The Lawyer Holiday Gift Guide: The Best Gifts For The Attorney In Your Life

The Work From Home 2020 Edition.

We’ve done this gift guide for a number of years now and, generally, the process is simple: consider the broad categories of gifts you might want to get the fickle lawyer or law student in your life and update the previous edition with the hot new offerings. 

But a funny thing happened when we started working on this year’s gift guide. It turns out we spend a good deal of this guide hyping office apparel and desk toys and cool business luggage. But as we stare down work from home set ups for at least the next five months, and some firms toying with extending the policy at least on a voluntary basis through the end of next year, this is a good time to take stock of what your lawyer really needs.

For instance, we’d never considered that what lawyers might REALLY need right now are new baby gates for either the child they have to watch while working or the new dog they bought in a fit of loneliness. Or that the hot electronic device every lawyer can’t live without isn’t the latest ePaper device but a reliable Wifi extender.

We’ll keep the old standby categories around, of course, but we’ll be introducing some more items tailored to the unique circumstances we’re facing right now.

As always, we’ve categorized everything so you can either peruse the whole post or click on the link below to jump directly to the category that you think best suits your shopping mission:

Books
Electronics
Apparel & Accessories
Games
Food & Drink
Desk Toys & Office Decor
Movies & Television
Luggage

(Disclosure: When available, we have used affiliate links.)

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Books

Do you have a reader on your hands? Of course you do, you’re buying for an attorney! Grab a nice book to curl up with this holiday season — or to read on their next flight to some far-flung deposition.

It would be the good kind of surreal to start reading Election Meltdown: Dirty Tricks, Distrust, and the Threat to American Democracy by Rick Hasen on December 26. The book was prepared before the Iowa Caucuses gave us all a preview of how our expectations of election results were poised to create mischief. He may not have seen it ending with Rudy Giuliani leaking on stage, but Professor Hasen outlined a lot of the problems we ended up seeing when we chatted with him back in February.

America’s most famous Thomas M. Cooley Law School graduate put out his memoir this year. It’s understandable if you don’t think your special someone would appreciate contributing to the financial rehabilitation of Donald Trump’s long-time fixer, but as an historical artifact Disloyal: A Memoir by Michael Cohen is fascinating. If nothing else, it’s a good lesson in how not to conduct a legal career.

There is no book that will ever convey the transition from law school to actual practice, but The Young Lawyer’s Jungle Book: A Survival Guide and Survival Guide for the New Lawyer endeavor to get as close as any text can.

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For the business-minded out there, consider The Client-Centered Law Firm. Clio CEO Jack Newton basically brings Dale Carnegie to the legal industry. Corporate management training has thrived for decades, but attorneys have, either stubbornly or innocently, avoided a lot of the lessons that could be lifted from the business world to create a thriving law practice. Bob Ambrogi wrote a book review here.

Smoke But No Fire shines a light on the disturbing process of convicting the innocent of crimes… that never even exist. Cassie Chambers probably didn’t intend Hill Women: Finding Family and a Way Forward in the Appalachian Mountains to be the answer to the question, “What if Hillbilly Elegy, but JD Vance wasn’t an asshole?” but it does, more or less, answer that question. Finally, the Cult of the Constitution by Professor Mary Anne Franks deals with the rise of constitutional fundamentalism probably best parodied by the Onion headline: Area Man Passionate Defender Of What He Imagines Constitution To Be.

electronics

We’ll get to the super serious stuff in a second, but this is an amazing gift for lawyers that can be used at home or back in the office. The Ember Mug allows the user to set the ideal temperature for their coffee or tea — and then keeps it there.

Have you heard your lawyers or law students rumbling about Internet connectivity? We can’t solve the nation’s chronic underinvestment in broadband capacity, driven by a cynically destructive anti-net neutrality policy and a complicit government, but we can help with routers. I struggled with Internet connections for years before investing in the Google Nest mesh system. It extends the range of a network while passing devices seamlessly between hubs to keep the connections strong across the house. There are a lot of products in this guide that I’m recommending second-hand based on input from other ATL staffers or reliable tipsters, but this one I can personally attest works like a dream.

These are only a couple of many options, but consider giving the gift of noise-cancelling earbuds or headphones. Home brings distractions and lawyers need to drown that all out and bill some time.

Have you considered how many devices attorneys need? If you have, then you might imagine the home office is a tangle of power cords befitting an Aliens set. This can help with a whopping TEN OUTLETS.

apparel & accessories

With the loss of Justice Ginsburg this year, some may be in a mood to honor the late justice. Dissent Pins sells a line of pins and necklaces in honor of the justice and Etsy offers some cute Supreme Court pins as well.

On that note, is there a more 2020 gift than a hot new mask? This mask honors the women of the Supreme Court. It was made before Amy Coney Barrett but if we’ve learned anything about the new justice it’s that she doesn’t have much use for masks — or science — anyway. Here’s one of RBG’s collar and a specific dissent mask. Beyond the Supreme Court, here’s a Litigator mask And, hey, one for the paralegal who makes all the lawyers look good.

Do you have a law student in need of the perfect accessory for an ugly sweater party?

If you’re looking for chic loungewear so your lawyer can live their best work-from-home life, our sibling publication Fashionista provides some suggestions.

ESK Esq. has a whole line of apparel for the lawyer out there including a stylized view of glorious Blackacre of Property Law fame and an International Shoe logo for Civ Pro nerds. If you’re buying for a law student this season, consider this Lawyer-Loading shirt or this shirt featuring the refrain of law students everywhere.

What about a foul-mouthed lawyer? We’ve got that covered too.

Here’s a shirt for every good Sunny fan who knows the benefit of a solid education in Bird Law. Here’s a Nelson & Murdock shirt for the comic book set — I’m still searching for a Goodman, Lieber, Kurtzberg & Holliway shirt for the fan that wants to be really obscure.

There won’t be office holiday parties this year — hopefully — but there is a shirt you can wear on the awkward office Zoom party.

What better stocking stuffer than… stockings.

Finally, is there anything lawyerly about these slippers? No. Are these essential footwear for the stay-at-home lawyer? Yes.

Games

You’re stuck at home. You may as well have some fun with the situation.

It’s not so much a “game” but the Magnetic Poetry set lawyer edition

The LAWSUIT! board game is still around. The game’s setting is the day-to-day operation of a law firm where players bring fictitious lawsuits with whimsical premises, and can elect to settle or appeal cases.

Approach the Bench makes bottle stoppers, ornaments, and lawyer, Judge, and Blind Justice chocolate bars!

FOOD & DRINK

There’s no more kitchen or cafeteria stocked with goodies down the hall. Now you’ve got to do all that on your own. So how about a super mini-fridge to keep your home office stocked. It’s portable and plugs in to keep things cool (or warm). It’s not much bigger than a lunchbox, but it can keep you covered for the day.

Also… Jot.

Seriously, Jot is concentrated ultra coffee that you can get delivered to your home — which is, again, your new office. I’m merely one link on a word of mouth campaign and everyone I’ve seen test this stuff has gotten hooked. Here’s a code for a discount on your first order.

This wine bottle holder has been on the list for years and it’s just so delightfully weird that it comes all the way back around into awesome. There’s some serious detail work on this thing.

Or for the more honest out there, we have this World’s Okayest Lawyer Mug.

What better way to get into the holiday spirit than to enjoy some holiday spirits? Caskers, founded by Harvard Law grads, curates all varieties of the best craft spirits from around the world and offers discounts of up to 40% of retail prices.

Teak & Twine offers gift boxes for all people and occasions. While everything is customizable, the Holiday Home Office and The Foodie seem like great options.

Chocolate Text lets you send chocolate messages to anyone you desire. Personally, I’d go for “You’ve Been Served.” You can also order a “Selfie Tin.” Simply upload a picture and Chocolate Text places it on a tin of your choice of sweet treats. The perfect place for that photo of your favorite lawyer shaking hands with a Supreme Court justice or walking up to get their degree.

Is a lawyer having a good day or a bad day? This wine glass will let everyone know. Meanwhile this wine glass explains why the lawyer is drinking today.

If you know someone who worked in the Trump administration, might we suggest this gift.

And, honestly, without being able to go to the store as often as I’d like, I’ve taken to ordering groceries. Did you know FreshDirect offers gift certificates? In case the lawyer you know is a big fan of meat, I’ve taken to using ButcherBox and it’s done wonders for keeping me stocked while on extended lockdown.

Desk Toys & Office Decor

Someday, lawyers will get back to spending most of their lives behind their desks, so why not spice up the office a little? Sure they might appreciate a framed picture of their loved ones, but these thoughtful trinkets might make for better conversation pieces. Or maybe they’ll just make you smile in between Zoom conference calls.

Help the lawyer you love sit in style. This is a stylish swivel chair that emphasizes the home in home office and will not look out of place when the lawyer goes back to having to have people over. If they aren’t the sort who worries about that sort of thing — or if they have a dedicated office space that doesn’t need to match the decor — they might appreciate the more modern ergonomic office chair look or this super old school leather lawyer chair look. Personally, I like this one that splits the difference.

If they need a home desk — which most lawyers probably have by now, but law grads starting new jobs in 2021 might not — this is a nice entry level home option that gets the job done without overwhelming the studio apartment.

As mentioned above, whether the lawyer is juggling child care with work or trying to keep their new dog at bay, consider some baby gates. I don’t have the need to lock up either, but the recommendation we’ve got from other ATL staffers is that this is “the best baby corral ever created!” We’ve also been told that this 3-in-1 potty training toilet is essential for the working person who has to simultaneously teach a kid the ropes.

And then there are Funko Pops. You know, those big head toys that seem to be everywhere these days. They even make Golden Girls Funko Pops now, which seems like the border of market saturation. But there are some legal Pops out there like this one of Matt Murdock or this lawyer She-Hulk one. There’s a Citadel-dwelling Lawyer Morty from Rick and Morty. And, obviously, there’s Saul Goodman and Jimmy McGill. For that matter, Abraham Lincoln was a lawyer.

It’s not exactly meant for the desk, but this is a nice decorative touch for the office. It’s a framed copy of the patent artwork for the gavel. Specifically, U.S. Patent 2,755,833 — also known as the Hollow-Headed Gavel With Telescopic Handle Section.

Someone at CafePress has a billable hours clock available to mix decor with some wit.

movies & Television

Lawyers may not have a lot of free time, but when they have a chance to catch up with the world, they can thank you for providing them something fantastic for their viewing pleasure.

Like the complete series of Law & Order. If you wanted to know what twenty season bundle of disks looks like, well there you go.

Speaking of series, the complete runs of Perry Mason, Matlock, and Ally McBeal are all available. Personally, I’d take the various seasons of Harvey Bridman or Better Call Saul though.

Classical movie buffs might appreciate this 50th Anniversary Edition of 12 Angry Men or an opportunity to revisit Atticus Finch before he became a racist in Go Set A Watchman. On the ridiculous side, perhaps they’d enjoy Al Pacino’s turn as Satan in Devil’s Advocate. Then there’s the greatest courtroom film of all time, My Cousin Vinny.

Luggage


The essential gift for a traveling lawyer! Remember when lawyers would travel?

The ScanFast Briefcase from Mobile Edge is a TSA-compliant laptop bag that allows the traveler to keep their laptop inside their bag while passing through TSA security checkpoints. This makes traveling with your laptop simple while keeping your laptop secure.

For a less standard design, check out this option (which also comes in three other color combinations). The bag is still TSA-compliant and boasts rich pink suede and brown faux-leather exterior highlighted by a bright color-accented satin lining. A matching shoulder strap, separate zippered workstation for files, and a trolley strap for rolling luggage included. Carries a Lifetime Warranty!

Seriously, peruse all of the MobileEdge offerings while shopping.

If you come across any more cool holiday gift ideas for attorneys, send them our way! We’re always looking to add more to the annual guide.


Joe Patrice is a senior editor at Above the Law and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. Feel free to email any tips, questions, or comments. Follow him on Twitter if you’re interested in law, politics, and a healthy dose of college sports news. Joe also serves as a Managing Director at RPN Executive Search.