In-House Counsel Downsides...

So the dream's dead...even In-House positions aren't "all that." He's the article from ABA and the five downsides:

She says the myths are:

1. Better hours and a better lifestyle await. Cannon worked anywhere from 10 to 14 hours a day in-house and never had any downtime. “Part of the reason for the craziness of the days was that there was no longer a buffer between me and my ‘clients’— i.e., the businesspeople within my company—who would often appear in my office if I did not respond immediately to their phone calls or emails,” she wrote.

2. If the job doesn’t work out, a return to private practice is possible. Cannon says law firms may fear a deterioration of lawyering skills or a lack of commitment to staying on long-term.

3. The work will be more exciting because in-house lawyers are at the center of the action. In-house counsel often get more mundane compliance and employment matters while the complicated issues are farmed outside, Cannon advises.

4. In-house pay rivals that of law firms. The days of lawyers leaping to high-tech startups with the promise of a big future payday are over. Most lawyers should expect a pay cut, Cannon says. Compensation structures are different, and often a significant portion of in-house pay comes in the form of a discretionary annual bonus.

5. In-house jobs are more secure. In-house lawyers aren’t profit centers, and companies may see in-house lawyers as expendable in a downturn, Cannon says.