That’s not to say that there aren’t legitimate reasons that exist that would be acceptable for legal staff to leave. In this article, we’re examining the good and the bad of what could happen if you quit your current law firm position while you search for a new one.
Considerations When Quitting Your Current Attorney Position While Seeking a New One
Let’s start with why you’re considering a change in legal employers. If you’re just looking to change law firms because you’re relocating, you may have some practical reasons to support either quitting your current attorney position while you’re seeking a new one or starting your search now while you’re still gainfully employed. For example, if you know that you’re only interested in moving to another location and that you don’t have a specific timeline in mind, there’s no reason for you to stop working and devote all of your time to searching legal job boards.
With unemployment at an all-time low,it could take a substantial amount of time to find a law firm position in your area of law. If you do have a timeline because your spouse is being transferred to a new area or personal reasons are causing you to transfer to a specific area, you may be able to at least provide notice to your current law firm as well as start your search on legal job boards.
When an attorney desires to change employers, they have certain legal obligations they must fulfill to both the law firm as well as their clients. Failing to do so or improperly doing so can lead to a bar complaint and subsequent punishment. When you’re applying to practice law in a new jurisdiction, you could be required to report any discipline or any active investigations. Then, the new bar may decide to open an investigation into your behavior as well.
It can quickly become a slippery slope.
This is why it is very important that when you’re looking for a new attorney position that you understand the ethics in your jurisdiction and fulfill all of your obligations. Additionally, law firm interviews are much easier to get through when you’re actively employed. You get to avoid the awkward question about a gap in your employment history.
It’s much easier to address why you want to find a new in house position in your area of law or a new attorney position in a new area. Again, if you’re moving to a new area because your spouse is transferring to a new area or because an immediate life change substantiated an immediate move, there are certainly ways to address it as long as you were able to fulfill your ethical obligations before leaving.
Of course, with all of the different technology options available, there are ways that you can be available for interviews. Skype, Zoom, and even FaceTime can help you get through the first round of the interview process with law firms that are interested in you who are in the other location. Now let’s think about another practicality: money.
While it is believed that lawyers make a lot of money, associate attorneys aren’t necessarily rolling in the dough particularly if they are early in their career. In addition to the same expenses the rest of us have, there are student loan payments. If you don’t have adequate savings to keep your bills paid, it may not be prudent for you to quit your current job while you look for a new one.
Money stress is just another piece of the total puzzle when you’re looking for a job in a very competitive industry. And remember, you’ll also have to explain why you left the last law firm as well as any current gap on your legal resume. For attorneys, it’s almost always better to keep your current position while you’re looking for a new one.
Considerations for Paralegal Careers and Other Legal Professionals
So, what about those in the paralegal career field and other legal professionals? What if they want to find new positions in other law firms or even in other areas of law? What if they’re unhappy in their current positions? Is it okay for them to just quit and focus their time on finding a new law firm position?
Although paralegals, legal secretaries, and other legal support staff professionals do not have the same ethics that must be followed in regards to leaving a law firm in addition to their clients, law firms must still consider potential conflicts during the hiring process. While we did not specifically mention the conflicts search in the previous section, it is because practicing lawyers understand that it a necessity.
Paralegals, legal secretaries, and other legal support staff moving from their first law firm position to their second position find out about the conflicts check on a firsthand basis. Sure, they may have a general idea of it from their daily work by running conflict checks, but they may not recognize that the process must take place during the hiring process as well.
Paralegals and other legal staff must consider how they would address a gap in their employment history as well as how they would address the question of why they left the law firm. These questions don’t exist when you’re still employed.
If life necessitates no other choice but to immediately quit your job because your spouse is transferred or because an immediate life change causes you to change your location, those issues are often easy to answer for even if you do end up with a gap on your resume. This is particularly easy to do if you have a resume that shows a previously steady history of employment.
If you’re just interested in moving to a new area or you have a specific timeline that the move will be made, you can search legal job boards and utilize technology for first interviews.
Another important factor in determining whether you should quit your current legal staff position while looking for another one is financial. Determining whether you have enough in your financial reserve to support yourself during the length of time it could take for you to find a new legal job opening is also important.
Unemployment is at an all-time low. While the legal industry is expected to grow, it’s also highly competitive.
If you quit your job before securing another, it could take a considerable amount of time before you’re able to find another one. It’s almost always better to keep your current legal support staff job while looking for a new one, whenever possible!
