Lawyer interrupted : successfully transitioning from the practice of law - and back again

This book covers both the practical and ethical considerations for lawyers taking a break in service for a variety of (voluntary and involuntary) reasons, including temporary leaves of absence, taking care of family, changing careers, disciplinary actions, and retirement. The book focuses on the importance of pre-planning, addresses the considerations unique to each reason for a break, and shares stories and advice from a broad population of lawyers who have taken a break from service for each of these reasons, including: Nathan Sawaya corporate lawyer turned internationally famous Lego brick artist Jill Donovan litigator turned nationally renowned celebrity jewelry designer Laurel Bellows - Past President, American Bar Association Todd Singer former Oklahoma State Judge and litigator and currently a history teacher for an underserved community Marc Luber former entertainment lawyer and founder of the award-winning video website: JDCareersOutThere.com Amy Impellizzeri former Skadden Arps litigator turned best-selling author And more As former law partner-turned-law professor/author, Liz Brown, said in her Foreword to Lawyer Interrupted: What Lawyer Interrupted does, more than any other book to date, is collect the best advice for all stages and types of career questioning that lawyers may have and to present it in an immensely enjoyable and highly readable way. This book is innovative, practical, concrete, and substantive. The author provides extensive resources to enable readers to explore relevant situations in more detail."

• Foreword p. xi
• About the Author p. xv
• Introduction p. xvii
• Chapter 1 A Preflight Checklist p. 1
• Be Sure You Really Want to Leave p. 2
• Leave on Top p. 7
• Cultivate Relationships with Junior Colleagues p. 9
• Keep Dressing Like a Lawyer p. 10
• Engage in a Pattern of Strategic Volunteerism p. 13
• Embrace It! p. 15
• Chapter 2 It's Only Temporary p. 19
• What a Difference a Year Makes p. 20
• Make Friends with the Younger Kids on the Playground p. 22
• Keep Active in the Interim p. 22
• The Rules Do Not Apply to You (For One Year at Least) p. 23
• Keep Testing the Waters p. 24
• Chapter 3 From Lawyer to Caregiver p. 27
• Prepare to Miss "It," but Recognize the Contradictions p. 31
• Caregiving Should Not Be Your New "Job" p. 38
• Use the Time p. 43
• Cut Costs-but Not by Firing the Babysitter p. 44
• Say Yes More p. 46
• Be Good Enough p. 52
• Chapter 4 Discipline, Disbarment, and Other Involuntary Exits from the Practice of Law p. 57
• Accept That You Cannot Change the Past p. 60
• Articulate in 20 Words or Fewer What You Have Done to Make "It" Right p. 60
• Stage Your Comeback p. 62
• Chapter 5 Leaving a Law Firm for an Alternate Legal Career p. 69
• Prepare Yourself to Graduate p. 71
• Consider an Alternative Way to Practice Law p. 73
• Look into Informational Interviewing Made Easy p. 77
• Consider What It Is You Would Do for Free p. 79
• Chapter 6 Leaving the Law for a Second (or Third!) Career p. 81
• Say It Out Loud p. 83
• Make a Paradigm Shift That Does Not Shed Your Lawyer Identity p. 84
• Do It on the Side p. 87
• Wait for Your Website to Crash p. 89
• Chapter 7 Retirement Plan p. 93
• Your Retirement "Plans" Better Include More Than 80 Percent of Your Preretirement Income p. 94
• Consider Creative Income-Producing Options for Reasons Other Than the Income p. 97
• Be Careful About Agreeing to Pet-Sit! p. 98
• Chapter 8 Dealing with Fallout p. 101
• We Are Not Always Who We Think We Are-Revise Your Imprints p. 104
• Find Your Own Gold Stars p. 106
• Write a Book p. 109
• Chapter 9 Ethical and Practical Considerations p. 113
• The Clients, and Files, and Money-Oh My! p. 114
• Be Careful at Cocktail Parties p. 116
• Know the Pro Bono Rules in Your State p. 116
• Keep Your License Active p. 118
• Chapter 10 On the Road Again p. 121
• Say Your Number Out Loud p. 123
• Low-Level Interns Might Go Out on Tour with the Rolling Stones p. 126
• Don't Go Back Too Soon p. 131
• It's the Technology (That Makes You Feel) Stupid p. 133
• It's All About Who You Know p. 135
• Know Who You Are p. 138
• Appendix p. 141
• Acknowledgments p. 143
• Index p. 145