Dear Baby Boomer Law Firm Partner,

You have paved the way for young women like me to make it in the legal profession. You sacrificed a lot to get to where you are today, and I completely respect your work ethic and drive. So it’s probably frustrating for you that this new generation of up-and-coming lawyers wants to work less and live more. We want to work and have kids; take maternity leave and vacations; go home in time for dinner; make plans on the weekends – and still be on partner track?! Why should we get all these benefits today when you had to make hard choices and sacrifices?

If this doesn’t seem fair to you, well, I agree.

[More after the jump]

It’s not entirely. But the work/life balance reform is on the rise. With Citrix and other new technologies we can log onto our laptops and work from home at night. We can share and edit multiple versions of documents almost instantaneously. We have stronger search engines that make legal research faster and easier than it was in the past. While most BigLaw firms still have (high) billable hours requirements, we are starting to see a shift towards more fixed fee arrangements, which will hopefully result in heightened productivity. If one person can complete a task more efficiently than someone else, that should be encouraged – not discouraged by focusing on billable hours and not on the quality and efficiency of work.

I worked for three years as a paralegal before law school. During those three years, I had many hundred-plus hour weeks, sometimes going for days without sleeping. I admit that my work/life balance scale tended to weigh much more heavily on the work side. I rarely made plans in advance because my schedule was unpredictable, and dating was practically impossible. Still, those were literally the best three years of my life. I had the opportunity to work with incredible people on exciting matters that interested me.

It’s funny – during my time as a paralegal it seemed like a lot of the baby boomer partners were actually encouraging me to get out more; to have more balance. For example, I once received an email from a senior partner that said “Great binders. Take the weekend off. Live a little.” I’m not even sure if I took that weekend off, but in retrospect I realize how valuable that advice really was. It’s not just one weekend, but the idea that vacation and time off can in fact make you more productive when you come back to work refreshed and happy. Granted, I was a paralegal and not exactly performing brain surgery (or writing briefs), but the message can apply across the board. Happy associates do better work.

Now that I am in law school and considering which firm to work at next summer (and hopefully for years after graduation if I get an offer), the issue of work/life balance has taken the forefront. I can’t go back to working 24/7 if I want to have a family as well as a job. And I don’t believe that wanting a balance makes me a “slacker” or any less valuable than other prospective applicants. I DO get what this profession is all about, and I want to be a part of it. I am genuinely excited about the work and look forward to doing it. But I also have a biological clock that won't wait forever. It won't wait around for me to make partner -- and frankly, neither will my boyfriend or the other people in my life. Something's gotta give.

As you hopefully know, I think extremely highly of you. In fact, you are one of my greatest role models. So if you consider hiring me next year, please keep in mind that I do have relationships outside the office. I would like to have children someday, and maternity leave is important to me (don’t worry, I’ll come back). I may want to work from home some nights, or work part-time when my kids are young. This does not mean that I won’t give my job 100% when I have an assignment. It does not mean that I won’t be completely dedicated and loyal to the Firm, and willing to stick it out for the long term. It doesn’t mean that I won’t get all of the work done that you ask for. All it means is that I hope to find some sort of balance.

Hopefully this is something we can work towards finding together. To start with, I’d like to work hard during the week and take the weekends off. As someone in your shoes once told me: “Live a little.” I intend to do just that... I’ll always be back and ready to go on Monday.

Sincerely,

Sabrina Ursaner