Lifestyle Lawyer – The Female Attorney's Guide to Designing a Law Career You Love
There's a widely held belief among female attorneys that to succeed professionally they must become a partner in a law firm or a general counsel at a large company. But why? Many female attorneys will have as much (if not more) happiness and success with a less traditional job: one that's less stressful, allows for more time to spend with their families, or provides more opportunities to work on meaningful projects. Lifestyle Lawyer addresses the special challenges and opportunities female attorneys face in this new legal environment, both at work and in their personal lives.
Section 1 guides the transformation process so you can: identify where you are in your lawyer path; discover how technology can help you transform your career; learn to shape your own path--one that matches your personal goals; establish what's important to you--your values, your vision at work and at home; uncover ways to distinguish yourself from your peers; leverage networking to establish yourself as an expert.
Section 2 looks at six different career paths for attorneys: the law firm path, the corporate path, the solo-practitioner & legal consultant path, the alternative legal services provider path, the eDiscovery path, the cybersecurity & privacy path.
I hope this book will help women lawyers find a voice, find a position within the new legal market, and find the courage and knowledge to use their law degrees and stay in the practice of law.
About Lee Holcomb (Nashville, Tennessee Author)
I've had three different careers as an attorney. The first as a partner at a traditional law firm in Tennessee. I loved that job, but life changes, and we sometimes have to make difficult choices. For me, this meant leaving the firm in 2006, just one year after becoming a partner.
Why would I do this? Like many women, my hard work led to a certain level of professional success right when I wanted to expand my family. I wanted a second child—and I wanted more time with my kids than being a partner at a firm would allow. Not to mention that my husband was eyeing a position with the U.S. State Department. So on December 23, 2006, with a three-year-old and a six-month-old in tow, I boarded a plane from Knoxville, Tennessee, and moved to Warsaw, Poland, intending to take time off from practicing law.
It may not surprise you that just months after leaving my job, I was already looking to get back to work. I missed my career. I began planning my return to the legal workforce. My husband’s assignment number two took us to Chennai, India.
In Chennai, I took a position with an international Legal Process Outsourcing (LPO) company that provides legal support services to large U.S.-based companies and law firms. Thus began my second legal career path, which would eventually lead me to become COO and Director of Legal Solutions.
Today I am fortunate that I have been able to embark on a new career path that enables me to incorporate my love of art, yoga, technology and the practice of law.