There has been a rumour of mass resignations in a certain team at Trilegal. "Mass" may not certainly mean a huge number in a law firm but it still does send a message - to others not to join that team. And that team will gradually be starved with good associates and learn to treat and manage people better.

I know counter arguments to this will be "there are 100 others who want your job" but given the small law school crowd, quality really is in short supply. You wouldn't want your next generation of partners to comprise of people who are there because you couldn't find anyone else.

Post the pandemic, even managing partners have started warning partners to treat their associates better and at least started namesake well-being policies (Khaitan and CAM from LI posts). Now certainly these managing partners are not doing it out of a kind bleeding charitable heart. They are doing it because the cost for finding replacements in increasing exponentially as multiple associates even at senior levels are quitting due to burnout.

This may be a good leverage for associates to use to ensure better working environment and switch-off conditions.

Not just at Trilegal, associates are quitting in large numbers even in other firms. I'm in a M&A team at a tier-1 and all associates junior to me and the PA above me have left in the past 3 months. Trying to hire (and we desperately need people given the workload) has been futile with no new incomings.

The pandemic has really reduced the desirability quotient of a law firm job. No one is ready to sacrifice all their waking hours and health when they know they can die anytime due to COVID. Honestly, it shouldn't have to be that way. You're drafting templated documents, not fighting some war - you shouldn't have to risks your life, health and family for any job!

In all these threads. One question is not answered. Where do all these PA's go to after law firm life?

Associates have multiple options including Litigation and PCSJ. But where do SA's and Pa's actually go to?

If it's to another Tier 1 firm, it doesn't make any sense as almost firms expect you to put in equal amount of hours.

to each his own. both have their pro and cons, none is mightier than the other. and the grass is always greener on the other side. litigation guys aren't exactly having a picnic with restricted functioning of courts since the pandemic began. its difficult to find regular, quality, well paying work in your early years which lasts for far more than two years, my dear friend. but kudos to you, if you have managed to do well for yourself. but there is a level of comfort and security, even prestige a high paying job at a tier 1 law firm can bring which needs to be recognized. also you may not always have the volume of work that a litigation lawyer handles but in a firms disputes team one would regularly be exposed to high stakes work for marquee clients so it must be intellectually stimulating.

To all A0's to A4's peers;

Our resignation doesn't mean anything (cost of replacement is there) for the firm, they may even keep long bonds in the future and maybe withhold bonuses to be paid only after completion of 3 to 4 years. Law Firms are inherently stressful jobs- not just in India- across the world (Tell about any country where a big law associate doesn't put in atlest 12 hours a day ?), that's why many of your talented (probably more than you) peers gave Judiciary or went into Academia or non-law.

Where is everyone who is resigning going to? Another Tier 1 or 2 firm with even much horrible working hours. Only when Partners or SA's resign it makes any difference. When an A0 or even up to A2 resigns, there are thousand law students willing to replace them at any time.

Even when an A2 to A5 resigns, there are thousands (at least hundreds) of Tier 3 or 4 and Commercial Chambers Associates willing to replace us. You might have seen a lot of folks from Tier 3 or smaller firms joining Tier 1 firms these days, they are desperate just to be there.

Go ask your fellow batchmates working at Magic circle firms. Almost everyone is working more than 12 hours a day and mostly on all weekends. That's just a rough justification that MC firms give for their substantially less salaries compared to NYC firms. Infact, a senior associate at a NYC firm in London perhaps earn more than a freshly minted partner at an MC firm.

Atleast 50% of associates resign in 2 years. It's not anything new. It's happening for the past 10 + years. Across the world if you look at big law firms that's the case.

Unless you are a person who can thrive under extreme pressure. You are not the right fit for a law firms. Law Firms know that atleast 50% resigns that's why they mass recruits associate.

It's not as bad as posted in Legally India. As LI had transformed itself from a legal journalism platform to a law firm associate Cribbing and Whining platform (easy way to get more page engagements for LI with bare minimum moderation)

If you read LI you will feel as if all law firms are going to collapse. It's a joke.

Firms in Western Countries give a reduced working hour option to woman lawyers who wants to have babies or families. But they have to take a 50% pay cut. And many take that option for sanity.

Like that if you are an A0 making 13LPA. If you want to get reduced working hours you should be willing to take a 50% pay cut. Law Firms are not charitable establishments for self entitled kids to crib that they should get X amount of money to get a huge pay.

Lol

"Small Law Firm Crowd"

You are not in 2005's anymore. There are atleast 22 + NLU's and 30 + Private Law Schools where there are thousands of kids who are as capable as a Top 6 NLU. Your CLAT Score doesn't make you any better. Some of these TLC and Private Law School kids missed Top 6 NLU's for various reasons.

There are private law schools where batch sizes are super huge. Every year atleast there will be 5000 kids who aspire to get into law firms. Be thankful that you atleast have a job.

It has a big impact. Look at recent history. Wadia Ghandy mass exits to AZB (Wadia left with nothing), Dua - Tatva split (both suffered), K Law - Anoma split (K Law left with nothing), UU Argus split (UU left with nothing), Mass exodus from ELP (Elp remains a tax firm. Doubt the recent AZB PA hire would make any difference), HSA mass exodus to DSK (HSA associates still await salaries), Pioneer splitting from DSK (no major impact), SAM - CAM (no impact), Themis Algo followed by mass resignations from Algo (both suffered). Most of these firms which had mass resignations are left no where today. Look at Wadia Ghandy, Dua, Tatva, K Law, UU, HSA and Algo for example. They are on the verge of death. Most of them cannot afford to pay associates. Wadia still has its litigation and real estate practice (next mulla), and HSA still has a strong project finance and infrastructure practice. That may keep a firm floating for a while. The "100s" who take the job will suffer the same fate. Law is a small community. Associates know well in advance about their fate if they join such places. So good associates would never jeopardise their career joining these firms. The "100s" who want to join are ones good firms don't recruit and are not good enough. Good lawyers do not glance at such firms or teams. They have better options

I quit a tier one law firm job because I just couldn't take it. It was my dream to land a law firm job, and I did it at a tier one firm, yet I found it unhealthy to me. Equity Partners and other senior stakeholders in law firms need to rethink how they want their lawyers to work. I can take a pay-cut but I cannot take a life-cut. I have since settled at a decent in-house position and further in future plan to do some freelancing legal work in a way that I can still prioritize myself first. Just sharing a piece of my mind.

You knowingly or unknowingly wrote down one of the most significant career advice quote I've ever read: "take a pay-cut but not a life-cut".

It's so easy to keep worrying about earning less money in another field. But when you think of it in terms of the hours and days you have on this planet, time is far more a precious commodity than money. Once you realise that you realise you're earning to live, not living to earn.

Thank you, my friend!