Help! I’ve turned into ‘that’ lawyer.

Don’t you just love days when you have four briefs due at the same time in different jurisdictions that do not have e-file? Well, that was me last Friday.

Like most people, I have a plan for the week, but the plan never pans out (in the words of Taylor Swift, like ever).

I planned to have everything done the day before, but an ill-timed migraine and fires in other cases resulted in my being way behind my target schedule.

I reached out to an associate for help. She was great and dutifully prioritized my emergency above her other work.

As I sat there frantically typing, trying to get all the briefs in the mail on time, it occurred to me that I had become “that” lawyer. That lawyer who makes her emergency someone else’s emergency.

As an associate who had to endure that torture for many years, I vowed not to become that lawyer. Yet there I sat.

I started thinking back over the last couple of years and realized I had slowly been turning into that lawyer. The realization was harsh.

To counter it, I spent the weekend getting my personal life “together.” Ha. As if that is even possible. I came back to the office Monday and tried to get my office together. Again, HA.

I determined that getting everything together is not possible. Litigators live by the deadline and every day is filled with fires. Instead of fretting about the fact that I cannot totally control my schedule, plans or work flow, I have decided to embrace the situation. Some days I will be the organized lawyer with only four emails in my inbox. Other days I am going to be that lawyer.

Angela Davis Pallozzi is counsel at Offit Kurman P.A. in Baltimore.