Most law firms have a billable-hour requirement under which attorneys need to bill a certain number of hours over a specific period, usually 12 months. Law firms have various periods over which they determine if attorneys satisfied the billable-hour requirement, and many shops judge attorneys from a period starting and ending before the holiday season. I have also heard of some firms assessing billable-hour expectations on a fiscal-year basis, and this 12-month period starts and ends in the summer. For a variety of reasons, it usually makes sense to evaluate attorneys based on the calendar year rather than any other period.
I am fortunate to have only worked at a law firm that assessed the billable hours of attorneys based on the calendar year. When I was starting at a firm, I welcomed this. My first day of work was in or around the middle of October, and it was