Hi! Just here for a quick post. Quick posts are where I write a short post, usually a few paragraphs, really quickly between activities. Todays quick post is about being on-call at my law firm.
As I have stated in past, I work for a private criminal defense firm in a midwest city. This job requires that a few attorneys rotate being “on call” during the weekend for a couple different reasons. First being that the police work 24/7 so we do too. A client can be “picked up,” i.e. arrested at any time of day or night. Clients can be picked up on Christmas morning, at 2:00 AM on a Sunday, or at 4:00 PM on a Tuesday afternoon. Therefore, an attorney needs to be ready to do a jail visit at any time to protect our client’s rights. Second, our firm’s policy is that we cater to the 24-hour nature of the business. While some private criminal defense attorneys turn their phones off at 5:00 PM, 6:00 PM, or 7:00 PM, our firm does not. It is what sets us apart.
My Experience
Now, with that being said, I really struggle with this aspect of criminal defense work. I like my firm and I think the attorneys and staff do an amazing job, but I do not like the 25/8 nature of the work. As someone who struggles with anxiety (I promise this is not my entire personality), being on call is really, really draining. I often end up going into the office because it helps curb the anxiety. I am not sure why it helps. The other part I struggle with is the demanding nature of clients. When a client calls you when they have been arrested, they are likely having one of the worst nights or days of their life. Nearly anything you are doing at the time you receive the call, can wait.
I also struggle to move between work spaces and non-work spaces. What I mean is that I have a very hard time logging off. When I have to be on-call all weekend, I am constantly thinking about work. I cannot get out of the work headspace. This is due in-part because I must keep my cell phone on and working at all times when I am someone who would love to simply throw my cell phone off of a cliff. This is also due to my own inability to work and also have fun. Enjoying my work is a deeper issue I am dealing with and will flesh out later. Long-story short, I struggle to enjoy this work due to the intensity of it. Again, this will be a post all to itself.
Lastly, I don’t get any days off when I am on call. I have to work straight for 14 days or more. This is normal for many, but for me it is not. I went into office work and the practice of law so it wouldn’t be so intense but man have I realized I chose wrong. Again – this is a good subject for another post.
All in all, it sucks. I have tried to find the “pros” in being on call but they are few and far between. One pro is that it forces me to be in my city and at home. I often get a lot of chores and extra work done. Other than that, there are not many. I hope in the future to learn to love this part or at least learn to accept this part of the job, but it is not looking so great right now.
Thanks for reading!