Monday, March 31, 2008

Why Even Temporary Contract Lawyers Should Bother Joining an Organization

A consistent thread keeps surfacing in discussions on and off of this blog - why should contract lawyers bother joining an organization when they hope they won’t be doing contract work for long?

The answer is simple. Most lawyers will be contract lawyers at some point in their career. The reasons will vary. Fresh out of law school, doing contract work may be a means of paying the bills until passing the bar or while interviewing for other jobs. At other points in time, the reasons may be the desire to have a healthy work-life balance, to care for your children, or care for your aging parents. Others simply like the flexibility and control over one’s own career.

Additionally, an increasing number of law firms and corporate legal departments will be looking to contract attorneys to assist or handle special projects. Most lawyers will thus also be using contract lawyers to handle projects for them. Having an intimate knowledge about this sometimes untapped pool of contract attorney attorney talent can increase the bottom line for the law firms and their clients.

Another important reason is networking, networking, networking. Contract lawyer contacts are often the source of job referrals or information about more challenging contract work. Many lawyers currently working non-freelance jobs have reported to us that they take every opportunity to hire contact lawyers when they need additional work done.

Joining NAFLP will engage contract attorneys and other freelance legal professionals in a productive, proactive community that is coming together for mutual education and assistance about the legal outsourcing segment of the legal industry. Whether you intend to work contract forever or only until another opportunity presents itself, NAFLP will provide you with useful career tools and a supportive network.

1 comment:

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