Ian Graham's debut, Unbillable Hours, is a riveting tale of two young men from different worlds whose lives intersect under the most improbable circumstances. Graham, a college baseball player from a stable and successful family, begins his legal career at the large and powerful Los Angeles law firm of Latham & Watkins earning a six-figure salary and looking forward to working his way into a friendly and inspiring firm culture. He soon discovers that the firm is a sweatshop with well-dressed workers and surly, egocentric managers. Graham pulls back the curtain on life in a big firm, describing all-night briefing sessions and weeks spent carefully cataloging warehouses of documents as billion-dollar companies battle it out over millions of dollars with highly-paid new lawyers as the pawns.
Mario Rocha's life stands in sharp contrast to Graham's life of wealth and privilege. Raised in East LA by his immigrant single mother, Rocha is smart and artistic, but must avoid the pull of crime and gangs that ensnares so many of his family and friends. Attending a party one night, Rocha watches as gang members square off in a fight that escalates to gunfire and ultimately the shooting death of a young man. Although he is not in a gang, has never owned a gun, and did not participate in the fight, he is accused of murder along with two known gang members. Sloppy legal work by Rocha's defense attorney and overzealous prosecution by a district attorney lead to a conviction, and Rocha begins a life sentence in a high-security state prison.
Engrossed in his work at Latham, Graham is tabbed to assist on Rocha's case, which the firm has taken on at no charge. His dissatisfaction with the big-firm culture grows steadily, and he thinks often of joining several fellow associates on their way out of the firm. Only Rocha's case keeps him there. The shocking injustice that must be undone gives Graham purpose in his work, and helps him get through a steady stream of disappointments as their effort to overturn Rocha's conviction winds slowly though a labyrinth of appeals. Rocha remains positive and upbeat throughout his ordeal, refusing to become bitter about the unfairness of a young life sidetracked. In all likelihood, Graham worked on the case with the feeling that he would use his talents and his position to help someone less fortunate than he; the irony is that Rocha taught Graham more about finding meaning in his career and his life than either man realized.
So much of today's non-fiction is dry and uninteresting--something that simply cannot be said about Unbillable Hours. It actually reads more like a novel, with subtle exploration of character traits of the main players in the story and "can't put it down" pacing. For lawyers, law students, and anyone else interested in a compelling story artfully told, Ian Graham's first book should be on the top of the list.
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