[JoeRedskin]

Since we are having a boss rant, I think I'll join.

In the last two months my boss has dumped a massive trial in my lap that had been in litigation for seven years. The attorney assigned left and the attorney supervising had already left. So with no existing institutional knowledge, she assigns a two week federal jury trial to me six weeks before the trial date and denies my request for co-counsel (twice). The opposing side has two attorneys so I would negotiate the major concepts with the partner then hash out the details with the associate while partner moved on to next big issue. I worked insane hours to read thousands of pages of depositions, pleadings, transcripts and documents and then distill all that to prepare pre-trial motions and witnesses testimony. The month of February is a blur during which I barely saw my family and worked almost exclusively on the trial.

One week after the trial, boss assigns a TRO to me on Friday for which a hearing is scheduled the following Thursday. Client screwed crap up so I am running around all week trying to learn the procedures from three different sets of administrative appeals and fix the screw ups before the Thursday hearing. All the while, trying to get the letters and supporting documents, necessary to succeed at the hearing. Judge calls us in three hours ahead of scheduled time to say I win but only if I file certain affidavits within three hours. Spend three frantic hours putting the paper work together and get things done.

After working several 80 hour weeks (and none less than 60) since January 1st, Boss comes in today and says "You have had these three projects since before Christmas, why aren't they done?"

Used to love my job. Got to find something new. I have settled multimillion dollar cases, won trials everyone said I should lose, am the hired gun picking up other people's crap and making it into diamonds, have completely revamped the litigation unit to create system of case tracking and accountability. But I failed to answer questions the client said "Don't need those now; get back to me after your trials," so I suck and will get tanked on my performance review later this week.