> "Even if they become partners, most won't be rainmakers - and many would have made the same amount of money if they struck out on their own, opening a small b

> "Even if they become partners, most won't be rainmakers - and many would have made the same amount of money if they struck out on their own, opening a small boutique firm." And the other dirty secret is: you'll still be on call 24/7/365, sleep on the couch in your office, and not know your family, even after you make partner. The rat race/grind doesn't stop in Big Law. You grind to be considered for partner, and you think maybe once you get there you get to boss around a bunch of associates and take a breather. But no, that's not how it works. You'll be paid 7-figures (maybe, if you're a book partner and not a work partner) but you'll still be just as miserable and overworked as your past associate self. Having seen the industry up close I now advise people to run as far away as you can in the opposite direction if you're ever tempted by a big law legal career. It is nearly-exclusively the home of absolutely broken people who'll be remembered for keeling over in the break room after pulling the tenth all-nighter in a row.