitments I doubt it.

Realistically if it all becomes too much I will have to drop the job at the firm, they just don’t pay enough to compared to the Cackle Berry. I would prefer not to do that.

Occasionally the solicitors either send me into court to watch a case or invite me along to watch. Watch being the key word. Last Monday I was tagging along to watch an application to the court. When it was the solicitors turn to do their thing he got up and went to the council table, I just sat there like a good clerk. When he got there he pulled the other chair out and beckoned me to sit with him. Very cool. I got to sit with council in court in front of a judge in a live matter. See why I really do not want to give that up even if it does pay peanuts?

I am now a Torts Student Peer Mentor – I got it! I am going to be let loose on 25-20 students each week to help them understand torts, without giving them any solid answers. This will be interesting to say the least. My first session with the mentorees (yes that’s a word) is next week. I can’t wait to share what an epic mistake allowing me in front of first years is. I don’t mean that, well maybe, lets hope they knew what they were doing choosing me.

Let the fun begin – Obiter

Dog paddling in the deep end

Lucifer's Corner Office is doing my head in. But I am enjoying it.

I am very lucky, I am being exposed to various areas of law and been asked to do things far beyond what I singed up for. I am being sent to court to watch (carry stuff) and sitting in on some client meetings.

However, I am not sure if I can handle it! I am the only clerk for two associates, the solicitor, council, and the principal. Being the legal bitch for five lawyers is interesting. I have no idea how to prioritise 6 tasks all marked 'URGENT'.

Every time any of the above people think 'I wonder...' or 'I need ZYX..' even 'A letter to XZC needs to be drafted for ABC' I get an email. It is too much for me to do in only 2 days 2.5 days and moving into 3 days (still working at the Cackle Berry as LCO only pays $16 an hour..soo not enough to live on), this Saturday will be spent in the office attempting to knock out as much as I can before the next round of work starts.

On the other hand I am learning who to get work from and who to avoid. For example, Curls (the partner) only gives vague instruction I kid you not this is how it went.

Early morning: Got an email asking me to find a document in the file (file is 5 volumes)

Morning: Sent email to associate, document not in existence (now I had looked, looked, walked away and looked again before sending that email)

Late morning: Told to look for different documents, note and take to Curls.

Afternoon: Noted documents, sent email to Curls, what we were looking for was not there.

Evening: Email from Curls telling me to read transcript looking for - - - (yeah no idea what I was looking for).

Early morning: Read transcript, meant nothing to me.

Morning: Curls tells me to read x case. 'x' case does not exist either so to be safe I read 'A','Y' and 'Z' case.

Afternoon: Gave summary to Curls, Curls asks where is the letter I was to draft?

WHAT FREAKING LETTER?!?!

That just pisses me off. I suck it up, ask what letter and get given more instructions. That letter (no idea what I am supposed to say and to who) is one of the reasons I am going in on Saturday.

Other times the Associate will open with 'this is a highly procedural and technical part of the law' only for Curls to walk past and tell me again how easy this document is to screw up. Yay.

Its fun, but so demanding. I am only supposed to be there part time, but even when I am at home I find myself working on stuff and thinking about it.

About to use bubbl.us on a project for Curls - Obiter