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> I have practiced law for more than ten years, attended some of the institutions mentioned, and have worked in and with firms that would be considered "elite."
by knighthack 5y ago
> I have practiced law for more than ten years, attended some of the institutions mentioned, and have worked in and with firms that would be considered "elite." I don't recognize any of the phenomena described in this article. Frankly the writer is either very far from the reality of modern legal practice (chasing noise in the system, without any real data) or she's viewing things selectively to serve some ideological purpose.
I am in a similar position as you. I have practiced for more than 10 years, and at one of the largest law firms (which will be kept anonymous), and I have forever been a full-time trial litigator. And I do not share your experience.
I've seen the exact opposite, i.e. as per what the article has described - 'woke' juniors coming in with ridiculous expectations, and being a bit too forward despite their lack of experience. I've seen resumes where applicants wrote that they preferred not to be hired at the firm if it didn't include the diversity policy of their choosing (and which is shameless, since a large firm has no ends of good applicants to select from), and where these applicants listed their own social activities (none of which included legally-relevant matters) with 'woke' topics as if that were of any inducement to a large legal firm that was billings-first, over virtue-signalling. I've seen some of these folks during meetings virtue signal and judge against other associates who they thought didn't reflect their standards, which was very toxic for the work environment as your political/social ideologies should really be kept out of the workplace. And so on.
If law firms are shaped by businesses, then the institutions producing these new students - and capitulating to these unrealistic 'woke' demands - are educating the new generation completely devoid of legal business reality.
- digisign 5y agoSounds depressing, however an over-correction to real phenomena. A lot of young people come to the working world with unrealistic expectations that get realigned after time. It's part of growing up, saying/doing dumb things. Will it get worse or moderate? Time will tell.
- ss108 5y agoBut won't those people simply not rise through the ranks if they don't perform well? At the next step, how would they really "take over" the legal system just by being woke at work? They still have to make the same arguments the rest of us make in partnership disputes, proxy battles, sec lit, etc. Even by doing pro bono, best one can hope for is a good result for an individual, not systemic change. Most judges aren't woke. Going from A to Z here is rife with issues. When there is a progressive version of FedSoc, then they might be poised to takeover the legal system. But for now, conservstives have taken it over by correctly identifying the power of the judiciary--the least accountable branch, btw. Personally, I am fortunate to be at one of the least woke biglaw firms and nobody in my first year class is like that.