How many hours in total do lawyers work in a week?

Hello,

I have a J.D. and I married to a lawyer. The hours you work depends on what type of law you practice. If you become a corporate lawyer for a large firm you may work 70 hours a week which include weekends. You will be paid well but your work life balance will suffer and you may not be happy with no free time.
If you work for a non-profit or the government you will likely have a healthier work life balance and work 50 hours per week.

My wife was a corporate lawyer for a very large law form and has worked from 9am to 1am. That is not unheard of in big law.

It really comes down to what type of law you practice, what industry, what type of company or organization. Also keep in mind that sometimes there are very busy periods so for one month you may work 65 hours a week and next month 50 hours per week.

Trial lawyers with plenty of experience actually work less than newer lawyers learning to try cases, or not even wanting to try cases. They're called litigators and work very long hours in pre-trial "discovery" which means pleadings, written interrogatories and most time of all, defending depositions where witnesses are questioned in person.

60 hours a week is not unknown for litigators

As a lawyer, I am a licensed professional. I own my own small firm and am at the office from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm Monday through Friday. I also have a fully equipped home office, so I can work at home when and if necessary. Since I am the boss, my schedule is a bit more flexible that when I worked at law firms. I usually do not work on weekends. Client matters always occupy one's mind though, so being a lawyer is really a 24/7 type proposition.