How To Start a Law Firm

I hope you find this article while you are in your first or second year of law school. The reason is that you can look for internships before your third year and have a job waiting for you after you graduate and pass the bar. But, if you’re not a law student, but rather you’re sitting in a law firm dreaming about going out on your own, this article will help you too.

 

Before you open your own law firm

Experience

Before you hang your shingle for your law firm, I recommend getting some trial experience. You want to get experience as being a real lawyer who can impanel a jury and try a case. Trial experience will help you your entire career because you will always have the option of going to trial if you must. You’d be surprised at how many lawyers have never done a jury trial.

If possible, I recommend working at a government agency such as the Public Defender’s office, or your State’s prosecutor’s office.

 

Financing

If possible, I recommend saving 6 months of living expenses before going out on your own. While you should get your first client within the first month of business, the safety cushion will make you sleep better at night.

 

Pre-marketing

Before opening your law firm, send out business announcement to all of your friends, family, and former clients. Business announcements are cards about the size of note cards, along with envelopes that “Announce the opening of your law firm.” You will obviously have your contact information and legal specialization. They kind of look like:

Note: Although it’s 2018, think about sending out physical announcements instead of by email or other electronic means. People pay more attention to physical mailings especially when it’s from a law firm.

Also, get business cards. Business cards are so cheap these days you should be able to get 500 for $10. (I paid $200 for 500 in the beginning)

Also, get a website. You need a basic website because clients will look you up after they hire you. However, if you intend to get business from people searching online, you should get a professional website built.

You can build your own website these days very easily using WordPress.com. You only need:

1. a domain name (namecheap.com)
2. a host server (Bluehost.com)

 

Equipment for New Office

The only thing you need these days to begin a law firm is a laptop and a smartphone. Nevertheless, you should get an office that is already furnished (these will be much cheaper). You don’t need your own furniture, or nice paintings, etc. because you can meet clients in the conference room of your building.

 

Office Location

Your first office should be in a building where there are other lawyers in the building. The reason is that you can get overflow work from other lawyers in the beginning. (lawyers always help out new lawyers just starting out)

While you don’t want to be in an office with lawyers who practice the same area of law as you, you do want to have one or two criminal lawyers in the building or other lawyers who go to court often. These trial lawyers can give you “coverage work.”

Coverage work is when you go to court for another lawyer for routine hearings that they can’t attend. A lot of criminal lawyers have contracts with the County or State and must be in 4 different courtrooms at the same time. You can cover one for them.*

Back when I started, coverage work paid about $150 per hour, it might be more now.

*Don’t take a contract yourself. If you accept cases from the government, you’re basically only an employee of the county and you’re usually too busy to get your own clients.

Tip: Other lawyers can help you figure out how much to charge your clients in the beginning.

 

Opening Day

Practice areas

You will obviously specialize in the area of law that you have experience in on day 1. But, if you are a former criminal lawyer like I was, you should focus on drinking and driving cases and not major felonies. The reason is that DUI cases, and maybe drug cases are the best if you’re a criminal lawyer because the people who get arrested for these crimes usually have money to pay you.

Tip: In your early non-busy days, learn another area of law besides criminal law. It is very hard to have a practice doing only criminal law. The reason is most criminal defendants can’t afford a lawyer so 90% get free lawyers from the government. Thus, you’re left competing with all the big advertising law firms in town for only 10% of the business.

Think about focusing on consumer areas of law such as family law, estate planning, or personal injury.

You do not need staff in the beginning. You can get an executive suite with a shared reception, but these days you don’t need a secretary. Hire help as you grow, not in the hopes you will grow.

 

First few months

In the first few months, even weeks, you should get a few clients from the announcements you sent out.

Networking

Networking is critical to a successful law firm

The key to having a successful law firm is to be friendly and have lots of friends.

The components of a successful law firm are:

25% good lawyering

75% business marketing

It is not enough to be a good lawyer. I’ve seen some very good lawyers not make it in private practice because they were not friendly enough. Just because you do excellent legal work doesn’t mean people will find you and hire you.

Tip: Try to get most, if not all, of your clients by referrals from friends, and former clients.

Go to your state bar conventions, state bar CLE’s, and go to ball games and bars with your friends.

Tip: A surprising amount of your clients will be referred to you by other lawyers who don’t practice in your area.

Remember: People do business with people they like.

Tip: The great thing about running a law firm is that it’s not a high volume business. You just need a few new clients per month to sustain a law practice. The numbers are simple – you charge $4,000 per DUI case, get 3 a month, that’s $144,000.00 per year.

 

What about mass advertising?

This really comes down to how risky you are. First, I don’t do any advertising because it’s so expensive and you don’t get the best clients from people who see your ad and call. I tried a variety of mass advertising including bus ads, magazine ads, and radio spots. At best, I broke even on some campaigns.

Caveat: I know friends who have very successful law practices who do billboards and television ads, but that is hard. Also, I have friends who spend a ton of money on Google Adwords (pay per click) and make it work, but that is risky too.

If you don’t know, on Google Adwords, you put your ad on the right side of the first page of Google. (technically, it’s an auction to get there). Every time someone clicks on your ad, it costs you money whether they hire you or not. At the moment, divorce lawyers pay $65-$85 in Arizona…. per click! Yes, everytime someone clicks on the ad it costs the law firm $65-$85.

 

Newsletters

In addition to socializing with your friends, a great marketing tool is sending out monthly newsletters.

Newsletters are extremely effective because they are very cheap, and they keep you in the minds of all the people who can refer you business. I use a template called Constantcontact.com and it is very easy to use.

It’s good to stay on the minds of people because people only hire lawyers when they have a crisis. Most people never need to hire a lawyer, but if they do they may not remember you are out there. A monthly newsletter keeps you top of mind.

In business, the most important asset you have is your mailing/email list – use it.

Tip: Always acknowledge your friends and former clients’ birthdays for this same reason. You can send out cards, email, text messages or Facebook messages it doesn’t really matter. Again, you just want people to remember you’re out there.

 

Client management

The #1 state bar complaint is lawyers not returning client phone calls.

Do the opposite and use this to your advantage – always communicate with your clients. Constantly update them on the status of their case and they will be happy.

Similar to over communication, have a good bedside manner when dealing with clients. Empathize with your clients.

Tip: Remember, your reputation is very important and most legal communities are pretty small.

 

Resources

There have been hundreds of books, and thousands of articles online about starting a law firm, but Jay Foonberg’s book is, and has been for decades, the number #1 book. 

(click the photo to buy the book)

To this day, I still come back to Foonberg’s book from time to time.

My 15-year-old copy:

 

Good luck!