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David Lat's avatar

By the way, thank you SO MUCH to everyone who has commented so far. The comments have been interesting, insightful, and civil. This is exactly the type of conversation I’ve been hoping to see in these pages, and it has been great to hear so many different perspectives. Thanks again!

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David Lat's avatar

Y'all seem a bit shy, so I'll start the conversation.

Reading this associate's message, I was struck by how the issues faced by associates today seem to be pretty much the same as the issues associates faced back when I was in Biglaw, some two decades ago.

If you had to pick, though, are things better today or in the past? I'm now engaged in a Twitter debate about this. I'd say that working in Biglaw is better today than it used to be, for a few reasons:

1. Technology has removed a lot of the worst Biglaw drudgery (e.g., reviewing documents in paper).

2. Remote working is now "a thing" -- the pandemic has accelerated it, but even before the pandemic, it was common at many firms.

3. Millennials won't put up with as much abuse as Gen Xers, and partners have been forced to adjust -- and become "nicer." As one partner at my former firm told me, "The millennials broke us."

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