Where Will Your Job Be in Five Years? Two? Six Months?

The news that Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati is dumping 35 legal secretaries, or “making some adjustments to our existing legal support structure,” is a timely reminder not to get too confident in your own indispensability. Take steps now so that when cuts have to be made, you ‘ll be the cutter, not the cuttee.

Can I blame any firm for cutting back on use of legal secretaries? Not really. Lawyers, even the older ones, are far more fully functional than they once were. If some of them seem incapable of licking an envelope, I’m sure it’s a task they’re capable of learning. If they can’t, well, they can always email.

Yet, still, aim not to be one of those cut in your own office. If I were at Wilson Sonsini in any role, I’d take a look around at who was going and who was staying. What were the differences between the two groups? For whom did they work? How different were their personalities? Their skill sets? Their work habits? Their ages? Their ambition levels? Their kindnesses?

It’s not enough to do your job well. You should probably know (and be doing) portions of others’ jobs, too. Not in my position description doesn’t really cut it in these times of economic strife and, as the good folks at Wilson Sonsini put it, “increased operational efficiencies.” Keep yourself current. Pay attention to firm politics. Try to work with someone whose staff is always on the right side of any cost cutting. Know where else in the legal market you could possibly turn, and develop the skills you’ll need to be competitive there. Find an opportunity in a layoff, even if you are safe in this go-round.

—Lori Tripoli

Don’t Be the One Laid Off: Check your Employer’s Background First

The news that New York’s Weil, Gotshal, & Manges is dumping 60 associates and 110 staffers was bad enough, but what stood out in a recent writeup about the firm’s very bleak Monday is that the firm’s partnership agreement only allows termination of partners for cause. Peter Lattman, Big Law Firm to Cut Lawyers and Some Partner Pay, New York Times DealB%k, June 24, 2013, http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2013/06/24/big-law-firm-to-cut-lawyers-and-some-partner-pay/. While some partners are seeing a big cut in their compensation, they surely have some cause for celebration in knowing that, unlike their lower-ranked coworkers, they simply can’t just be “let go.” Or “right-sized.” Or whatever, lacking any malfeasance on their part.

That’s not such good news for those associates and staffers who’ve gotten their pink slips. The event does, however, serve as a reminder that no matter what your rank in a law firm, you’ve simply got to do your due diligence before accepting a position with one, even in those tumultuous (bleak!) times. Wouldn’t you want to know that partners can’t be let go? That means that when the firm needs to cut some big-time expenses, it’ll be looking elsewhere (i.e., associate and staffing ranks) to do the trimming.

Of course, it’s unlikely that a firm will just whip out its partnership agreement during an interview with a prospective paralegal. So do some digging! Has the firm been involved in any lawsuits where firm financials and its partnership agreement may have been disclosed? What’s the news coverage been? When considering accepting a job offer, ask to speak to someone who holds the same position you do at the firm. Talk to another associate, or to another paralegal, or to a legal secretary and ask them some pertinent questions about costs.

Even if a firm with weak financials is the only offer on your plate, you can at least be prepared (always!) if you know its background. A layoff should never come as a surprise. Have your resume ready at all times. And if you’re looking for a new job right now, remember to do your background research on prospective employers before saying yes to any offer.

—Lori Tripoli

“Oops, I Was Laid Off Again”

No one wants that line as her theme song, especially in depressing (er, invigorating!) times as these.  Firms continue to “right size.” The latest example? Planned cutbacks at Dewey & LeBoeuf, which is “aligning” its resources (i.e., trimming lawyers and staff).  Story here.

No matter how challenging the market, lawyers and staff alike should be proactive to make sure their heads aren’t on the chopping block. Are you making your billables? Are you marketing yourself, your practice, your firm? Are you networking internally and externally and displaying plenty of drive? Are you bringing in business? Doing none of the above? Then don’t be too, too surprised if your name is on a pink slip. Have you done all of these things and been laid off anyway? Then you should be that much better positioned to find a new job or to open a new business. Don’t just sit around and wait for layoffs to happen.