“Heather, thank you for your advice about asking for specifics. We initially thought there would be enough work to sustain my current salary while building my book. But it's now clear that it could be 2+ years before making my current salary.”

This was in a recent email from a client considering a lateral move.

My client learned a valuable lesson (many lawyers learn too late): Law firms are great at selling the dream but not so good at delivering it.

Not because they’re misrepresenting anything. They mean well. But unless you force specifics, they do what most humans do in this situation:

Assume.

• Assume they have enough work (while you're building a book).

• Assume you’ll transition seamlessly into their firm.

• Assume nothing unexpected will happen (such as a President playing tariff ping-pong).

That is why I decided to record today’s podcast.

Join me for an in-depth discussion about what to consider before making a lateral partner move >>>here.

XO,

Heather

P.S. Bravo to the firm my client was talking to. They did something few law firms do: run the numbers and all possible scenarios (while being honest about a realistic timeframe for growth).