I have an incredibly busy job, which is only going to get busier. Someone has finally figured out that we end up as the butt of media bashing far less often when they ask the lawyers about what they’re planning to implement before they do it, rather than expect us to clean up the mess afterwards. Having added to the obligations of the department, they have also approved its expansion. We are hiring a third attorney and a new paralegal. The applications are in, and we are well into the interviewing process for the attorneys. (We get to paralegals next week.)
State employment does not pay anything close to what the private sector does, and generally the calibre of applications we receive reflects that fact. Not this time. The middle aged mother who wants to get back into the field I expected, but we have applicants with Law Journal credentials (i.e. the top ten in their class) applying. I surely did not expect them. We have individuals who have made a living in private practice for years, who now cannot make enough money, and are willing to take an entry level job to which they bring 20 years experience. We have applicants who bring writing samples so beautifully written and researched I would not have hesitated to send them to the Supreme Court. People who have excellent grades and good personalities and references, who should have been snapped up by one of the big firms, are now applying here because they’ve been looking for 8 months or a year and are desperate. We have applicants with law degrees who are already admitted to the bar who are currently working retail. We are having a dreadful time choosing which applicant we’ll offer the job to, because they are almost all stellar. Those form letters everyone sends out saying “it was a difficult decision” generally read as a sop to the pride of the candidate who’s getting dinged, but in this case it’s absolutely true.
It is also a graphic and appalling demonstration of how bad the job market really is. Dubya has a lot to answer for, I’d say.