New Lawyer Survival Guide

"New Lawyer Survival Guide" is a resource for law school graduates on how to navigate office politics, avoid or pivot from newbie mistakes, and thrive in the workplace.

Are you a new lawyer? If so, then this book is for you. Being a new lawyer can be a stressful and seemingly endless experience. With worries ranging from imposter syndrome to career-ending mistakes, practicing law in the beginning can be like a journey where you are traveling a rocky, unpaved road with no map to guide you. Oftentimes, new lawyers do not want to lose face by bothering their superiors with particular issues—or worse, some new lawyers, such as those who run a solo practice, may not have access to people in positions of leadership with whom they can consult. This book is meant to fill this gap by providing practical advice for common, real-world predicaments facing new lawyers. While nothing can substitute for the real thing, this book will provide guidance akin to that of a mentor. New lawyers have little extra time, so New Lawyer Survival Guide was designed to be an easy read; and it has long-term value in that it can also serve as an ad hoc reference guide. New lawyers often ask themselves, How will I ever survive? This book is the answer.

Alan St. Louis is a partner at Cole, Scott & Kissane, P.A., in Miami, Florida. He practices in the areas of business litigation, professional liability, and general civil litigation. Alan has earned a reputation as "the lawyer's lawyer" for his work defending lawyers in legal malpractice claims and bar disputes and for helping mentee lawyers navigate their careers. He was named as one of Florida's top "Rising Stars" in the state of Florida by the Super Lawyers Legal Guide from 2017 to 2019. Before his legal career, he was an active-duty member of the U.S. Air Force working for the military police. He earned a BS degree from Weber State University and received his JD from Nova Southeastern University, Shepard Broad Law Center, where he was a member of Nova Law Review. Alan is admitted to practice before the U.S. District Court for the Southern, Northern, and Middle Districts of Florida; the Supreme Court of Florida; and all state courts within Florida.