BigLaw

Who says successful lawyers are focused only on their work and don’t have deep philosophical thoughts?

Well, maybe no one, and I have proof that legal professionals do think a lot about important topics. All you have to do is peruse the “BigLaw” section of Reddit.

For example, when last I looked there were 212 comments on the topic of putting two spaces after a period. The nuanced discussion was impressive and wandered into some surprising side issues like the Oxford comma and the use of white space.

Favorite comments: “I feel more free when I punctuate however I goddamn want to.”

Don’t we all?

And: “Banging on the space bar twice after every period makes me feel alive.”

This is the kind of mental health advice you can’t get just anywhere.

BigLaw lawyers also weighed in on “Is it a blessing or curse to have a hot boss?”

The jury is out on that one, and you won’t be surprised to learn that the conversation strayed into the side topic of hot associates rather than bosses. Are hot associates worse than hot bosses? You decide.

There is also valuable nuance — e.g. “Hot for lawyer or hot hot?”

Favorite comment: “This question irritated me.”

BigLaw lawyers are also concerned with fashion. The topic: “Why did people wear suits in the old days and why did they stop?”

As with so many things, Covid gets blamed. So do clients. One guy blamed globalization.

And, it turns out, not everyone stopped wearing suits.

Favorite comment: “I was watching an old episode of ‘I Love Lucy’ (a 1950s TV show) where the wives were mad at Ricky and Fred for looking like slobs. But what they were wearing would easily be more formal than most ‘business casual’ these days.”

You don’t get research like this just anywhere.

Here’s an interesting BigLaw question: “Do people succeed in this job without being totally materialistic?”

You’d think a simple “yes” would suffice, but apparently there’s a lot of nuance. BigLaw responders seem to think that the question was about whether to spend money right away or save up.

Favorite comment: “Just be greedy instead of materialistic.”

Finally, a reality check from a thread titled “How often do you get to exercise?”

There was this comment: “PSA to everyone reading this thread: remember, the answers here will only come from people who do work out. But in reality, the vast majority of people in big law do not workout.”

Followed shortly thereafter by this: “Idk … being in big law seems to be a breeding ground for depression and depression is notorious for taking away one’s ability to do anything above the bare minimum for survival.”

You no longer need to be envious of anyone working for a big law firm.