Solo Practice

Booked Solid: Social Media 4 Lawyers Done

Posted on January 22, 2010
  It's been quiet at MyShingle this week because I've been booked solid, quite literally.  This week, I was immersed in the second and final draft of A Lawyer's Guide to Social Media for the ABA which I'm co-authoring with my friend and colleague, Niki Black (who'd already completed her edits on schedule, the week before)...

Mobile Marketing: The Go-To Format for The On The Go 21st Century

Posted on January 14, 2010
I don't cross reference my posts that frequently, but I've just posted at the Nolo Legal Marketing Blawg about the increasing importance of including mobile devices one's legal marketing portfolio.  Why?  Because by 2013, the total number of PCs in use will reach 1...

A Travesty of Justice in Colorado: Lawyer Suspended for A Year and A Day for WINNING His Client's Case

Posted on January 12, 2010
Solo practice can be a risky business.  Even a three month suspension by a Grievance Committee wreaks damage far beyond the duration of the penalty.  Once suspended, solos must inform clients of their status and pass their files on to colleagues...

MyShingle Question of the Week: Where Do You Do Your Meet, Eat & Greet?

Posted on January 10, 2010
I'm experimenting with a question of the week here at MyShingle - just a short question related to anything of interest to lawyers running a practice or thinking about it from law practice management or tech, recommendations on how to guides or CLE providers to thoughts on why you started a firm or who your ideal client is...

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Are You Your Bloggers' Keeper? Ethics Issues & and Lawyers' Professional Obligations Related to Lawyers' Marketing Non-Legal Services on Line: An Interview with Brian Tannebaum, Miami Florida Criminal Defense &

Posted on January 07, 2010
Lately, the blogosphere has seemed like a dangerous place.  Scott Greenfield warned of a pscycho on Twitter who was originally retained by an attorney to conduct her online marketing campaign.   ERic Turkewitz alerts us to unseemly marketing tactics by Findlaw, like spamming blogs with comments and creating "shell" blogs designed to boost SEO and siphon traffic from legitimate and established blogs with similar topics...

Biglaw to Yourlaw: A Recipe for Success

Posted on January 04, 2010
Peter Chaffetz and David Lindsey, founders and partners at newly formed boutique Chaffetz Lindsey could have simply hopped into another big firm life boat after their former firm, Clifford Chance hit stormy weather last year.  Instead, they took another course: they launched a boutique that is thriving even as the economy struggles to recover...

A Look Ahead to 2010: Your Client as Your New Partner

Posted on January 04, 2010
Many of my blogging colleagues have been trendspotting for 2010 these past two weeks (see the list of posts at the end).  I'm fashionably late, so instead of chiming in with a list, I'll focus on one trend which is already getting some discussion: 2010 as the year of the client...

Client Surveys: Sure They Help Lawyers, But Aren't They a Pain in the Neck for Clients?

Posted on January 03, 2010
Client surveys and customer feedback are all the rage these days and law firms are jumping on board. In fact, Matt Homann's LexThink released a great client service template that's available at Lawyerist.  Like the experts, I've always believed, albeit somewhat reflexively, that client surveys improve the client experience...

The Darker Side of Social Media for Lawyers

Posted on January 03, 2010
For new and existing solos, the power of social media is intoxicating.  Tools like Facebook, LinkedIn, Blogs and Twitter are easy to use, extremely inexpensive and can help new lawyers connect with colleagues and prospective clients and establish a prominent image online...

The Darker Side of Social Media for Lawyers - Update

Posted on January 03, 2010
See end of post for update - could this mess have been avoided? For new and existing solos, the power of social media is intoxicating.  Tools like Facebook, LinkedIn, Blogs and Twitter are easy to use, extremely inexpensive and can help new lawyers connect with colleagues and prospective clients and establish a prominent image online...

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Posted on January 02, 2010

Solo Practice May Be "Shitlaw." But Shit Happens.

Posted on January 01, 2010
So, the guy who writes Big Debt, Small Law has yet another post bashing solo practice.  And not surprisingly, many commenters at Above the Law, which picked up the post, agree.  Guess what? I do too.  Solo practice is shitlaw.  You heard me right...

Solo Practice May Be "S**tlaw." But It Happens.

Posted on January 01, 2010
[Update - January 2, 2010 - I have edited the nasty language from my post in response to one of the commenters.  I've been responding to posts and comments like this for years now and nothing seems to make a dent, so I thought that by using offensive language, I might get the attention of those who read sites like ATL and BigDebt and make them realize that we solos are neither idiots nor delusional...

In Praise of the Long Journey

Posted on December 22, 2009
In an age where we envy quick success - the dotcom that grows from garage to gargantuan in eighteen months, the blogger who gets a book deal after three months - artist in turn lead to break-out success.  Five years later at 94, Herrera is savoring the financial remuneration and notoriety from a lifetime of painting...

An Ebook on What Matters

Posted on December 17, 2009
One of my favorite "ideas" people (for want of better classification) is Seth Godin.  Godin has an eye for trends -- and no one else spots them as far in advance or articulates them quite as well.  This week, Godin is offering a freebie:  an ebook entitled What Matters Now...

Blogging: It's a Matter of Trust

Posted on December 14, 2009
Call me old fashioned, but I believe that my word is my bond, something that you can trust.  My blog is comprised of many, many words, all of which form a trusted bond with my audience and other bloggers.   I worked hard to establish this trust and I take it seriously, as do most legitimate bloggers...

Keep Your Eye on the Prize: Advice for Solos & All Lawyers from Marc Randazza

Posted on December 09, 2009
So how does a real estate associate who barely found a job at a small local firm become one of the nation's pre-eminent First Amendment lawyers with his own practice, representing clients like Above the Law or the guy who went head to head with talk radio superstar Glenn Beck in a battle over a domain name?  By "keeping his eye on the prize," as Legal Satyricon Marc Randazza explains in his interview with Bitter Lawyer which I learned of via Scott Greenfield's bag of holiday goodies...

MyShingle Turns Seven

Posted on December 09, 2009
Today, MyShingle celebrates its seventh birthday.  When I started back in 2002, there were only 100 blogs and now, blogging is all the rage.   And though I do take some pride that I was ahead of the curve, I didn't start MyShingle to be trendy...

Profile of New Solo, Jamison Koehler, Washington DC Criminal & DUI Defense Lawyer

Posted on December 08, 2009
Every so often, I like to post a profile of a lawyer who's just opened a solo practice.   This month, it's Jamison Koehler of Koehler Law.  Jamie is a criminal and DUI defense lawyer in Washington D.C. and here's what he had to share about his background, his reasons for going solo and how he intends to serve clients...

Profile of New Solo, Jamison Koehler, Washington D.C. Criminal Defense Lawyer, Washington D.C. DUI Lawyer

Posted on December 08, 2009
Every so often, I like to post a profile of a lawyer who's just opened a solo practice.   This month, it's Jamison Koehler of Koehler Law.  Jamie is a criminal and DUI defense lawyer in Washington D.C. and here's what he had to share about his background, his reasons for going solo and how he intends to serve clients...

Social Media Brings Lawyers Back to the Future

Posted on December 06, 2009
 H/T Amy Campbell's Weblog (I threw in this video because it's somewhat related to my post but more so for marketing to a company.  My post relates to consumer marketing.  Read on and you'll see what I mean). When it comes to social media, most lawyers aren't first movers...

Why Big Firms Don't Blog Well: Not Too Much Risk, But Too Little Passion

Posted on December 03, 2009
Chalk one up for the solos and small firms.  For what it's worth, we dominate the ranks of the Third Annual ABA Blawg 100.  By contrast, only two large firm blogs made the cut, Mark Herrmann observes at Drug and Device Law, one of the chosen...

Some Free Tools for Starting A Law Firm

Posted on December 02, 2009
Two weeks ago, I presented a nearly full day CLE in Oregon on Solo by Choice in the Current Economy, with a summary by Beverly Michaelis, one of the Oregon Professional Liability Fund's Practice Management Advisors.  But below are a couple of slides that I used for the Oregon program and others, highlighting many of the free products and services available to lawyers starting or running a law firm...

Inspiration for Lawyers From A Boy Who Built A Windmill

Posted on November 30, 2009
--It was a future I could not accept. (William Kamkwaba, Ted Talk at 2:28) A decade ago, William Kamkwaba was just a poor simple farm boy growing up in Malawi, Africa, fully expecting that like his father, he too would become a farmer.  But in 2001, Malawi experienced a devastating drought and famine that knocked William's plans off course...

Happy Thanksgiving and a Thank You to Solo and Small Firm Lawyers

Posted on November 25, 2009
I'm heading out for Thanksgiving but here are a couple of a quick thank yous.   Thank you to all the unsung solo and small firm lawyers who serve clients, solve problems and do justice, day in and day out.  As I said in my last post, you make me proud to be a solo by choice...

Shinglers Who May Inspire You To Start A Law Firm And Become the Lawyer You Dreamed of Being

Posted on November 21, 2009
This past Friday, I presented a nearly full day seminar, Solo By Choice in the Current Economy at the Oregon Bar Center, sponsored by the Professional Liability Fund, the Oregon State Bar Sole and Small Firm Practitioners Section and the Practice Management Section of the Oregon Bar...

Podcast on Starting a Practice he Lawyer You Always Dreamed of Being

Posted on November 21, 2009
Last week, I was privileged to be interviewed by Rodney McDowell, who heads the Massachusetts Law Office Management Assistance Program and, coincidentally a fellow Cornell  Law School alum (as an aside, we were just a class apart but didn't really know each other well back in law school - and my guess is that neither one of us expected that we'd wind up doing what we are)  Anyway, you can catch our conversation on Legal Talk Network...

Free Legal Research by Google & What It Means

Posted on November 17, 2009
What do I think about Google's recent launch of a free, online legal research tool as part of Google Scholar?  (disclosure: my husband works for Google, but isn't involved with the legal research project)   Funny you should ask, because I've been tracking, evaluating and most of all, patiently awaiting the arrival of a functional, robust online research tool for nearly a decade...

The Page Between Biglaw and Solo Practice, Between Life and Death

Posted on November 12, 2009
Even though I reside in Bethesda, Maryland and practice appellate law in Washington D.C. just like appellate lawyer Mark Levy,  the former Kilpatrick Stockton attorney who took his life after his firm downsized, our paths never crossed.   As a biglaw attorney and a small fry in a highly stratified town like Washington D...

Your Blog On Social Media

Posted on November 10, 2009
This is a quick video that my daughter, Elana helped me put together (don't you love the blog in the frying pan?) that demonstrates how social media can be used to amplify blogging efforts.  That's the topic I'll be discussing today at the Avvo's Mid-Atlantic Tour here in DC (I just noticed that Avvo launched Avvo Pro which will also allow for redistribution of blog content, but I didn't have time to add it)...

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