Biglaw Perk Watch: Home Is Where the Art Is
Working in the legal profession, and especially at a large law firm, generally comes with a lot of fringe benefits. So our series of posts on Biglaw perks is by no means complete.
Here's the perk that we'll discuss today: office art (or a decorating budget). If you're going to spend thousands of billable hours a year in that space, shouldn't it be beautiful?
When we were at a firm, if you asked the office manager, you'd be taken to a special art closet. It was full of random items that were deemed unsuitable for other spaces within the firm -- e.g., hallways, conference rooms, partner offices -- but were there for the taking by associates. We selected this weird orange-brown-white composition, a painting that looked a lot like a collage. It had a certain "so bad it's good" quality to it.
Other firms will give you a budget for decorating your digs. We hear, for example, that Kirkland & Ellis gives associates something like $300 $350 for art and office decor. A source tells us: "People use it to frame their diplomas and bar admission certificates. It's nice."
So, what does your employer do for you on this front? Please discuss, in the comments. Thanks.
Update: To read about law firm art collections (as opposed to art in associate offices), see here.
“A Robe Called Paul Weiss” [WSJ Law Blog]
(59) Comments
The KE art budget is $350.
At the Law Offices of William R. Merck, we kept it simple and classic. Each office had a b&w photo of the boss himself, briefcase in hand.
Do K&E lawyers seriously have their diplomas on the wall? Like a bunch of dentists?
3:06 must have gone to a craptastic school
My dad's a law professor and I keep telling him that, since he has tenure, he should just decorate his office with a huge poster of Jimi Hendrix and other stuff that would freak everybody out. Too bad that you push such boundaries at your peril in private practice.
No, i agree with 3:06 - I went to NYLS and line my birdcage with my diploma - the bird droppings add value
03:11 - haha, you went to NYLS
Yes, 3:06, because posting a Yale or Harvard Law School diploma would be such a craptastic idea when you're meeting with a client. Nothing would put them off more.
/end sarcasm
what law firm do lawyers NOT have diplomas on the wall? It's practically a rule or something.
Yeah, if the degree isn't on the wall, how are people going to be able to tell if you're a worthwhile person?
I interviewed at K&E's NYC offices -- don't they have a separate gallery? Thought it was very tasteful, indeed, quite impressive.
There are no amount of "perks" that could compensate for the horror of working at a large law firm.
I'm looking forward to putting my degree on my office wall, if only because I worry about accidentally destroying it at home while it's living in its flimsy envelope.
We NYC lawyers know our offices = free storage. THAT's why our books and diplomas are on display in our offices. My office is half the size of my apartment.
3:14 You don't honestly have cleints come into your office do you? Doesn't your firm have conference rooms?
$350 is pathetic. You can't find any decent art for under $400 even at C&B
Doesn't everyone post their Order of the Coif certificate?
Agreed with 3:31. Only TTT firms actually allow clients into their offices and that's simlpy because there is no other place to seat them. Lawyers here dont five a fuck where I went to school, they only care about the quality of my work. The only non-firm people who come into my office are the cleaning ladies and I dont think they give two shits where I went to school.
Damn 3:36, you whiny little pussy. With the $350 dollars of free money that K&E gives you, your shitty little Crate and Barrel painting would only cost you $50.
In most law offices I've seen, lawyers have their diplomas on the wall. I doubt it's a K&E thing.
3:43 "your shitty little Crate and Barrel painting would only cost you $50"
Maybe 6"x6". Anything bigger no way. You clearly dont know shit about paintings (even those at C&B)
New Thread Idea:
Most Biglaw associates get 4 weeks of vacation. Do most people take much of their vacation time? If so, is it easier to take it in one big block or a few smaller blocks?
(1) El arte es algo de que poca gente realmente se aprecia. 3:36-tengo mis dudas de tu gusto artistico asi que compras arte del C&B. Que asco!
(2) Creo que a las personas a que les gusta poner sus certicados en la pared lo hacen para que todo el mundo les crea inteligente por la escuela a que asistieron, en vez de su verdadera inteligencia o los frutos de su trabajo.
$350 won't buy you much of a painting.
But look on the bright side. It'll get you some GREAT Lebron James posters. And wouldn't you rather have them anyway?
4:01 I think most associates do take 4 weeks but never in large blocks. Usually take several Fridays and Mondays off and days around holidays to turn them into long weekends.
3:11 - That's a good idea, but it doesn't always work. The girl who was the editor of our law review last year tried that same thing, but she told me her bird refused to shit on the diploma and got constipated.
It's hard to pay a vet bill on a paralegal's salary.
1) All my degrees are on the wall; it is expected here as well as my admissions; it is expected here
2) Our own art goes on the walls, within reason, but whatever furnishings we want are provided and they order them and have it brought in for us and;
3) Clients do sometimes come into my office, but we do have conference rooms, but those, at times, seem like overkill.
In all fairness, I think 3:43 is referring to framed posters for $50 or so, not paintings. Don't think C&B has many paintings and the ones they do have are overpriced, which is expected. Not sure you would want paintings in your office anyway, framed artwork will do and is much less expensive and therefore the $350 is good enough. Take it you greedy bastards!
We get as much vacation as we want AS LONG AS WE MEET OUR BILLABLES. Do the math.
My memory of her statement is vague, but someone at H&K told me that they have a policy against hanging stuff on office walls... something to the tune of one-diploma-or-admission-only. Anyone know something about that?
Nothing at Howrey of course.
K&E has a budget for framing??
Why has no one told me this. I just had some things framed as well. Always nice to hear of additional perks.
LAST!
Each associate at my firm is given a Sno-Globe of our office building to place on our desk.
Why the F are people talking about Crate & Barrell like it's a nice place or something. Sure, you can get some decent plates and glasses there, but why would you even consider buying "art" there?
There's no way I'm putting my diplomas on my wall. If clients want to know that stuff they can look at my online bio. (And, like most others, clients get to go to the nice conference rooms with coffee and soda and snacks, not my office.)
My office is filled with plants; framed black and white photographs (taken by yours truly); and fresh flowers. If I am going to spend so much time somewhere, I want it to be a space that I feel happy . . . and diplomas and admissions certificates are pretty boring, truth be told.
Crate & Barrel to 190!!!!
we get a guy that comes around and hangs stuff for us.
If they were "your" clients, you would probably be somewhat friendly (if not close friends) with them, and would likely invite them into your office. What most of you d-bags are talking about is the-partner-who-you-do-doc-review-for's clients, who have no idea that you even exist and would have no reason to go into your Crate and Barrel-decorated office.
Wow, if people are taking anywhere near 4 weeks of vacation at most firms, including long weekends and days around holidays, I am really getting hosed! I am lucky not to have to work on every federal holiday and to get 2- 2&1/2 weeks of vacation when all of my "days off" are added up -- including travel time for Christmas, etc. 4:01, if 4:04(2) is being serious, find out what firm he or she is at and go to work there.
4:01, re your vacation question, I would add that whether it is easier to take long or short vacations depends on who you work for and your personal style. For example, some associates that I know take twice as many long weekends as I do, but are "on call" most of those weekends. I don't enjoy traveling if I feel as if I am chained to the office the entire time, so I don't take many vacation days, but also don't make myself available for anything other than an emergency while I am away on vacation.
Re: vacation, you don't "get" anything. You make your billables and your other time is "paid vacation" in that you are drawing a salary. However, when calculating that vacation be sure to include holidays on which you can't or don't plan to work, any doctor's appointments, CLE, conferences and client development, electrical or other failures that shut down the office/servers .... The good news is that no one tallies that time: if you take five weeks worth of long weekends but still make your billables, no one cares. (Try to take five weeks in a lump sum and you might have difficulty: depends on the firm and your track record there.)
@ 6:15, it is standard in offer letters and other firm documents to state lawyers may take 4 weeks vacation and/or that they accrue vacation.
A fairly new lateral hire at my biglaw firm took a 2 week vacation to Africa last year. That did not go over very well. She didn't even last at the firm for a year.
7:09, that may be the case, but my point was that I have never known of any associate at a firm that takes even close to that amount of vacation. As you noted in your own post, you have to make your billables, and I'm not sure that I agree that "no one cares" if you take five weeks worth of long weekends if you are in a busy practice group. I have also never worked at a firm that pays out accrued vacation. I think that most firms that pay out accrued vacation only do it because it is required under state law (e.g., CA firms), but I may be wrong about that.
GDC just got around the "art budget" problem. They had a "photo" contest in the DC office and will be putting up the "winners" throughout. In the LA office, "artwork" created by the wives of partners is on display.
I think with these kinds of creative ideas, the art budget or any worry about what to put on your wall should be eliminated.
Personally, I am working on a dried macaroni collage which I am sure will impress all the clients who (never) visit my office (that's what conference rooms are for).
I have a big view of the Chicago skyline skyline from my floor to ceiling window. That's my art budget right there. Next to that who really gives a fuck about $350 to buy a shitty reprint of some sloppy crap slapped on a shitty piece of paper by some idiot.
I had no idea that there were firms that didn't pay out for unused vacation. I'd be extremely angry if I weren't allowed to take vacation but then weren't paid out when it came time for me to quit/have a nervous breakdown/be pushed out/whatever.
I think a "vacation realities" list of fame & shame would be much more interesting than hearing about who pays a tiny fraction of a salary for artwork. Which firms are giving the most vacation days, paying out for unused days, accruing unused days, and actually allowing you to take your days without being on the blackberry the whole time while you're "gone?"
my nyc biglaw firm recommends taking our 4 weeks in 2-week chunks. with no minimum billables, only a fool wouldn't use it.
LOL 6:11 ("Crate & Barrel to 190!!!!")
6:11: My ocean view beats your photography. And no one wants to see a picture of your overweight parents at the Grand Canyon. Clean it up.
If nothing else, I think putting your diploma on your wall is a bit of a help to 2Ls on marathon interviews. I definitely appreciated it, when I was in that position. If you were a diligent student and looked up your interviewers resumes, sometimes the thousand details can get a bit scrambled, and it's nice to look up, and get a "gimme" question. Like see a Michigan diploma, and you get to ask if they are a big wolverines fan, etc.
9:07: if you think your NYC biglaw actually has "no minimum billables" you're an idiot.
Anonimo - te quiero!
My NY top 5 Biglaw gives 4 weeks and encourages us to take all of it. They also pay for unused vacation if you leave the firm. Everyone I know takes the whole 4 weeks and even a little more because there is no formal system to keep track - it's up to you individually. In general, it is appreciated if you take a block of 1-3 weeks at at time simply because it is easier for staffing to cover for you.
Nobody is going to say anything if you take 22-23 days in a year! It's all good! =) And you can totally take the morning, the afternoon or even the whole day off for personal things like medical appointments, emergency day with the kids, taking your dog to the vet, etc.
I think the key idea is that you do good work, are generally not a slacker and that you are ultimately reasonable and exercise common sense and good judgment.
We get all the thumbtacks we can steal from the supply cabinet to put our stuff on the wall.
I work for gubmint, though.
Anyone at kirkland know how to go about getting their $350? I need to frame my diplomas/admissions and would love to get reimbursed for it. How do you do it? And why have we never been told about this perk? Please post if you know!
I'm pretty sure this rumor re K&E is not true -- at least that's what the K&E Chicago accounting office tells me. Bummer.