Q&A on living a satisfying life in the law

Judge Carl Horn.

Judge Carl Horn has been a U.S. Magistrate Judge for the Western District of North Carolina since 1993. Prior to 1993 he was an associate in a large firm, the founding partner of a smaller firm, legal counsel to two non-profit organizations, and Chief Assistant United States Attorney (1987-93). He is the author of several books and numerous articles, including LawyerLife: Finding a Life and a Higher Calling in the Practice of Law. He has been a featured speaker on these issues at bar events around the country, and teaches professional responsibility at the Charlotte School of Law.

Q: Is the frustration and lack of fulfillment that we hear about in the legal profession specific to our profession, or is it a problem that many professionals are experiencing?

Leaving aside who we consider "professionals," to some extent lawyers face the same challenges as any hard working, successful group in contemporary American society: how to find meaning and fulfillment in a rush, rush culture that measures success by how much money we make and what we own rather than by our character or the quality of our relationships. But because law is so cerebral, and because there is ever less time to balance the work we do in our heads with the needs of our hearts, many lawyers experience the negative effects more acutely. That, I think, is why lawyers today have the highest incidence of major depressive disorder of any profession.

Q: Are lawyers in corporate departments and governmental agencies "happier" than those facing the billable hours' pressures of private practice?

That's hard to say; some are, some aren't. Remember that a majority of lawyers in private practice still report enjoying their work. But lawyers who have found themselves working such long hours that they eventually feel they have no life, and who then accept corporate or government employment where a full time week is 40-50 hours, where there are no time sheets or billable hours requirements, and most weekends can predictably be spent with friends and family, usually report being "happier" with their professional (and personal) lives.

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Q: Are lawyers who work in the non-profit world less frustrated than those in the corporate world?

Again, that depends on the individual lawyer. There are lawyers who love what they do in private practice, who thrive on the stress and adrenaline inherent in litigation or putting together a big deal or even reviewing and making sense of complex transactions and documents. On the other hand, there is also inherent pleasure and fulfillment in connecting personal conviction with one's professional focus. So for someone who is passionate, for example, about helping the working poor, legal aid employment can bring great inner rewards that compensate for the expected reduction in income. This same principle would apply to someone whose legal employment is with an educational institution or charitable organization pursuing goals to which the individual lawyer is personally committed. It really boils down to individual preference and choice.

Q: How does a lawyer start in finding his or her higher calling?

For some that means re-thinking and trying to reconnect with the reasons we went to law school in the first place. To "pursue justice," perhaps? To help people solve their problems and realize their potential? Others, who may have had less lofty motivations — for example, those who went to law school because it was thought to be a sure pathway to power and wealth, or simply because they could think of nothing better to do as college years were coming to an end — may need some "values adjustment" work. But whatever our motivations for becoming lawyers, most of us have our more magnanimous moments when we do something particularly unselfish or honorable and experience the attendant satisfaction in simply doing good. We need to say yes to these higher urges more frequently, carving out more of our time and resources to give back. And, of course, pursuing a "higher calling" incorporates being scrupulously honest — with our clients and others — ever striving to stay off the slippery slope of routine ethical compromise.

Q: Did you ever question whether you had made the right career decision?

Although I know from poll and survey data that many lawyers report they would not become lawyers were they able to make that decision again, I am not among them. As I mention in LawyerLife, my father and uncles were all lawyers so I knew what to expect. My father went the corporate route, finishing his career as president and CEO of a large public utility, but finding time to serve on nonprofit boards and generally to give much back to our community and state. One of my uncles was a distinguished judge in Alabama who, when the Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court refused to swear in the first African American elected to the state legislature since Reconstruction, gladly and proudly volunteered to do it. My other uncle was a successful trial lawyer with a huge heart who sent dozens of young men and women to college during his life and endowed substantial scholarships at several colleges when he died. Their examples, and others like them, have always made me proud to be a lawyer. So, in spite of some troubling trends, I continue to love the law and take great pride in our profession.

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Q: You have developed a list of "Twelve Steps Toward Fulfillment in the Practice of Law," number eight of which is "'Just Say No' to Some Clients." Would you please provide some more detail and background on that tenet?

Former Secretary of State Elihu Root famously quipped that "About half the practice of a decent lawyer consists in telling would-be clients that they are damned fools and should stop!" Presumably, if the erstwhile recipients of Root's counsel declined to follow his advice, he declined to be their lawyer. In the wake of the savings & loan scandals of the 1980s, Ambassador Sol Linowitz lamented the fact that so many "good and reputable law firms" had laid the dubious legal foundation for business failures that lost many millions of dollars and thousands of jobs. In what now strikes the ear as almost quaint, Linowitz encouraged his lawyer readers in The Betrayed Profession "not [to] undertake the representation of someone he does not trust and whose story he does not believe."

Fast forwarding to 2000, according to the ABA Pulse of the Profession study, "Pressure Point #2" in the contemporary practice of law is "increasingly demanding clients." ("Pressure Point #1" is denominated "Financial Pressures Turning Law Into a Business, Not a Profession.") The ABA Pulse study described in detail the ways attorney-client relationships have changed in recent decades, and the unpleasant stresses and pressures these changes have spawned.

Putting this all together, there would appear to be several reasons a lawyer or law firm would be well advised to "just say no" to a client. First, if the client is inclined to walk on the edge of the ethical or even the criminal, and not to follow counsel's advice to do otherwise, an ethical lawyer will avoid unnecessary headaches (and perhaps worse in this age of in-your-face white collar prosecution) by declining representation. Second, if a lawyer's expertise does not extend to the area for which counsel or representation is sought, and the only reason for accepting the client is the revenue, careful thought should be given to whether declining representation is not the wiser course. And third, if the lawyer is simply too busy with other work to provide quality representation and maintain some semblance of balance in his or her life, representation should also probably be declined.

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Q: What advice would you give to young lawyers who have just earned their degree and are ready to embark on a career in private practice?

Several thoughts come to mind. First, I would tell them they have chosen a great profession and, if they make good choices, a profession in which they can reach their highest potential. But, I would quickly point out, it will be up to them to choose well: for example, to pursue "balanced excellence," including excellence in their non-work life. Second, I would encourage them to live within — and preferably beneath — their means. For those with substantial student debt, which is more each year, I would encourage them to pay off those debts as quickly as reasonably possible. Third, I would put in a plug for developing and practicing good time management, and would recommend several resources to help with that. And finally, I would probably recommend regular exercise, one of the best stress relievers of all.

Q: Would your advice differ if the lawyer is ready to begin a career in government, in a non-profit or in academia?

Because the stress level of government, non-profit, and academic options is typically a great deal less, work-life balance would be less an issue. Obviously, though, living within one's means and engaging in healthy lifestyle practices (including consistent exercise) would apply equally. And I would probably encourage those moving in one of these directions to keep their options open should they decide to give private practice a try, or another try, in the future. That is, after all, where most lawyers end up.

Q: I'd also like to ask, since you do so much work with teens — would you advise teens not to pursue a legal career, given the dissatisfaction that we're currently seeing among our colleagues?

Again, I am aware there are polls and surveys showing that a considerable percentage of lawyers would not recommend law as a profession for their sons or daughters. I do not share this view. As I said in response to one of your earlier questions, in spite of these troubling trends, I continue to consider law a great and noble profession. And for those who enter our profession for the right reasons, and who understand and accept the pitfalls to be avoided, I believe law remains an excellent career choice.

Q: Tell me what you do to achieve balance in your life.

First, I have to tell you that my wife, not infrequently and only partly in jest, says, "You need to read your book!" Like everyone trying to get it right, I remain a work in progress. In addition to busy civil and criminal dockets, I have a text on federal criminal law in its 14th edition, edit a reporter service to keep it current between editions, and teach law students and paralegals at two different schools. So I begin the search for balance, like most lawyers, with a pretty full plate.

I start my quest for balance by getting to bed at a reasonable hour so I can get enough sleep and still get up fairly early. I spend some of my early morning time in a home office, catching up on writing and other details not finished the day before. I try to work in some exercise three or four mornings a week and at least once during the weekend. My wife and I have a three-mile walking/running route we do together that combines good exercise and a chance for uninterrupted conversation. I love to read, fiction and non-fiction, which I work in most days. And we have taken some great vacations, as a family and with other couples. Besides our family week at the beach each summer, our favorite getaways have been cruises and several inn-based bike trips during the fall color season to New England.

At work I have an excellent, well-organized staff: two experienced career law clerks who are as committed to our work as I am, and a highly efficient deputy clerk of court. Balance is more attainable when those with whom you work have the same priorities and are pulling in the same direction. And because I have such a great staff I am free to help students, lawyers and others who call on me, which occurs fairly often, whether or not requests come at a convenient time. But all that said, I confess again that I very much remain a work in progress!

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