Is asking first year associates to hit 215 billable hours normal?!

Hey all - first year associate here… I’ve met my hours requirement for this year (requirement is 1900 and am currently at around 2050 with billable hours - approx. 2160 with non billable admin hours) and I am just tired. Is it okay to just “disappear” during the holidays (thanksgiving week, week of Christmas) and let partners and senior associates know I am not available? At this point I don’t care about making more money - I just want to sleep, read a good trashy book, and cuddle with my dog.

Partners/shareholders - how many hours are you expected to bill on work vs client dev and firm/associate management? My firm keeps saying that "there's no such thing as a relationship partner" and everyone top-to-bottom is expected to log 2000 hours/year on real billable work. Marketing etc is done on top of that. Is that normal?! If so, I'm going to have to totally rethink my life goals.

Any advice on if your specifically assigned practice area stalls due to factors you can’t control (e.g. rising interest rates causing borrowing to stop and your a loan documentation attorney)? Most other practice areas are full or don’t have additional work to dish out at the moment so I’m not sure what to do. I’m worried about not meeting billable requirements but don’t see much I can do.

Hi there, starting new in private practice. My job requires billable hours. Anyone know where I can find a list of terms and descriptions I can use when I am billing clients? TIA

Is 180 billable hours per month a high “target” (to use the firm’s vernacular) or expectation?Although it may not be unreasonably high, I believe it is a high number and would at least appreciate someone at my firm acknowledging that. Perhaps I’m wrong and I’m sure you’ll tell me if so.

Opinions? Management now requiring everyone to have 45 billable hrs per week, not including mandatory concepting n pitch work. Most people participating in 2-3 initiatives at same time. Is this normal

Just got into a full time grad program for international affairs that starts in January of 2021. (completely changing careers). I need to stay working at my firm until then and possible after to get the billable hours for my CPA. I passed all 4 exams and I refuse to give let that go to waste...... how do I tell my employer I'll be going to school in a way that they'll still let me work part time? Extremely nervous they're just going to let me go.

To the post below- it is quiet, so I’ll bite!
Does anyone know about associate compensation at the regional Atlantic Canada firms? The the big ones have all been posting job ads for associates in the 3-5 year range. Any insight on salary and billable targets?

Is it just me or the average billable work in infrastructure transactions has blown off steam in the last couple of weeks?

Has anyone gone into compliance for a state university & hospital? As counsel or a compliance officer? Looking for insight how this compares to firm lifestyle & billable hours.

There is almost nowhere to find reliable bonus information on Canadian firms. I’ve heard of year end bonuses ranging from 10-50% this year (not including Covid bonuses). Let’s start a thread posting year of call, rough billable hours worked and bonus as a percent of salary.

5 year call. 1850 hours. 10%.

Looking to leave a govt job for a junior attorney role in a small workers comp defense firm. I have no experience in workers comp. How easy is it to learn the work and make 1850 billable hours? What future opportunities does this experience give?

How many billable hours do people in prosecution tend to average each month? I’ve gone through waves of feeling like my billable hours requirement is reasonable to feeling like I’m drowning and can’t possibly do it for that long.

Anyone work for NYC HEALTH & HOSPITAL that can talk about quality of work? Benefits, WLB, WFH, workload (!!), billable hours (??) etc? TYIA

As a new hire, how long did it take you to get a full plate of work? Meaning at least 7.5 billable hours per day.

Received a job offer. Was wondering if anyone had any thoughts on a concern I had about it. It's an entry level position, and I don't have much experience. The billables are 2040 a year. For billable hours in civil litigation and insurance defense, is 2040 hours for a 1st year associate on the high end in this field for a small or midsize firm? It seems like most attorneys I know have minimum requirements of around 1800. The compensation is around 80k a year.

How has working from home impacted your billable hours? What we’re your best and worst days for billing since WFH started?

Have any of you taken "low bono" clients while working at a firm? I want to take on a low bono client or two but not sure who would get the money. This is a contract opportunity through a non profit so I'm assuming a 1099 will be issued. The per hour rate is significantly less than my billable rate. I would (obviously) like the money but my real objective is just getting experience/networking since I recently moved to a new state and don't have clients of my own.

I started my first in-house role about 4 months ago and I don’t think it’s the right fit. I love the no billable hours aspect, but otherwise I miss the structure of being at a firm. How long do you think I should try to stick this out before I move on? I want to give the job a real shot - and i know the transition to in-house can be jarring…but I also don’t want to spend too much time in a job that is a wrong fit.

Mostly to vent, but wonder if anyone else has had to deal with this…my team consists of a partner, shareholder, 3 associates, myself and a legal assistant. We have a busy docket, 70 active litigation files. For over a year I have been dealing with inexperienced legal assistants, mostly coming from other areas of law. The partner relies heavily on me to clean up the messes, fix the mistakes, etc., and HR is on me for doing too much admin, i.e., non-billable work.

Anyone know a good house cleaner they trust? Would love to get someone independent vs. a big cleaning company. Thanks.

Hi fishes,
Need referral for cyber security, 2.5 YOE.

I am having negotiations with a start up company, that i dont wish to join. Is it unethical to accept offer letter and then not join. The letter would help me in negotiations in other companies.

I have been in conversations with a couple companies about new positions that they’re considering me for. I have built relationships with and respect them highly, but am unsure of my future plans - am strongly considering grad school in the fall. Is there a way for me to let them know gracefully and ask if they’re still open to working together? I feel pretty sure about grad school but nothing is set in stone and I want to be transparent without shooting myself in the foot. Thanks!

Did not know this bowl existed until today. Big fan of F1 and can’t wait for new season to start. I am a big Sebastian fan and hope he gets back to his best. Cheers everyone 🥂 p.s: if anyone plays sim racing on ps, I’d love to go a few laps 😄

Does FAANG / MANGA check for DS/Algo/Sys-Design knowledge while interviewing experienced developers of about 6+ years? Or Would it be any different?

Do you have anything that you add to your work that's a signature of yours? I like using a specific font because in my office, everyone recognizes it as "mine". I just like it a lot. What about y'all?

Fair ACD Writer freelance rate for hcp or DTC please?

Our firm gave us $50 Amazon gift cards for Administrative Professionals Day. Well today on our pay stubs, they charged it to us as income so we have to pay taxes. Thanks but no thanks. What’s next, charging us for luncheons and coffee?

A3 - what kind of pay bump should I anticipate going into industry?

Any tried and tested ivf doctors in Mumbai? Have a low AMH and super low ovarian response.
Thanks

I am a C.A , currently working in HDFC ltd as a credit underwriter. I want to switch the industry.
Any referral would be helpful for consultancy profile.
Thanks in advance

Hi Fishes, what should be the appropriate fixed comp for a Tax Senior - USI based out of Bangalore ? I have 3.5 YOE and have been in Tax Senior role since 1.5 years.

Any book recommendations for grieving the death of an estranged parent?

In case you're wondering, "make it go viral for $0" is still a thing clients and digital strategist types still say. It's 2021.

Is it almost 100% to be released right away when I give the 2 week notice to join other B4 firm? Audit to FDD.

Do you guys remember doing character and fitness? I didn't have any issues with it but apparently the bar association can contact your landlord?

I remember questioning how they could even obtain some of the stuff they are asking for if you were not forthcoming. For instance, how would they know if you've been civilly sued if that's not always public information or how would they know if you are current on your taxes?

PSA: today is the last day to enter your February time !!!

Anyone switch groups from RR to lit?? If so, what was your experience like?

1) What is your response when asked what makes you stand out as a candidate in a job interview?

2) how do you highlight other skills that may not otherwise look transferable on paper?

3) how do you combat what seems like “lack of experience” or being “too junior” for the role?