Judge Jimmy

Charlotte F – Hey Judge, I was down at the LAWSKI event in Thredbo a couple of weekends back with a few members of my team, along with my Partner (Boss). These weekends away are always a lot of fun. This year, however, things got a little weird, having been put in a very awkward situation that was only made worse by an overzealous boss who can become very competitive at times. On the night of the opening drinks, a partner from a rival firm approached me, asking if I wanted to work in her team. At first, I brushed off the question as a joke, however, she was most definitely not joking. She continued to make these remarks throughout the whole weekend, even going out of her way to buy my drinks and letting me cut those pesky chairlift lines. It’s not that I’m not interested in making the move, I’m just conscious of going about this the right way without burning any bridges. I also know that my Partner will do everything he can to keep me. #Help? 

 Hey Charlotte, 

Sounds like you’re in hotter demand than a Trump sponsored cure for COVID. Usually in these types of situations, I find it’s best to roll with the punches and take advantage of everything that’s put in front of you. The one who truly wants you will show their true colours, especially if making a move has been playing on your mind; when there is doubt there is no doubt… (let me know if you need help with this).

Given the aggressive behaviour of the partner approaching you to make a move, it is only a matter of time before she reaches out again. Best to prepare a list of pros and cons about your current situation in order to help with some clarity surrounding a decision with the eventual next approach.

If your pros and cons look something like the below then it might be time to move on: 

Pros:

• Coffee shop in your building has hemp infused rice milk
• There are some good looking lawyers at your firm
• Your landlord Dexus (Sponsored Ad) hands out freebies in your lobby
• You occasionally get the leftovers from the partners’ lunch because you are friends with the Chef (you went on a date once)

Cons:

• Your Partner is a psychopath 
• The work you do is mediocre 
• The good looking lawyers at your firm are all taken
• The constant “plz fix” emails from your Partner. 
• Having to constantly reteach your Partner how to merge two PDFs

If you want my opinion, any Partner that goes to this much effort to get you on board is worth hearing out. After all, we don’t go down to LAWSKI for the snow! Or do we? One has to be loyal to themselves before they can be loyal to anyone else… And to be honest, your current Partner sounds like he might need some self-reflection time. More money, better role and potentially working for a partner that is not a sociopath (~20% chance). You know what to do. 

Good luck,

JJ