Billing by the hour is just one of many established customs within the legal profession. Why do we do it that way? I’ve always been amused by the answer to that question. Inevitably, the answer is, “because we’ve always done it that way.” End of discussion. In the early 1980’s, when I first entered the legal profession, billing by the hour was well ingrained as the standard for all but a handful of practice areas. As a young associate in a large law firm, the thought never even occurred to me that attorneys could bill clients in any other form. Now, of course, I know better. I am very familiar with the flaws of the hourly rate system. I suspect you are, too, since the legal blogosphere is full of posts on this topic. Instead, I’d like to talk a bit about how the profession got itself into this mess. Despite what people think, “we didn’t always do it that way.” A Short History of Legal Billing A century ago, lawyers rarely billed by the hour. Instead, they billed in a variety of different manners: fixed fees, retainers, estimated “value” and contingency fees. Ironically, these are many of the same methods being touted today as“alternative.” As corporate America’s demand for legal services grew in scope and complexity in the 1960s and 1970s, it became more difficult to determine a fixed fee, a retainer or “value.” At the same time, it became more difficult for clients to understand exactly what they were purchasing. Enter the “bill by the hour” method. Initially, time records were only one component used to determine final bills. However, by the end of the 1970s, time records became the only way to determine final bills. This change was welcomed by all. Lawyers liked it because it was easy to predict revenue and profits. Clients liked it because it was easy to comprehend what they were buying. The Times They Are A’Changing Even lawyers without much business sense were soon able to figure out that the more hours they billed, the more money they made. This gave rise to law firm minimum-billable-hour requirements. You know the rest. This created an incentive to spend more time than necessary on matters and, at times, to engage in fraud by “padding” hours. Here’s a bit more history. Before billing by the hour became the standard, guess what the ABA considered to be a full year’s-worth of billable hours for a full-time attorney? In 1958, it was 1,300 hours. Those “good old days” were, in fact, pretty good! The next time you and your colleagues are commiserating at happy hour about the tyranny of the hourly rate, remember this. We didn’t always do it that way. There are a wide range of attractive alternatives. Fifty years from now, perhaps the billable hour will be the exception rather than the rule. Read More

I graduated from law school 30 years ago. When speaking to law students about how to find a job today, I mostly cover the basics. But I draw on my own experiences, too, and offer one bit of advice rarely provided by most career counselors. I arrived at this advice when, to prepare my presentation, I asked myself: “Knowing what I now know about legal careers after all these years, would I have done anything differently when I attended law school?” Continue reading post on attorneyatwork.com Read More

In the legal profession, there are many solo practitioners. The ABA estimates that half of the country’s lawyers “hang out their own shingles.” Over the course of a career, most of these solos occasionally give serious thought to the idea of joining forces with another lawyer. Such a decision should never be rushed. It should always be well-thought-through. Continue reading this post at www.lawyerist.com Read More

I recently received a call from a former lawyer-coaching client of mine seeking marketing ethics advice. He’s a solo practitioner and plans to relocate to a new office building. In the new location, he will office share with two other solos. His question: What kind a signage is appropriate when three solos are sharing one office at the same address? Continue reading this post at www.lawyerist.com Read More

Not surprisingly, there are thousands of unhappy lawyers who are new to the profession. After all, there’s plenty to be unhappy about if you’re unemployed and trying to pay back six-figure loans. But what about more-experienced attorneys who have stable jobs and little-to-no debt? Are they a satisfied lot? A 2007 American Bar Association survey found that only 55 percent of lawyers were satisfied with their careers. In my opinion, this is because many of them become lawyers with vague or unrealistic expectations about what a career in the legal profession would be like. Why Did You Go To Law School? First, I’ve learned from my experience as a coach, that many seem to decide to become lawyers by default. I’ve coached well over 100 lawyers who came in all shapes and sizes — solo to big firm, rural to big city, consumer to business. During my first session with each lawyer, I ask a series of questions. One question is, “Why did you go to law school?”The number one answer by far (and there is not even a close second) is, essentially, “I couldn’t think of anything better to do.” Some of my clients within the Jewish community even joke that “nice Jewish boys who don’t like the sight of blood choose law school.” While my sample contains a good cross-section of lawyers, there is admittedly an element of self-selection that biases these results. In any event, I’m still convinced that a majority of attorneys go to law school by default, lacking any strong passion to do what lawyers do. (Full disclosure; yours truly went by default) What Do Lawyers Do? Little knowledge of what lawyers actually do is the second reason for unrealistic expectations. Did you know what lawyers do when you enrolled in law school? I certainly did not. We were all smart enough to realize that most lawyers don’t go to court every day, but what do they do on all of the other days? Becoming a lawyer is not like becoming a doctor. Everyone knows what doctors do. When I started law school, I thought that I would become a labor/employment attorney. After all, I had majored in labor and employment relations as an undergrad. Did I have any clue what it would actually be like? Absolutely no clue. In short, many lawyers decide on this career path hoping and assuming (based on absolutely no evidence) that it will be a financially rewarding and satisfying career. When those expectations fall short, it should come as no surprise that they wonder what went wrong. Law School Does Not Help Next in line for blame are the law schools, which only make a bad situation worse. We enter law school not knowing what lawyers do. How much more about that do we learn during the next three years? Not a helleva lot. Furthermore, law schools create the expectation that practicing law is going to be a great intellectual exercise. Yes, there have been times during my 30-year career that my brain has gotten a thorough work-out. Unfortunately, I wish it had been more often. I am sure that many of you agree with me. So This Is What It’s Like? Finally, from the perspective of “outside looking in,” there are some lawyers who seem to have it good. They appear to have successful practices and significant financial rewards. One day, despite all this, these lawyers sit back in their fancy chairs and ask themselves, “Is this it?” The new luxury car and big courtroom win simply don’t bring the thrill they used to. Perhaps, those things never even brought a thrill at all. I’m a lawyer, not a psychologist. I can’t say for sure why some attorneys are unhappy or what their expectations were at the time they entered the profession. Certainly, lawyers are not the only ones who realize that money rarely buys happiness, yet continue to toil away at not-very-meaningful work. Don’t Worry; Be Happy! Well, enough of the doom and gloom. I want to end this post on a more optimistic note. Most legal career counselors believe that it is rarely too late to make changes in one’s career. Lawyers are fortunate in that they have an extraordinarily wide range of choices.These include switching law firms, modifying practice areas, going in-house and going solo. There are also opportunities in fields related to law, such as e-discovery, bar association work, alternative dispute resolution and legal recruiting. Of course, you can also cut your losses and get out completely. Change is not always easy and can certainly involve risk. But if you happen to be one of those unhappy lawyers, life is too short to simply accept the status quo. Do something to take charge of your legal career. Originally published on Lawyerist.com Read More

Whenever attorneys consider any type of career change, whether minor or major, the issue of money inevitably comes up. That’s hardly surprising. Often, the changes being contemplated require some sort of financial sacrifice, at least in the short term. Some require short-term and ong-term sacrifice. For purposes of this post, I consider a career change to mean, among other things, a modification of a practice area, switching work environments, going solo,or even getting out of law. Don’t Let Money Interfere Too Much Far too many lawyers let the money aspect of any career change get in the way of making the best choice. Risk-avoiding lawyers are often unwilling to assume any risk, no matter how reasonable it appears on paper. This is unfortunate. These lawyers never get to experience working in areas that may turn out to be more satisfying and lucrative in the long run. Complete Failure is Unlikely Lawyers seem to always assume the worst. This is why money issues scare many away from career change. When you assume the worst, the concern becomes when you will run out of money, not if you will run out of money. Keep Your Perspective When considering any career change, envision the difference between a home run and a strike out. The most likely outcome of swinging the bat will be a single — or perhaps a double. What does that look like? Can you live with that? Probably yes. Too many lawyers, however, don’t think that they’ll get to first base. As a result, they play it safe, stay in the dugout and remain miserable. You Can Live On Less Others may be more confident that the planned career change will work. However, they don’t want to consider living a more frugal lifestyle. Too many lawyers focus on what it might be like living on less, while completely forgetting that this probably won’t last for long. Alternatively, they assume that tightening their belts for a short period of time will be intolerable. Think about past times where your disposable income was reduced for reasons such as paying for child care, taking out a big mortgage, or paying for your children’s college. Did the world come to an end? I doubt it. Moreover, the benefit was usually worth the cost. Sadly, many attorneys do not apply the same calculus when the benefit of a career change is a more successful practice. Change Brings Opportunity Another factor that lawyers often fail to consider is that planned career change can sometimes lead to an unanticipated opportunity. I’ve met plenty of lawyers who made changes in either their practice areas or where they practiced law and in essence, became the beneficiary of being in the right place at the right time. This could occur, for example, as a result of new legislation or a court decision. In this scenario, the attorney actually makes more money than ever anticipated. Take a Chance! An often-repeated adage states, “Money can’t buy happiness, but it can buy you the kind of misery you prefer.” Don’t settle for the misery of your present legal career. Take a rational risk. Originally published on Lawyerist.com Read More

Recently, New York became the first state to require that law students perform 50 hours of pro bono work before they can be admitted to the bar. Plenty of bloggers have already chimed in on whether this is a good or bad idea. There’s little that I can add to that debate. But I like to remind lawyers that the benefits of performing pro bono work go well beyond feeling good about “doing the right thing.” Too few of us recognize that it can also yield substantial, practical economic benefits for ourselves, our organizations and our profession as a whole. When it comes to pro bono service, “it pays to be good.” Continue reading this post on www.attorneyatwork.com Read More

If you are like many lawyers, you assume your clients are satisfied. Oftentimes, three reasons support their assumption. Their clients don’t complain, they pay, and they come back. Each of these answers seems reasonable as an indication of client satisfaction. In reality, however, they provide little support. Continue reading this post at www.lawyerist.com Read More