Hard-Drinking Lawyers: Avoid a Holiday DUI

Lawyers work hard and play hard. In fact, lawyers are known to have one of the highest percentage of alcoholism of any profession.

So as you let loose at your office holiday party or take your sorrows to the nearest pub, you should remember to leave your car keys elsewhere or have a designated driver on standby.

It's OK to have a drink or two (as I'm sure you know), but don't risk your career or your life by driving drunk. Here are some tips to avoid a holiday DUI:

• Set a drink cap, and come under it. If you know you can safely have four drinks without feeling buzzed, then make sure you stop drinking after three drinks. You may think you're sober, the life of the party, and ready to drive at four drinks, but the truth is that you may already be drunk.


• Ask an associate to drive you home. You order your underlings around in the office, so why not order them around out of the office too? Sure, it may be a jerkish thing to basically tell your associate not to drink, but he probably already thinks you're a jerk anyway. Plus you can make it up to him with a nice holiday bonus. And if your associate won't do it, maybe another lawyer or staffer at your firm will.


• Preprogram a cab company's phone number into your phone. It's already almost 2013. There is absolutely no excuse why you should not have the number of a friend, a cab company, or even a limo (if you're really doing well) preprogrammed into your smartphone.

You really don't need us to tell you that drinking and getting drunk can seriously derail your career. Have too much, and you'll make a fool of yourself in front of your colleagues and perhaps even your clients. Worse yet, if you're charged with a DUI, you could face a suspension of your law license and even jail time.

So enjoy yourself this weekend and on New Year's Eve, because you deserve it after a year of hard work. Just make sure you have a way to get home safely so you can ring in the new year on the right foot.

Related Resources:

• Former lawyer in court over 6th DUI charge (Salt Lake City's KSL-TV)
• Many Lawyers Are Driven, Successful, Social ... and Alcoholics (FindLaw's Strategist)
• Addicted Lawyers: How To Treat Them (FindLaw's Strategist)