PT-LawMom

Today I read Diary of a Mad Legal Secretary by Eve Halliburton. A lot of people seem to think it was hilarious so I decided I’d read it and share my thoughts with the many, many people who search my blog using terms like “it sucks to be a legal secretary” or “I hate my legal secretary job.” As I read the book, I couldn’t get past the bad grammar and misspellings (on the back cover, even!). However, it was a fairly accurate account of life as staff in a law firm, especially the part about people acting one way and then going behind others’ backs to report their perceived misdeeds. Ms. Halliburton described these characters in an extreme way, but I would bet there is more than a grain of truth in her reporting. The HR director reminded me of a woman I worked with at my first firm who was a bee-yotch on wheels and did a lot of the things in this book. That said, she was also probably one of the most insecure people I’ve ever met and, looking back, I just feel sad for her. Anyway, the book wasn’t as good as it could have been (especially the end – weird!), but overall it was a decent read. I’d encourage Ms. Halliburton to get an editor, revise the ending and republish it. It could turn out to be a hit.