When I was in law school, I was seriously concerned about how lawyers managed their lives and careers. How would they juggle being a parent in such a dedicated and demanding legal sector? Personally, as someone who wanted to start a family and bring children into the world, I was seriously concerned about how I could manage that as a lawyer back in law school. I confided in my sister many times, feeling anxious and worried that being a lawyer might prevent me from realising that dream.
During my time as a clerk at several law firms, I encountered people with various attitudes and perspectives on life. What saddened me was that many lawyers I met had strained family ties. They were so absorbed by their legal careers that their families were often sidelined. I came across many who were divorced and unable to maintain a basic work-life balance – and they seemed to accept their fate that the profession was like this. Sometimes, they would expect me to do the same. For me, this was something I could not accept. It was my destiny to grow with my family alongside my career, and having worked in a few firms, I wondered why the legal landscape was like this and maybe those working in the law could share more.
Maybe you can share more about what happened during the lockdown and COVID. Maybe you enjoyed the future of comfortably working from home and being with your families, but I could be wrong. I'd love to hear from those who continue to work from home a few days a week and how it has benefited them!
I genuinely believe that we can have families. We can come home to our loving partners at the end of the day and provide the love they need. We can be happier. We can be more fulfilled in our careers without being overworked. We can deliver the justice people need efficiently. We can find the right workplace that understands us as people. We can grow as individuals. I believe you can lead a better life as a lawyer, and you should believe that too. After all, you are human, and you deserve a life too.
Lawyers, I feel, just want to focus on bringing justice and positive change to their clients - to feel like they have made a difference in the world. Unfortunately the cause is firms continue to be bogged down by tedious tasks such as: legal documentation, client management, filing, marketing, and more. Legal tech has shown how easy this is for firms embracing the future and investing in more value to their clients. I think it is beautiful to see lawyers uniting with tech, breaking barriers to justice and creating better ways of living for themselves.
I invite you to think about this positive and bright future of your profession because I think it will come soon.
How do you think legal tech will improve your life?