MyShingle : Solo and Small Law Firm Management and Marketing

I was about to post on  this article from the Washington Post on former federal judge and biglaw partner Stanley Sporkin, who's just started his own law firm, but I saw that Susan Cartier Liebel beat me to the scoop.  Though Sporkin expressed enthusiasm about his new venture, I wonder whether seventy five year old Sporkin was a victim of the mandatory retirement programs that I blogged about at Legal Blogwatch.  If that's the case, it's just further evidence that solo practice provides us with a soft landing or a second chance at the law, no matter what our backgrounds.

• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks

Via Denise Howell comes word of this well done ad by Neil Squillante of Technolawyer.  The ad, entitled "When Google Fails You," is set up with  a new solo is looking for reviews on case management, but has no luck on Google, so he follows a lead to the Technolawyer archives.  However, as Denise points out, Google doesn't "make you be a member" to pull results, nor does it charge for access, as Technolawyer does for the archives (which I discovered for myself by following the links at the site).  Still, the ad is worth watching, if only to remind yourself of what life was like back when you were setting up your office.

• Print
• Comments (1)
• Trackbacks

Used to be that career advice tended towards the absolute.  Women at biglaw were basically advised that if they weren't willing to work 80 hour weeks after having kids that they'd have no future at the firm.  So many left entirely, not recognizing the possibility for a happy medium.  And on the listserves that I frequent, lawyers who have another career and want to keep their day job for a few days a week while they build a solo practice are told that if you don't commit 100 percent to starting a firm, then you won't succeed.

But these days, this "slash and burn" approach to careers is fast growing outdated.  Instead, it's being replaced by what Marci Alboher's book, One Person, Multiple Careers aptly describes as the "slash phenomenon" of engaging in simultaneous, multiple careers.
As a slash herself (former lawyer/author/speaker/coach), Alboher concludes that:

I believe we are all slashes by necessity.  After all, who can answer the question "What do you do?" with a singular response?  And why would we want to?

• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks

Imagine that your law firm issues the following Request for Proposals:

Busy solo practitioner seeking large firm to partner on pro bono matters for small, walk in clients with no funds to retain an attorney at full rates.  Firm must turn these clients down in the absence of pro bono support.  Matters include messy family law and custody battles, eviction proceedings, Fair Debt Collection Act matters, bankruptcy and lawsuits against small business without insurance coverage.  Benefits include court time before sometimes unqualified, nasty judges, (as opposed to civilized federal practice) and learning to prioritize issues, cut corners due to cost constraints and practice law at less than your full ability due to lack of resources.   

Now honestly, do you think you'd receive even a single response?  Yet when large corporation Intel posted an RFP for lawyers to partner on pro bono firms, biglaw came running, according to this article, Intel Recruits Firms for Pro Bono Partnering.  But don't think for even a second that the firms had thoughts of winning a plum client through working side by side with Intel lawyers on pro bono matters:

Similarly, Nixon Peabody pro bono partner Stacey Slater said her firm was motivated by the opportunity to do a good deed, not the chance of winning a new client. "That's not at all why we're doing this," she said. "This partnership will help increase pro bono on both ends."

Do these people even believe what they are saying?

• Print
• Comments (2)
• Trackbacks

If you hang around the blogosphere long enough, you'll bump against the same themes but with a different spin.  Back in June 2005, I first posted on whether small is the new big, applying some of the themes from Seth Godin's book of the same name.  This week the discussion on small as the new big has re-emerged, with plenty of new voices and insights, but the same old optimism about what small firms have to offer even in the face of the ever expanding large firms.

• Print
• Comments (1)
• Trackbacks

Over at my beat at Legal Blogwatch, I posted a link to a free online handbook created by Chubb Insurance on the Risks of e-Lawyering.  The handbook, available here offers lots of tips to avoid running afoul of ethics rules in the age of technology, such as how to guard against inadvertently creating an attorney-client relationship or how to preserve electronic documents for discovery.  Plus, if you advise other businesses or corporations, Chubb has a number of other publications on a range of topics like avoiding slip and falls, preventing workplace fraud and IP checklists that might be a useful resource to pass on to clients.

• Print
• Comments (1)
• Trackbacks

A decade ago, back in the dark ages of the Internet, I'd often put presentations that I delivered at conferences into HTML so that I could readily display them on my website (check out this old chestnut on using the Internet for legal research, circa 1997 - it predated Google!).  Posting a PowerPoint presentation online proved cumbersome with the tools then in place, and listing it as a link for users to download wasn't really an effective option. 

So imagine my delight at discovering SlideShare (www.slideshare.net), a site that allows users to upload Power Point presentations and embed them in a blog or website, in a manner similar to YouTube.  Last week, I spoke at a Symposium sponsored by the Texas Journal of Oil, Gas and Energy Law and in a matter of minutes, I posted my presentation
online here in a user friendly format.  And I envision uses for this tool beyond just creating a virtual paper trail of past presentations:  bloggers might put together a 4-5 Power Point "how to" on one topic or another and post it online for users to flip through or download. 

Word of caution:  be sure to copyright your slides.  I can't tell you how many times I've sat through my own presentations, delivered by other attorneys with no attribution.  I'm a huge supporter of free information, but my support ends where other lawyers appropriate my work for their advantage without giving me credit. 

• Print
• Comments (38)
• Trackbacks

Many people dream of starting a law firm to make money or achieve work-life balance, but for me, it's always been about immortality:  finding a way to leave my own little, but indelible mark on the law.  I'm still working hard on that goal, but if you want to get a sense of the heights that you can reach by starting a law firm, take a look at the legacy of this trailblazing, independent African American lawyer, Mahala Ashely Dickerson, who ran her own firm for over 40 years and just passed away at the age of 94 according to this article, Pioneer Alaska Lawyer Dickerson Dies at 94.

According to the article, Mahala was divorced and already had young children (6 year old triplets!) when she went to Howard Law School, graduating in 1936.  She worked in Indiana and Alabama before moving to Alaska with her sons, where she opened a law practice in 1959.  According to the article:

Dickerson had a reputation as an advocate for the poor and underprivileged. She argued many cases involving racial and gender discrimination, taking on the Anchorage Police Department and the University of Alaska, among other institutions.

According to the article, Dickerson was still working twelve hour days at age 71 and finally retired from her practice at 91.  She mentored young lawyers and represented clients who didn't have the means to pay and for whom she fought aggressively.  Said one attorney quoted in the article:

I remember one lawyer telling me one time, he said, 'Rex, you see those mountains out there?' He said, 'Those mountains are littered with the bones of lawyers who underestimated M. Ashley Dickerson.'

The article concludes:

Dickerson's legacy will be the way she overcame obstacles, giving back to the community, said Celeste Hodge, former local head of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, who now runs Mayor Mark Begich's office of equal opportunity.

What legacy do you want to leave?

• Print
• Comments (3)
• Trackbacks

Even after practicing law for 18 years, underneath my general air of confidence and my excess precaution with much of what I do lies a deep fear that at any minute, I could screw up in a major, big time way.  But now, courtesy of Jet Blue, there's a lesson from the school of real life marketing on how to you can begin to deal with the fallout from those inevitable gaffes (or not).

This article, Jet Blue's Survival School offers a run down on some of whatJet Blue's done right since everything went so terribly wrong with its Valentines' Day Meltdown.  Most significantly, Jet Blue's CEO, David Neeleman has stepped up to the plate to take responsibility and apologize:

But rather than hide behind his desk and speak through a flunky, Neeleman stepped up. He assessed the situation early on and spoke to the press. He explained exactly what went wrong and apologized. He said he felt "mortified" and "humiliated." That culminated Tuesday when he appeared on CNN's American Morning, Today, Fox and Friends and Squawk Box before most people arrived at work. He's been so visible, appearing live on so many media outlets, that it's a quasi-miracle he's been able to traverse New York City traffic to make the appointments.

I've read that good bedside matter often spares doctors, and other professionals from malpractice.  So Neeleman's apology, as well as the compensation (free flights and refunds) and a Passenger Bill of Rights put him on the right track to making amends.  Still, Jet Blue's efforts may not suffice to win back the affections of customers such as the one who started the blog, Jet Blue Hostage and has collected at least 150 stories from other passengers seriously inconvenienced by Jet Blue. 

• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks

Finally, Enrico Schaefer has revealed himself as the Greatest American Lawyer.  I've known Enrico for a while now, ever since he sent me an email in the early days of My Shingle before he launched his successful law firm and blog.  And in April 2005, I met Enrico at the first LexThink conference and had a chance to speak with him for a while at the conference dinner.  Enrico is a terrific person and a real visionary. 

What both amazes and gratifies me, however, is the discretion of lawyer bloggers.  So many people knew Enrico's identity, but no one shared it, even inadvertently.  We all talk about how the Internet and blogging make connections, but it goes beyond that:  these tools build trust, lasting bonds and personal community.  I'm just glad that with his unveiling, Enrico Schaefer can now participate fully in this online community as well.

• Print
• Comments (2)
• Trackbacks

My good friend Lisa Solomon posted a link on one of my listserves to this amazing video that explains the history of Web 2.0.  Take 4 minutes and to get inspired by 2 - Web 2.0, that is:

• Print
• Comments (1)
• Trackbacks

Quite often, when I compliment when of my daughters on something she's done well, the other will chime in "But mommy, aren't I good at that too?"  My response, of course, is that praising one of my girls doesn't diminish how I feel about the other. 

More frequently these days, I find myself in this situation with my blog.  Often, my advocacy of solo practice is often regarded as a put down of large firms, a perception that is corroborated by my criticism of many large firm practices (such as bloated billing rates, elistist views and fast and loose conflict of interest standards to keep clients post-merger).  But in truth, I don't hold a grudge against large firms; I believe that they're a great career choice if that's where you can find your passion.  Unfortunately, many don't, but some do.

A few months ago, I read Mark Herrmann's The Curmudgeon's Guide to Practicing Law.  Herrmann is a partner and litigator at a large firm.  The book offers a biglaw partner's perspective on issues relevant to success at large firms and the legal profession in general, such as what associates should do to avoid failure, how lawyers should serve clients and some tips on marketing.  (also, the chapter, The Curmudgeon Argues is the best 10 pages I've ever read on preparing for an oral argument).  But what stands out about the book, in addition to the blunt tone (which is part of the curmudgeonly persona), is Herrmann's passion for what he does.  Consider this passage when Herrmann writes about why he loves his work:

I'll quote a movie.  Joe Gideon, the tightrope walker in "All That Jazz" was asked why he risked his life every day for his career.  He answered "To be on the wire is life.  The rest is waiting."

That's the life of a litigator too.  When I'm engrossed in the law, I'm alive.  I'm engaged; I'm attentive, I'm focused.  I can tell you now, decades later and with almost pathological recall, lines of questions that worked and others that didn't at my earliest trials.  I can tell you the one time an appellate judge asked me a question I hadn't anticipated.  I can tell you when, after wrestling with an insoluble issue for months, I finally saw the light.  Maybe those great events don't happen often enough, but when they do happen, they're unspeakably good.  To be on the wire is life; the rest is waiting.

My desire for all of us, myself included, is that we feel the same as Herrmann about what we do.  If like, Herrmann, you've found passion in biglaw, then stand proud.  But if you're still searching for meaning, for a "life on the wire," starting a law firm may be one place to look.  It's not the only place, or the best place - but it may be the place for you.

Editor's Note:  The LPM Committee of the DC Bar is sponsoring a session, Putting Practice Back into the Passion of Law, February 22, 2007, 12-1:30.  Visit DC Bar website at www.dcbar.org for more details (see events to register).

• Print
• Comments (1)
• Trackbacks

According to this article, Law school to simulate big-firm environment, University of Detroit Mercy School of Law (2/5/07) will require all third year students to participate in a new Law Firm Program, described in the article as "a series of courses that simulates big-firm lawyering."  The course has been developed with input from large firm lawyers and is intended to respond to the lack of skills training in law school. 

Now, you might think that I object to the program because it teaches about large firm practice, rather than solo practice.  And while I do believe that a school that offers a course on large firm practice, should also have a comparable course work on solo, government and public interest practice, that's no my main criticism.  First, I don't agree with making a course on law firm practice - either for big firms or small firms - mandatory.  While students should have some skills training, they should have the flexibility to choose what skills they want to develop.  Some students may want to focus on trial advocacy or appellate clinics, others may want to learn to draft family law documents.  They shouldn't be required to take a class on what it's like to work at a firm that doesn't interest them or that may have limited value (since every place you work is different). 

• Print
• Comments (7)
• Trackbacks

Susan Cartier Liebel posts about how Gen Y women are saying no to biglaw because it doesn't afford the kind of work life balance they demand.  I've posted on and written about this theme before, as well.  But what I don't think I've emphasized sufficiently is that for women, starting a firm isn't just a great way to accommodate work and family, but it also provides far greater business opportunities than are available at firms to begin with.

Consider this article, Three Longtime Buchanan Shareholders to Start Own Firm , (Legal Intelligencer, 2/7/07), which reports that Mary Kay Brown, Antoinette R. Stone and Jami B. Nimeroff will leave Buchanan Ingersoll Friday to start their own boutique on Monday.  And here's one of the reasons:  as a woman-owned business, the firm can qualify for set-asides and capitalize on large corporation's desires to increase diversity among outside counsel.  In fact, that's why other  women and minority lawyers have started law firms: to capture new business, either through diversity opportunities or the ability to avoid conflicts.  So despite all of the complaints about glass ceilings at biglaw for women and minorities, from where I sit, there's never been more opportunity for these groups than now.

• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks

My blogging buddy, Chuck Newton recently posted on the latest  brawl between Greatest American Lawyer and his former firm.  Seems that GAL's firm is suing him a second time, this time for rights to GAL's blogs, which the firm claims it would have developed itself. Newton doesn't think the firm's suit against GAL will fly, in large part because GAL has been blogging anonymously and that his blog was essentially personal.  But as Newton points out, and I agree, the case raises the significant question, that GAL analyzes about who owns the rights to your blog.  And if today's trends of law firm to blogging to solo practice or law firm to blogging to book or online magazine deal continue, the issue of blog ownership matters more than ever.

• Print
• Comments (1)
• Trackbacks

Via Stephanie West Allen, I learned about this article, Who Says Being A Lawyer Has to Suck? from a recent issue of San Francisco Magazine.  The article describes how Gen Y lawyers are making "lawyering something that doesn't bore everyone to death at a party?"  And guess how they're doing it?   By starting their own law firms.   

Consider the case of one attorney mentioned in the article, former firm associate, Joshua Ridless.  From the article, here's his story:

"Before I started my own firm, I was depressed, overweight, and didn't have time for a personal life," he says. Now, Ridless spends almost half his time doing something he's always wanted to do--advising clients on their business plans. He complains if his work is interfering with the hours he needs to spend each day training for triathlons, fulfilling his duties as president of the Barristers (a group for lawyers who've been practicing less than 10 years), or doing pro bono work for local community centers. "I have time to do everything I want to do," Ridless says.

Two other biglaw expatriates, Kassra Nassiri and Charles Jung also started their own firm, litigating "multimilllion dollar cases."  And they're doing even more good by hiring stay at home moms who found life at biglaw too demanding to allow for a decent work life balance.

• Print
• Comments (5)
• Trackbacks

Both Eric Turkewitz of New York Personal Injury Law Blog and Nicole Black of Sui Generis have posted here and here on a number of large New York law firms that failed to comply with New York's new advertising ethics rules by labeling their websites as "attorney advertising." 

In this situation, I can't say that I disagree with the law firms, or with any other firm that hasn't posted a Scarlet A (as in advertising).  (For the record, I'm a member in good standing of the New York bar and my website, Law Offices of Carolyn Elefant or my firm's blog, Renewables Offshore, and I haven't posted these labels on my sites).  Quite frankly, I do not regard websites or blogs as advertising under the New York rules, which define advertisement as:

(A)any public or private communication made by or on behalf of a lawyer or law firm about that lawyer or law firm's services, the primary purpose of which is for the retention of the lawyer or law firm. It does not include communications to existing clients or other lawyers.

Now, one purpose of my website and blog is to retain clients.  But they serve a host of other non-advertising purposes as well - they are a public resource to educate others on legal issues, a way to communicate with and allow existing clients and other lawyers to learn more about me and a way to establish my credibility before the courts and federal agencies where I practice.  Large firms use their websites for multiple purposes too; just yesterday, at Legal Blogwatch, I posted about how law firms are posting videos on their websites for recruitment.  A newspaper advertisement that says "Hire me to represent you" is one dimensional, its primary purpose (indeed its only purpose) is to attract prospective clients.  Websites and blogs, just like personal appearances, handing out business cards, writing scholarly articles or appearing on Court TV, serve many functions.

• Print
• Comments (2)
• Trackbacks

Over at my Legal Blogwatch beat, I wrote about Cisco GC Mark Chandler's speech taking big law firms to task for their "guild" mentality and lack of responsiveness to clients.  You ought to read the whole post, which excerpts the speech, but Chandler argues that companies like his are concerned about legal costs, want fixed fees and access to information without having to pay someone to find it. 

You may think that if you represent consumers, that Chandler's speech doesn't apply.  But it does, even more so.  Consumers are becoming increasingly sophisticated.  Many want information about their case provided regularly, and expect that lawyers have the technology to provide it at no cost.  (Grant Griffiths and Greatest American Lawyer both recognize that, and they've each implemented Base Camp to facilitate client access to information).  And as David Giacalone points out here at Shlep (self help law express), as technology increases, more and more clients may start taking matters into their own hands. 

• Print
• Comments (1)
• Trackbacks

The first document that I ever filed as an independent practitioner was a Motion to Dismiss for Lack of Subject Matter Jurisdiction under Rule 12(b)(1).  By a bizarre stroke of beginner's luck, I had been retained to serve as local counsel for a major casino which had been sued in federal district court in the District of Columbia.  The issues involved were fairly basic ones relating to long arm jurisdiction, and my twenty five page motion practically wrote itself.  The casino's inhouse counsel approved my draft, and gave me the go ahead to file it.  And so, I signed my name with a flourish - and then sat back to admire my signature, standing alone and proud on the page. 

Even now, fourteen years later, I've not yet tired of seeing my signature on a document, identifying me as the author and guaranteeing the quality of my work.   It's just another one of those small thrills of solo practice that matter so much.

• Print
• Comments (1)
• Trackbacks