Solo Practice

Thank You to the MANY Voices of Solo Practice Who Serve Clients and Improve Our Profession

I'm still blushing after all of the compliments and good wishes from my fellow bloggers who linked to this article about my practice and my book, Solo by Choice and I won't deny that I enjoyed the publicity (as well as the resulting book sales).  But I need to clarify;  I don't want to be the voice of solo practice because there's no such thing as a single voice of solo practice.   Instead, there are many voices - a veritable chorus  who write about or advise solo and small firms.  Some who champion the can-do entrepreneurial attitude of solos and celebrate our independent spirit, some who work to inspire others to make the leap, some who had the vision to recognize that we solos are part of Alvin Toeffler's Third Wave, some who dream of building their firm, some who help empower Second City start-up lawyers, some who are known for their tech savvy, some who want to change the way law is practiced and some who discovered that their entrepreneurial talents extended beyond starting a law firm. 

So where do I fit into all of this?  For me, my end goal is, and always has been about serving clients and improving the legal profession.  True, I write (both here and in my book,)about marketing a law firm and  making money, about how solo practice can help biglaw attorneys can find career satisfaction and how starting a firm can help with worklife balance.  But worklife balance and career satisfaction and making money are not my ultimate goal; they're a means to ensuring that our profession can retain talented lawyers who will use their skills to serve clients and improve the integrity and quality of justice within our legal system.   Likewise,  I spotlight the positive accomplishments of solo lawyers not just to inspire others to consider this path, but also to improve the standing of solos within the profession to ensure more favorable treatment of our clients.

I hope to continue to offer services through my site, my book and other programs that I'm developing to support solo and small firm practitioners and to remain one of the many, many voices who advocate for this segment of the bar.   But as I wrote in the acknowlegments of my book, at heart

I'm a practicing attorney first...a solo by choice.  And each day, I am privileged to work alongside thousands of other solo and small firm lawyers who improve our legal system by helping clients...to solve problems or to find justice, and who do so zealously, professionally and with pride.

Full post as published by My Shingle.com on March 29, 2008 (boomark / email).