Amidst the economic downturn, many lawyers are finding themselves out of a job. Although many lucrative positions at large firms are gone, many are finding this as an opportunity to do work they are more passionate about.

Dave Dineen is one of these lawyers. After graduating in 2004 from Boston University School of Law, he began his career at the prestigious Massachusetts law firm, Foley Hoag LLP. Instead of trying for another corporate job, Dineen chose instead to work for Greater Boston Legal Services (GBLS), an organization which provides free legal assistance (civil only) to low‑income people- a job that pays a quarter of his former salary.

“This gave me a chance to do something different with my legal career, and help out people who generally don’t have access to public service,” said Dineen, whose position now focuses on helping people in foreclosure proceedings.

“There is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity coming out of a difficult situation,” Esther Lardent, president of the Pro Bono Institute in Washington D.C. contends. She is currently involved in creating a project focused on placing jobless lawyers in public interest firms.

Over two thousand attorneys have been laid off in 2009 already. More than double the amount let go last year. Some firms that are struggling to stay afloat as it is have cancelled internship programs, affecting many.

This is a breath of fresh air for public interest firms. The state budget cuts and low donation levels may require them to make staff cuts, but with a willing-to-work-for-any-amount pool of overqualified candidates, it is an employer’s market.

Another benefit coming from all the lay offs is the streamlining of previously clunky firms towards maximum efficiency and the creation of web-based firms. Virtual Law, a sleek web-based firm which does business mainly over the phone, internet and through video conferencing, reports that they have been adding three partners per month. A partner at Virtual Law, Geoff Willard states, “When you tell people, ‘I’m going to drop my rates 25 percent,’ it’s a pretty easy decision for them to hire you.”

Geoff left his remunerative partnership at JLA Piper, because, as he puts it, “[I] was fed up with the traditional business model that required it to annually increase rates and billable hours to finance ballooning profits and overhead.”

Despite layoffs and an overall decrease in corporate litigation due to cutbacks, there is still hope for lawyers. Virtual firms and public service may not be as lucrative, but they can be as or more fulfilling.

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