Things Lawyers Like - The Working Lunch

The power lunch has long been a fixture of Corporate America. Most lawyers, however, have no association with the concept. Instead, lawyers pride themselves on a different approach to lunch; one that involves continued reading, typing or listening in on a conference call. This allows the lawyer to address two of his essential hungers - sustenance and billable hours.

When an attorney eats lunch at his desk, the perfect aura is portrayed to those who work around him. The lawyer is telling the world that he doesn’t have time for a break today (other than frequent checks of the internet, personal phone calls and emails). This causes those who walk by the lawyer’s office to wonder why this diligent warrior has chosen to make his office smell like a chicken cheese steak for the rest of the day. The inevitable conclusion is either that guy has nobody to go to lunch with or he is a busy bee, generating fees for the greater good at the expense of some friendly lunch banter. In other words, the risk of being labeled a loner is worth the potential reward.

If a lawyer goes out to lunch, he should always make sure it is under the cover of a client meeting. Lawyers that find themselves relaxing in the employee cafeteria for an hour or two can pretty much count on a visit from the pink slip fairy. The reality is that lunch is nothing more than a barrier to a fully productive day to the lawyer. In fact, rumor has it that in most law firms a partner has not fully read your draft of a deal document or memo unless you can find a food stain on it. All of this talk of lunch making you hungry? Go ahead and grab some lunch you champion of right and wrong – just make sure you have them make it “to go.”