I’m a big fan of DIY networking groups. Not that there’s anything wrong with bar associations or business networking groups, but when you start your own association, you can tailor it to your interests. In fact, if you’re interested in how to set up a group yourself, you can check out the materials up over
Some Real Numbers for How Much Should A Solo Lawyer Charge
You’ve heard all of the advice on setting rates for your services before. Stuff like,
Pricing is an art, not a science.
Don’t charge less than every other lawyer in town.
Price your knowledge, not your time.
All great advice, if you only had benchmarks. But where to find them? You can ask what others
Don’t Moonlight
Because of my work with lawyer/author Julie Tower-Pierce on The Part Time Shingle, I’m often asked by aspiring solos about whether they should start a practice while working for a law firm. My answer never varies. Unless you disclose and receive permission from a law firm employer to start your own side practice, DON’T!
Century Solo
Though he died as head of a 625-lawyer firm, centenarian lawyer Christian Peper started as a solo. As described in St. Louis Today, Peper, along with his friend Malcolm Martin and Martin’s father started a law firm in a four room office back in 1941. Three months later, Japan attacked Pearl Harbor and Peper,
Why Solo Success Looks Like Jose Baez
Jose Baez’s win for Casey Anthony wasn’t pretty. From an opening statement that promised much but didn’t fully deliver to cross-examination questions that went nowhere or elicited evidence that seemed to hurt more than help to the clumsy cardboard exhibits, no one will ever confuse Jose Baez and his band of solo lawyers with the
Do Successful People Give or Sell?
Over at his My Law License blog, my friend and co-defendant Brian Tannebaum adeptly summarized a thought to which I’ve devoted far too many words without ever getting to the point. Specifically, Brian asserts:
Successful people give away advice on success, unsuccessful people sell it.
Initially, I thought that I could refute Brian’s comment by
Three Lessons for Small Firms from Small Farms
This New York Times article, Small US Farms Find Profit in Tourism does triple duty as an analogue for a law firm niche practice , business model and marketing idea. The Times reports on the trend of farmers creating additional streams of revenue in the form of bed-and-breakfasts, horse-rides and corn mazes to supplement their
Is $160,000 For A Solo Out of Law School Realistic or Rare?
Updated September 20, 2022
Update – Back in 2011, I blogged about a young North Carolina lawyer earning $160k out of the gate in his new practice and asked whether his experience was realistic or rare. More than a decade later, I’m seeing even more new solos with similar results – maybe not a year
Summertime, Selling and the Solo
So, it’s summertime for the solo, and surprisingly, the selling is easy. At least, I’ve always thought so. For starters, lots of law practices slow down, what with clients, other judges and lawyers on vacation and many lawyers have time on their hands. Moreover, with the economy in its current state, it’s a buyer’s market
Musings from the Other End of the Pleading
For the past month, ever since I learned that I’d been named as a defendant in Rakofsky v. the Internet, I’ve been getting acclimated to life on the other end of the pleading. In my seventeen years as a solo, I’ve inhabited a comfortable spot on the signature line. I still get a thrill at