Working for a Sole Practitioner
One of the greatest benefits of working for a sole practitioner as a law clerk is the mentorship experience that goes hand in hand with the work experience you will gain. Attorneys who practice alone must be very knowledgeable and experienced in order to single handedly carry a successful law firm, and this wisdom will certainly trickle down to those who work under them. The attorney who I work for has been practicing in Kentucky for over 50 years and has a wide range of experience in both criminal law and civil law, spanning over many decades from the early 1970s until now. Being able to witness his lawyering skills firsthand and up close in practice has been such an invaluable experience for me, and I know for certain that I would not get the same opportunities working in a mid-size or even small firm.
For two years before law school, I clerked for a collections firm with about 20 employees and 5 attorneys. My previous job was a great introduction into the legal field, but I rarely worked with attorneys 1 on 1. Most of my work pertained to filing, data entry, copying, scanning, mailing, assisting with debt collections, transferring phone calls and various other clerical tasks. I reported to our office manager while each attorney had their own paralegal or assistant. I learned a lot on this job although I was simply going through the motions once I learned each task or procedure.
Working for a sole practitioner is entirely different as I get to be up close and personal with the attorney more often than not. I often assist him with drafting, research, and whatever else needs to be done that is not covered by our paralegal. Not only do I get to work closely alongside this seasoned attorney, but I get the benefit of hearing anecdotes about his lengthy law career and have obtained great advice from him along the way.
I would be willing to bet that most of my classmates in law school are aspiring to work in large firms with offices across the country. “Big law” has become a competitive and trendy topic that has many law students vying for the chance to work at these huge firms with lofty salaries and matching work loads. While I greatly admire those who seek to achieve such a career, I must admit that I have no desire to do the same. I may be the odd one out, but I think that working for a sole practitioner or a smaller firm has many perks that go unnoticed. I will happily take a pay cut to have a stable job in a healthy working environment for a smaller firm. I think that many students would be able to expand their career options if they had the same mindset.
Working in the legal field during law school is so critically important as it gives you insight into the practice of law that law school simply cannot mimic. It is wise to have an idea of what sort of job you will be seeking after graduating from law school and passing the bar, and the size of the firm or company you will be working for is just one of many important factors to take into consideration. I am so thankful that I have had this experience working for a sole practitioner and a smaller law firm because I do not think that I would aspire to work in this environment otherwise.
