Describe the worst lawyer you’ve ever worked with. Go

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I worked with someone who tried to convince the receptionist in our office to relinquish a statutory fee she was entitled to (she had been the co-administrator of the client's estate), so he could have it. She made like 30k a year.

likefunny

Probably not the worst story out there, but my first boss used to aggressively confront me in the bathroom about work. She learned people’s shoes so she knew who was in a stall and then she would ask lots of aggressive questions about the cases you were working on while you were trying to use the toilet.

likefunny

A13, we have offices. I don’t think she intentionally followed me into the bathroom to confront me about work, but as long as we were both in there, she was going to use the opportunity to do so.

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I’m watching this thread to see if someone describes me.

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Chances are, if you’re aware enough to wonder if you’re going to make this list, you’re not going to make this list 🤣

likeuplifting

Big shot partner at global firm.

Yells at anyone for anything? Check.

Tells people they are lucky to have a job? Check.

Tells people they are lucky to work with him? Check.

Brags about the people he knows and how much money he has? Check

No respect for anyone’s time (enjoys making everyone wait so he can make an entrance)? Check

Insecure to the point that he will yell at someone, tell them he loves them and ask if they’re upset, all in 15 minutes? Check

Loves to say things he knows are upsetting just to see the effect? Check

likeupliftingfunny

Former Junior Partner at small firm, in suburbia (Associate 3, I have "borrowed" your superb outline and expanded):

Yells at anyone for anything? Check.

Tells people they are lucky to have a job? Check.

Tells people they are lucky to work with him? Check.

Tells people that he is the reason that clients hired other lawyers in the firm? Check

Brags about how much money he has? Check

Brags about living off his ex-wife for years even though she made less money than him? Check

No respect for anyone’s time (enjoys making everyone wait at his door after he summoned them)? Check

Gets personally offended when OC reciprocates his nasty correspondence style back to him? Check

Has threatened to "beat up" at least 5 members of the local bar? Check

Has been sanctioned for his in-court antics by possibly the most patient trial judge in the region? Check

Employs his live-in girlfriend, yet refuses to provide health insurance for her? Check

If another attorney is billing more than him, will harass their assistant/paralegal until there is either a confrontation or the assistant quits? Check

If he has a loser case/motion will pawn off on an associate and then go ballistic when things go poorly? Check

Refers to associates, not by their name but, "My boy" "your boy" or "My/Your girl"? Check

Partner on all-firm call stated that depression isn’t real and you should just think happy thoughts.

Same partner during jury selection asked young associate, who is Chinese, if Chinese people like Indian people.

Another partner made me take all his CLEs for him.

likefunny

Partner was getting dementia and became aggressive. Started throwing v thick files at the file clerk, corrected docs to say the wrong thing, and eventually punched his son (other partner) in the lobby. I got out ASAP.

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Wow

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Not the worst but certainly bad. Told OC in settlement discussions that if he didn't mute his mic when not speaking (there was intense reverb on the line + his cuckatoo (?!) was in the background screaming) I would end the call. I ended up doing so. He complained to the partner that he thought I was a "pedantic little git", and when the partner took my side he filed bar complaints against both of us. 🥲 Can you imagine being so huffy?

likefunny

Those who for anything they can choose the date to file or serve do so on Friday at 4:59pm

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Because the partner does not have any other plans.

Overly confident and incompetent partner where, as a first year, I found fundamental mistakes in said partner’s work.

likesmart

Partner wrote a book on litigation, including fun facts like that if your case ever goes to SCOTUS, all 12 justices will hear the appeal…

likefunny

Our leaders ladies and gentlemen.

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In house. Worked at a company where the senior management didn’t know who the #2 lawyer was in the org and this person had been there for a decade. Not a “who is minding the children” way, but in a “who is that person in that office” way.

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If senior management doesn’t know who you are and you engage with them on a regular basis that’s not a good thing. It was definitely the result of this person not being good at the job. It got to the point they would exclude this person and just come to me (no. 4 in hierarchy).

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Working with a Plaintiff’s lawyer right now that I’m pretty sure had his client draft the discovery responses. He identified people in a narrative format as “my friend who drives the concrete truck” and “my boss,” no names or phone numbers, and the entire document was incoherent. Not just rampant typos, but it was actually incoherent. I can’t imagine ever signing my name on a document like that…as mean as it sounds. For his written discovery to us, he asked for us to identify x that we “plan to use at trial” for every request, so we produced almost nothing (we don’t have to identify those records until the witness and exhibit list). Just incompetent.

Told my DA friend about it, and it turns out, the guy is a criminal lawyer. He got in trouble for quitting the DA’s office and then representing the accused in the same criminal case. He has changed minute orders after she signed them too. I would feel bad for the guy’s horrific work product if he weren’t also unethical.

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A former trump lawyer (he was gc of a casino). He had been sanctioned repeatedly. He came to the office about two hours a week, had no idea what was going on with his cases (his own smalll firm), blamed everybody else when he wasn’t prepared and then would get sued by clients and experts he stuffed. Also, he’d crank the ac in January in the conference room he held court in to feeeze the staff and attorneys who came at his beck and call. He was recently on shark tank and is now involved in a lawsuit over that.

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Senior lit associate at big law firm. Only spoke to junior associates by scolding. I would send her work product, phone would ring, and it would be 15 minutes of her going “I don’t understand why you would….” Without letting me get a word in. Some of the things she didn’t understand were things she told me to do.

We had a filing where I used a wrong term of art (very minor). She said she can’t believe I did that and we lost all credibility now. Scold, scold, scold. I pointed out I took that language from the same exact filing she did earlier (before I was there). (We won the filing. No she did not apologize.)

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Worst

OC for an entity that defends the executive accused of embezzling funds and mismanaging assets despite the fact that bc of that executive the company is being brought before the court for contempt of a court order. Mind boggling!

WOC partner who gaslighted other WOC attorneys, including me, and actively blocked a WOC sr associate from making partner (she’s now a partner elsewhere). This partner also took credit from others, was abusive to her assistant and paralegal, and overly micromanaged without providing substantive input herself. She always had a revolving door of pet associates, which I luckily managed to avoid. She was superficially nice and did all of this under the guise of mentorship, which made it all the more worse.

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