If you are noticing some strange looking things at MyShingle.com, as well as a slowdown in posts, it’s because a redesign is underway. We should be fully launched within the next 24 hours so please come back soon…
Operations
What If You Never Leave…
This sad story, Lawyer, 35, Dies After Winning Swimming Race, New York Lawyer (5/5/05) drives home the importance of following one’s dream. The article reports that Brendon Wen, a young attorney and solo criminal practitioner, died of heart failure after winning a masters race with his best time ever. But the article also described…
Malpractice Isn’t Only A Small Firm Problem
According to this National Law Journal article, How Small Firms Can Ward Off Malpractice, most legal malpractice actions are filed against small firms, with one to five attorneys:
Solos and small-firm attorneys find themselves particularly vulnerable to charges of malpractice. According to the American Bar Association,
most malpractice suits are filed against lawyers…
Former Biglaw African American Associates Hang A Shingle
If you’re a biglaw associate, do you stay at your firm and let the partners get rich off your work and credentials? Or leave and take advantage of that market yourself? The latter approach is the one taken by five young African American attorneys and former associates at prominent large law firms who struck out…
Federal Judges Honor Pro Bono – But Exclude Solos
According to this Press Release, the Chief Judges of the D.C. Circuit will be honoring eight Washington D.C. law firms for commitment to pro bono as evidenced by meeting a benchmark of 40 percent of lawyers performing 50 hours or more of pro bono service. But sadly, though I’m a member of the DC…
They Could Have Stayed At Biglaw…But Didn’t
To those of you toiling at large firms, wondering whether you could make it on your own, this post’s for you. Here’s two examples of attorneys with large firm backgrounds and large firm specialties (securities law and complex litigation) who took the solo plunge.
This article from the Kansas City Star (4/19/05) profiles Jane Stafford…
What About Marketing Alternative Rates?
For some time, I’m sure, some law firms large and small, have offered alternatives to the billable hour and probably more have started to do so or at least consider it since Matt Homann started blogging. But what’s different about the alternative billing approach just announced by McGuire Woods (reported in Hourly Legal Fees Under…
My JD Bliss Profile
This week, JD Bliss is a profile about MyShingle and me. Though I wouldn’t necessarily refer to myself, as JD Bliss does, as a "success story" (more a work-in-progress story), I certainly don’t mind the exposure. For those readers who haven’t checked out JD Bliss, take a look – it’s an interesting site and the…
Asking for Help
My Small Firm Business column for the month, Ask A Simple Question as been posted over at law.com In it, I discuss both the benefits of asking for help as well as places to look that you might not have thought about. I’d have to credit Professor Steven Lubet and his recent article, Artificial Intelligence…
Make Bar Complaints Public – At Least to Other Lawyers
As many of my fellow bloggers and readers know, I’m no fan of bar disciplinary programs. Among other things, I believe that the bars disproportionally target solos and pursue sanctions for trivial infractions while sometimes failing to seriously investigate real dangers. That’s why many may be surprised to learn that after seeing ABA’s 2003 statistics…