Transactional junior associate in biglaw. Working for a dedicated practice group rather than in an associate pool. For the past few months, I’ve been loaned to another practice group for a good chunk of time. While the people are decent and the hours aren’t terrible, I detest the work and don’t see a future in this new practice. My main partner says it should end in the next month, but I don’t expect that to happen. Is it a terrible idea to ask to be taken off?

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Lock yourself into more work in the preferred team, even if it’s non-billable, then keep communicating to the other team that you don’t have capacity because your “real” team has you tied up.

Cleaner way to do it without setting fire to the carpet.

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I think you can express that the work subject is not your preference, so you're happy to continue helping (a lie) but you would rather move back to your prior work (the truth). If they value you, they will want you to be happy.

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Wanted to follow up by saying that the new group seems to believe we are going to be with them for years - at least they’re talking in that time frame. I just don’t like having my career hijacked after a decent start with my primary group.

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I would reiterate to main partner only that you are excited to get back to [main practice area] in a month or so.

Then see what happens as it gets closer. Part of being a well regarded corporate junior is having a good attitude, but I wholly understand your desire not to get stuck in, say, bank finance, when you wanted to do M&A.

It's better to have a good job than no job.

Have your peers also been loaned off, or are you the only junior in your group who got stuck with this situation? I’m skeptical that the group will keep the word that it’ll end “next month”. Had a friend who got loaned to work in a different group due to business needs and ended up working 6 months despite the original statement that it’ll be just a 2-3 months gig. I would start by talking with a senior associate in your original group that you trust and ask for advice. If that senior is decent, they’ll bring it up to the partner’s attention

There’s a huge difference between months and years. When you are at the start of your career, 6 months or even a year seems like an eternity as it’s such a high percentage of your career. When you look back later in your career, it will be a blip and nothing more.

So if it’s months, you take it on the chin and do what the firm needs you to do, particularly since you are still getting work from your primary practice group and not losing ground on gaining experience in your preferred area.

If you honestly believe it may be years, you need to be more assertive (especially if you believe that there’s any chance you might end up in the new area long term).

Either way, the best way to address it is through the managing partner of your current preferred practice area. You have to express a willingness to continue to serve the needs of the firm as needed, but be unambiguous that there’s a cost to you in doing this, and it isn’t a sustainable cost.

This will sound bad to some, but I see the form as owning your short term time, but you owning your career, if that makes sense.

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