Entering My Fourth Year of Practising Law
In my final year of law school and in the early days of chambering, I often heard a “myth” that practicing law, especially litigation, is toughest in its first five years. During this period, many are “defeated” by the challenges inherent in practicing law and end up quitting because they are “unable to withstand the pressure”. Those who persevere and stay beyond this period usually continue practicing for a very long time and are deemed the successful ones. The concluding advice is usually this – if you find practicing difficult now, do not worry because it is meant to be challenging. The five-year mark is the threshold. Once you hit five years, things will be much easier, and you are very unlikely to quit anymore. Yet I never recall if anyone actually guaranteeing a happy ending at the end of those five years. The lingering unspoken thoughts are these – perhaps once they entered their fifth year of practice, they stay on because they believed they cannot do anything else a...