SWITCHING SIDES
Trial & Litigation Section
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In the end, what had
terrified me
became a blessing.
I
t was a very difficult
decision for me. After law
school, I took a job with a
good firm, and 14 years
later, I was still practicing with the
same lawyers and doing the same
and only legal job I had known.
I was fortunate to become a full
partner, and it was comfortable.
Then it happened. I started
growing unhappy with my work. I
loved my partners and the firm, but
not my practice. I began to wonder
if I hated my job, and I realized
that I needed a change. As happens
to many of us, I was burnt out. But
I had a mortgage, car payments,
and a wife and three kids — two
of whom were three-month-old
twins. I am not a risk taker, at
least not with my family’s finances.
Leaving would mean abandoning
the security and comfort of a
stable income and everything
I had known professionally.
I agonized over the decision
for more than a year. Finally, I
decided to believe in myself. And
I made the change. After 14 years
as a defense attorney, I left my
firm and began representing
plaintiffs. I “switched sides.” I
was terrified on the day I quit,
but I knew there was no turning
back and that I would not fail.
Now that I have settled in, I
realize how much the change has
breathed new life into my career.
I have regained my passion for
practicing law, especially for
trying cases. In the end, what had
terrified me became a blessing.
My only regret is that I did not
make a change sooner.
I’m not the only defense lawyer
to make the change. It strikes me
that I have yet to meet a plaintiff ’s
lawyer who switched to the
defense after becoming desperately
unhappy. Why is that? Perhaps
it has to do with how you feel
when you help a person instead
of fighting against them. There
is no joy in saving an insurance
company’s money by fighting
against a family who is hurting
because they lost a loved one.
In fact, there were many times
I felt guilty for getting a “good
result” for the defense.
Not only does helping people
make me happy, but I am no
longer doing work I dreaded.
No billable hours, no reports and
summaries due under arbitrary
deadlines, no insurance companies
cutting my bills for no reason but
my phrasing, and most
importantly no thankless victories.
In one short year in my new life,
I have already been able to help
so many people, and I wake up
every morning happy and fulfilled.
I have met such amazing people at
my new firm, many of whom have
become my close friends. They
are great people and great lawyers,
and I wish I had gotten to know
them earlier in my career.
I am now exactly where I
always wanted to be in my life,
personally and professionally. I
am so thankful to have found my
true calling in helping people. If
you are unhappy in your work,
I encourage you to take the chance
and make the
switch because
it may well be
the best thing
you ever do.
Author:
Brandon R.
Scheele - Morgan
& Morgan
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