Discussion by lawyers, for lawyers

I’ve been working as a prosecutor since passing the bar last October—I spent six months prosecuting felonies in a small rural town and made the switch to misdemeanors in a much busier county three weeks ago. I thought that switching over to misdemeanors would change how I feel about my field for the better, but it’s actually made me feel so much worse. I’m miserable. I hate every second of every hour I spend in my office. I especially hate the countless court appearances, incessant barrage of emails from OC asking for a dismissal/reduced sentence, being forced to subject myself to the lunacy of a judge who hasn’t the slightest aptitude for efficiently running a courtroom, and the bureaucracy that permeates every decision I make regarding the outcome of my cases. I hate the constant workload. I hate the constant stress. I especially loathe juries. And then there’s the expectation that I can try three jury cases back-to-back in a week and then be ready to argue 7 motions the following Monday without any support, guidance, or mentorship from my office. My office paired me with a trial partner who has zero experience prosecuting felonies or misdemeanors and I’m essentially charged with training them on how to do their job when I barely know how to do my own. I expressed my concern to my supervisors who responded by reminding me that making mistakes in the misdemeanor world is perfectly peachy because the stakes aren’t nearly as high compared to the world of felonies—I’m sorry but that’s just not an acceptable response as people’s lives and liberties are still on the line. The last few months have left a sour taste in my mouth for the profession as a whole and I just feel hopeless. My mental health is worse than it was in law school (which is saying something) and my days usually end with me crying on my way home from work. I’m having trouble sleeping. I don’t have time to devote to the hobbies and activities that used to make me happy. My relationship has suffered. I feel like a shell of my former self and I’m not sure what to do. I’m trying to hold on until I find my next job but I’m terrified I’ll end up in another shit situation out of sheer desperation to get out of my current one. A few friends have suggested that I take a couple months off to decompress and figure out my next steps. I’d like to be as intensional as possible moving forward with my job search, but I’ve already had two stints and I’m not even 8 months into practice. Is taking time off this early in my career a bad idea? The break would also be coinciding with a move to another part of the state, which I could use when explaining the gap to future employers (I just wouldn’t list my current job on my resume). I’m at a loss and can’t help but feel that I made a massive mistake by going into this profession. Words of advice are appreciated.