Not all lawyers who start their own firm experience wild success. This month’s American Lawyer focuses on three who did not. I don’t take issue with the story’s spin because I believe that it’s important to impress the challenges of starting a practice. Too many of the new crop of opportunist start-a-firm gurus blithely gloss
2009
Why Is the Illinois Bar Advising Lawyers to Look Stupid By Admitting That They Can’t Estimate Fees?
Via Illinois solo Peter Olson’s blog, Solo In Chicago, I came across this post on fee agreement essentials which Olson extracted from an Illinois State Bar Association newsletter. Since my readers frequently ask about fee agreements, I was initially excited to discover a new resource. But my delight soon turned to horror when…
Some Tech Round Up: LawTech Talk, MILO Conference
Here’s a quick round-up of a couple of tech related items of use for solos.
For a limited time, Nicole Black of Law Tech Talk is making her screencast on using online tools for case preparation available at no charge. Go to this link for more information.
The first MILO Fest (Macs In Law Office)…
Utah Offers Formal Program, But Nothing Precludes You From Building Your Own
New law graduates embarking on the practice of law in Utah won’t have to stumble around helplessly as they try to figure out the nuts and bolts of law practice. According to the Salt Lake City Tribune (H/T ABA Journal) Utah has just implemented a mandatory mentoring program that pairs all new attorneys (not…
When Should You Make “The Big Reveal?”
In dating, it’s known as "the big reveal" – the point in an emerging relationship where both participants put everything out on the table, from old flames to skeletons in the closet to religious preferences and desire for marriage and children. Deciding when to make the big reveal is tricky. Disclose too soon and you…
The Other Side of the Story on The Lawyer Who Represented Himself
Last week, I posted here about Denver lawyer, Mark Brennan, harshly criticizing him for representing himself in a before a disciplinary board that is threatening to pull Brennan’s license for doing nothing more than zealously representing his client and achieving an outstanding result. In the post, I agreed that the Board’s complaint was unjustified, but…
Biglaw Free and the Solo
Update: For more interesting perspectives on Free, check out Ken Adams at Adams Drafting, Doug Cornelius at Compliance Building, Jordan Furlong at Law 21 and Jay Parkhill of Start Up Tool Box.
A few weeks back, I read Chris Anderson’s book, Free which is also available free in a variety of formats,…
Good Luck on The Bar Exam: It’s Your First Taste of the Practice of Law
No one could ever accuse the bar exam of testing lawyers on issues that they’re likely to encounter in practice. After all, how many times do you get a client accused of murder when he accidentally discharged a handgun at the precise moment that a suicidal person happened to leap off the building and fall…
Fee for Advice Sites Pose Traps for the Unwary
Originally, I intended to simply file an approving comment on Simple Justice blogger Scott Greenfield’s cautionary expose about Law Guru, but Scott’s post is so important, that it demands additional circulation. Scott reports on a new initiative by Law Guru.com to compensate lawyers for answers that they provide in response to questions posed by…
Why Is This Lawyer Representing Himself At A Disciplinary Proceeding?
IMPORTANT – POST UPDATED HERE –The Other Side of the Story
By all accounts, Denver lawyer Mark Brennan was treated badly. Last year, he won a verdict for his client in federal court, only to have it snatched away by the judge, as a sanction for Brennan’s inappropriate and outrageous conduct during the trial. Though…