Do you hate working as a lawyer? Are you an unhappy lawyer who wants to leave the law, but isn’t sure what to do next? Do your family and friends think you’re crazy for wanting to leave the law, or are you too afraid to tell them you don’t want to be a lawyer? The Former Lawyer Podcast is for you! Each week, host Sarah Cottrell interviews a different former lawyer who has left the law behind. Hear inspiring stories about how these former lawyers are thriving and found their way to careers and lives they love.
When the world feels unstable, the idea of introducing more instability into your life by leaving your legal job can feel impossible. But waiting for things to stabilize before you address your career unhappiness might mean waiting forever. 2025 was a difficult year. If you’re already in an overwhelming job, everything else happening in the world makes it even harder…
Maybe you’re thinking about leaving the law, but you aren’t quite sure you’re ready to start working through the process. You’re thinking, “I really think this isn’t for me, I definitely want to get out eventually, but maybe not at this exact moment.” If that sounds like you, there’s something you can do. This is going to be the most…
When lawyers start thinking about leaving, they focus on the practical steps. What career should I pursue? How do I update my resume? What skills do I need? Those things matter, but Sarah consistently hears from lawyers that they underestimated something else. They didn’t realize how much they needed to know they weren’t alone. The legal profession can be deeply…
Most people who are thinking about leaving the law spend a long time in a familiar place. They know their job feels awful, they say it to themselves and to other people, and they imagine how much better things could be somewhere else. But imagining you’d like to leave is not the same thing as deciding that you want to….
Zi Lin did everything “right.” Philosophy major, law school, great grades, OCI, Biglaw offer, six-figure salary. From the outside, the path looked impressive. From the inside, it felt like being processed through a conveyor belt. No one asked whether the career actually fit. It was just the obvious next step. Parents approved. Professors approved. Colleagues approved. When everyone around you…
A lot of lawyers assume that making more money will make leaving easier. In reality, the opposite often happens. Once you are in a high-paying legal job, it can feel like there is no other path that will work. People outside the profession are usually surprised by this. They assume lawyers have endless options, but many lawyers feel they have…
