Is Strategic Planning Relevant in the Covid-19 Age?

May 14th, 2020

Strategic planning provides a framework to make choices about how your law firm allocates its resources to maintain and improve upon its success. Yes, I know many of you are probably thinking, “We’re still fine-tuning how to get work done from home and the best ways to interact with clients. I can’t plan beyond a few days ahead, let alone a few years.” ... Read More

Categories: Practice Management

Hypocrisy and Selfishness Abound When Failing to Plan for Succession

April 15th, 2020

If there was ever a wake-up call for solo and small law firm owners to create their succession plans, it is now. COVID-19 is a serious health risk that, as I write, is showing no signs of when it will go away. ... Read More

Categories: Retirement/Succession

COVID-19 Impacts for Solo and Small Firm Lawyers: Beyond Remote Work

April 6th, 2020

If you’re like me, you’re probably tired of getting email blasts about how to best work remotely. There is much more to this COVID-19 situation, from your law practice perspective, than remote work. If you practice in the solo and small firm world, here’s my take on a few other important things to consider in the pandemic age. ... Read More

Categories: Practice Management

Underbilling? Not Recording Time? There’s No Excuse!

March 17th, 2020

Over the years, I’ve heard my share of stories about attorneys who have failed to properly record their time. You know what I mean. Finishing a task and then intentionally recording less time than what you actually spent on the task. Or, alternatively, simply forgetting to enter your time (e.g., phone conversations in the car). ... Read More

Categories: Practice Management

Recruiting Your Successor (Promising Premise, Perilous in Practice)

February 6th, 2020

One retirement exit strategy often considered by solo practitioners and small law firm owners is the "recruit your successor" one. The idea behind this strategy is to find a young, inexperienced lawyer who is then groomed to take over the practice. ... Read More

Categories: Uncategorized

If There’s a Will, There’s a Way: Comparing Succession Planning to Estate Planning

January 7th, 2020

I was recently reading the business section of my local newspaper and came across an article on the importance of having a will. The focus of the article was on how to prevent people from delaying getting the task accomplished. The writer asked several financial planners for the best strategies they use to help their clients complete this task. ... Read More

Categories: Retirement/Succession

Law Firm Revenues Down? Stop Blaming the Competition.

December 3rd, 2019

Lawyers are quick to blame the competition when challenged about why their firm’s revenues are not better. Before you keep on with the finger-pointing, you might want to stop and assess how your firm performs in light of some of the findings from the latest Clio Legal Trends Report. ... Read More

Categories: Business Development

Preparing for the Unexpected & the Inevitable: Law Firm Succession Planning for Disability & Death

October 1st, 2019

Lawyers are notorious for thinking of ways things can go wrong for their clients and then determining the best ways to protect their clients from them. One calamity few lawyers ever consider, however, is their own unexpected disability that puts their career on hold—or worse, their death. ... Read More

Categories: Retirement/Succession

Considering a Document Review Job? Weigh the Risks First.

September 4th, 2019

Although the market for legal jobs has vastly improved since the Great Recession ten years ago, it is hardly a robust one for recent law school graduates. One popular job-of-last-resort is document review—a job that many of my coaching clients assert is “mind-numbing.” And, of course, it does not pay particularly well; usually around $20-30 per hour. ... Read More

Categories: Job Search

Including Office Space as Part of a Law Firm Sale?

August 6th, 2019

Small-firm owners and solo practitioners looking to sell their law firms frequently believe that their particular office space—whether owned or leased—significantly enhances the value of their practice. They usually base this belief on the office’s superior location or their upscale furnishings and design. ... Read More

Categories: Selling Your Practice

In its simplest terms, we hired Roy to help plan our future. He listened to our concerns, analyzed our inputs after pertinent questioning on his part and then did an excellent job summarizing the issues our firm must meet to make forward progress. Ro…" Read the rest