Law.com Subscribers SAVE 30%

Call 855-808-4530 or email [email protected] to receive your discount on a new subscription.

Financial Milestones on the Path from New Associate to Retiree

By Justin Peacock
December 01, 2018

Financial freedom. It's something everyone wants. As a lawyer, what should you be thinking about and doing now to put yourself on the path to a secure retirement?

The answer is it depends. It depends on where you are in the arc of your career and how close you are to your retirement years. Here's a rundown of the top few items you should have on your financial checklist, based on your career stage.

Associates

Law school isn't free, so many young lawyers start their careers carrying significant debt. The best thing you can do early in your career is to pay down that debt as quickly as feasible. Interest rates have increased significantly over the last year, so if your loan has a variable interest rate, that debt has gotten more expensive. There are few guarantees in life, but think of paying down your law school debt as a guaranteed rate of return on the money you put toward exhausting that debt because you're paying that much less in interest costs.

Read These Next
The DOJ's Corporate Enforcement Policy: One Year Later Image

The DOJ's Criminal Division issued three declinations since the issuance of the revised CEP a year ago. Review of these cases gives insight into DOJ's implementation of the new policy in practice.

The DOJ's New Parameters for Evaluating Corporate Compliance Programs Image

The parameters set forth in the DOJ's memorandum have implications not only for the government's evaluation of compliance programs in the context of criminal charging decisions, but also for how defense counsel structure their conference-room advocacy seeking declinations or lesser sanctions in both criminal and civil investigations.

Use of Deferred Prosecution Agreements In White Collar Investigations Image

This article discusses the practical and policy reasons for the use of DPAs and NPAs in white-collar criminal investigations, and considers the NDAA's new reporting provision and its relationship with other efforts to enhance transparency in DOJ decision-making.

Bankruptcy Sales: Finding a Diamond In the Rough Image

There is no efficient market for the sale of bankruptcy assets. Inefficient markets yield a transactional drag, potentially dampening the ability of debtors and trustees to maximize value for creditors. This article identifies ways in which investors may more easily discover bankruptcy asset sales.

A Lawyer's System for Active Reading Image

Active reading comprises many daily tasks lawyers engage in, including highlighting, annotating, note taking, comparing and searching texts. It demands more than flipping or turning pages.