The Inside Story

I maintain (try to) a couple of blogs for a couple of my interests (yes, let's be vague, shall we. I hope this vagueness is not a sign of things to come. But moving on.) I simply don't want one blog to represent the whole me, so I split them up-- charity work/cause, travel, sports, TV shows, you get the idea. Lately though, I have been following blogs not necessarily about my interests but more so about my predicament-- unemployed in the legal industry. Some of these blogs I read are: The Poor Paralegal, Things Could Be Worse (Just Give It A While), Legally Fabulous, But I Did Everything Right, Esquire Painting and other various law school scam/young lawyers/legal profession blogs. I enjoy reading these blogs, but cannot 100% relate since I did not obtain my JD in the U.S. So I thought, why not start a "law" blog of my own! I'm sure the guys at LLM Guide would be happy to know the inside story of how a foreign JD is making it (or not making it) in the U.S. Brilliant!

To the LLM Guide folks though, I must warn you that I don't have an LLM. So what's my deal? How could I possibly think that I could make it in the U.S. as a foreign JD, without an LLM? Am I dreaming? (Yes!) Am I crazy? (The jury's still out on this one.) Am I hopeful? (Truly.) But how do I intend to make it as a foreign JD without an LLM? Read on.

I have a U.S. Master's degree. A few years ago, I was awarded an international, one-year, full scholarship to attend a relatively competitive state school in the South.  My program of study was among those the school was most known for. After my year on full scholarship ended, I decided to leave the school (even with a Regent's scholarship for my second year) to finish law school in my home country. Once I've gotten my JD, passed the bar, worked for a bit, I thought, "hey, why not go back to the U.S., see how things would go." So I did.

I finished my M.A. without any student loans. I was on full assistantship on my 2nd year of graduate study. The assistantship covered full tuition and provided me with a meager (but sufficient) stipend. Before my MA graduation, I secured an internship in a small NYC firm. Well, it wasn't really an internship, as I had been offered full-time employment (no benefits). I was on OPT and my boss said H-1B and green card sponsorship were in the cards. Sadly, I left that job after one month (which meant that I quit after two weeks to give a two week notice. Or maybe I just gave my boss one week notice. But anyway...I quit.) I was working 6 days a week and my boss was calling me on Sundays too. It wasn't the job for me. I don't get paid a lot and the job wasn't challenging enough for me. I was oblivious to the recession.

After about two months of job hunting, I found another job in a small law firm. This is where I stayed for over two years. My boss sponsored my H-1B, I wasn't paid a lot (but at least I was getting paid the entry level prevailing wage for a Law Clerk),  and still had no benefits. I am a diligent worker and in no time, I have earned my boss' trust. This meant that my caseload was more than his and I stayed longer in the office. My boss was generally nice but can be bitchy. I suppose I was under a lot of stress, but amazingly still functioned in the office. I felt lousy that over two years I still wasn't given health insurance. There were times I cried in the bathroom because I couldn't work as fast as I could or should to keep up with all the clients' cases. One day my boss said, "this is how it is in all immigration firms, you know." The next day, I quit.

My boss was shocked. (Yea, why don't you Google "when your star employee quits!") I told him I wanted to take the bar. He said why don't you just take some time off. I was planning on applying for your green card next year. Well, well, well, you bosses all know the way to temporary nonimmigrant workers' hearts, don't you? Dangle the possibility of getting a green card! I was very tempted to stay on. But I realized, change is what I desire. If I stayed on, my life would be the same. I might still be unhappy (it also didn't help my mood that I generally dislike NY winters), and I would still want to quit after a while. I also did not adequately feel appreciated. I thought, if my boss really cared and thought I am a great employee, why hasn't he offered me health insurance? I don't ask for much and it would have been nice to know that my boss cared for my well-being. I don't really take sick leaves because I know if I did, my work the next day will double. I was unhappy, I was stressed, I wanted change, I wanted more. So I quit.

Now, here I am, 5 months unemployed, still without health insurance AND without pay. I didn't start my job search until March (after the February bar). I should have passed that bar. But I didn't. I should have studied for two months, but I didn't. May be I was too happy being without work. I slacked off for the better part of those two months. I crammed for two weeks! After the exam, I kept hope alive that I passed, but I wasn't totally surprised that I didn't.

So how do I go from here? I am retaking the NY bar in July. I am still looking for a job. I am thankful that I don't have student loans and my parents are supportive. I have not yet touched the money they gave me and I hope not to spend it. I will just re-take the bar and go home, unless I find a job before my authorized nonimmigrant status is up. I am looking for a job that I will keep for a long, long, long time. A job that I will love going to every morning.

To answer the most asked question among foreign JDs like me, "how to survive in the U.S. with a foreign JD?" I'd say you need a lot of perseverance and a lot of luck. I was not top of my class, I am not a genius, I am not rich. I am average by most standards. I have no network, I didn't get  my previous jobs because I know somebody who knows somebody. (I am not opposed to that, I certainly wish right now that I knew somebody. A lot of somebodies!) Heck, I am not even lucky. But I am determined. Everyday, I try to stay positive and tell myself that "Things will turn around. They always do."

I intend to chronicle how I fare as an unemployed foreign JD in the U.S. I hope that I would inspire average foreign JD Joes and Janes out there to follow their "U.S. esq." dreams. I hope that my luck would turn soon and that I would be showered with good, great, best of luck! Through all this, I have been getting motivation from The Daily Motivator (www.greatday.com). Perhaps it is fitting that today's Daily Motivator says:

Streak of Bad Luck -- ...The fates are not malevolently aligned against you. You’ve just chosen to see it that way. Your streak of bad luck will end at precisely the moment you decide it is over. The only thing that can make the future look bleak is your agonizing over the past, and that can end right now. ...With a renewed sense of purpose, look forward and move forward. Your future is yours to choose. (Read more: http://greatday.com/#ixzz1M4JRWygz)