We spoke to Ruth Karfiol Glazer, an experienced corporate lawyer based in New York and Connecticut about why she became a Peerpoint lawyer after a break in her career and the benefits it’s brought. She shares what it’s like to return to law and how interim assignments with Peerpoint have enabled her to have the ‘best of both worlds’.
Tell us about how you re-launched your legal career.
I had a very productive and enjoyable career as an attorney at international law firms and as general counsel of a major corporation. When I decided to start a family, I knew that I wanted to take a step back and gain a better work-life balance. When my children were very young, I worked part-time for a global investment bank, but even that schedule became hard to balance. It was a very difficult decision to ‘retire’ from my traditional practice of law, but I was fortunate to be able to pursue my goal of raising my children full time and engaging in community activities.
As I became an empty nester, I decided I wanted to re-launch my legal career. However, my outlook had changed since I was younger and I wanted to continue to find a work-life balance so that I could practice law and also have time to enjoy my hobbies and travelling with my husband.
Taking on interim legal assignments and project work with Peerpoint has enabled me to have the best of both worlds. I work on legal projects that are challenging and enjoyable and I am able to spend time with my family and pursue my outside interests.
What was it like coming back to law after a break in your career?
The transition back into the workforce was better than I expected. On my first assignment, I was concerned that ‘everything must have changed’ and that my skills would no longer be applicable. This could not have been further from the truth. One of the nice things about the practice of commercial transaction law is that the way we’ve been trained to analyze and produce work has remained substantially the same. I welcome the challenge of new industries and technologies and can apply what I already know almost seamlessly to these projects.
What legal skills have you further developed?
It’s been a really positive experience to be a senior member on many of the projects on which I’m now placed. Because I have experience in a variety of legal roles, I’m further developing my skills to be able to lend advice that goes beyond the basics and provides valuable insight to better help our clients.
What have you found most interesting about your recent role?
I recently finished working on a secondment to an international bank, where I advised on commercial and innovation transactions. The group that I worked with was a great combination of highly intelligent and skilled attorneys who were laid back and enjoyable to work with every day. As this was also my first assignment, it helped to give me the extra boost of self-confidence that I could succeed in this new way of working. One of the interesting experiences I’ve had on this assignment was working on a challenging negotiation which we had to navigate with opposing counsel who had much of the leverage. Everyone was so vested in the process that we were able to break down barriers and get a great deal done for both parties.
What would you say to someone considering legal consulting as part of their career?
The benefits of this type of work, at least for me, outweigh the negatives. I enjoy the flexibility and work-life balance that I can achieve, as well as the variety of projects and clients. However, the biggest challenge is that when an assignment ends, there’s the unpredictability as to where and when the next assignment will be. You have to be comfortable with that and ensure you’ve planned for any gaps accordingly.
What do you enjoy doing when you’re not being a lawyer?
In addition to spending time with my family and travelling, I enjoy playing pickle ball and ping pong (so far neither has ruined my swing for the other) and performing in community theater.