Going Solo: Starting Your Own Law Firm

Going Solo: Starting Your Own Law Firm

It’s that time of year, again— time to start your own law firm! There is a lot to consider when you’re branching out on your own, whether you’re fresh out of law school or leaving that large firm the list of to-do’s is daunting.

While each practice (and their needs) is unique, there are a number of things everyone needs to consider, namely: location, equipment, office supplies, staff, business management, and networking.

Location:

This might seem like an obvious one to anyone going out on their own— Most solo attorneys work from home in the beginning because it seems like the most cost-effective thing to do. With today’s technology, working from home is more than possible—it’s easier rather than commuting to an office but, eventually, you will need a space to conduct a conference or convene with a client. Majority of home-office attorneys avoid meeting clients and prospects at their homes and often use public spaces like coffee shops, which potentially provide public (unsecure) WIFI and little to no privacy.

Now, you could get into a space of your own but, that can be problematic in the early stages of your firm. It can be expensive, you usually have to commit for at least three years, and you’ll be alone. Working without the ability to bounce ideas off of someone else, or even make small talk can make your days drag. Knowing someone is down the hall is not only a relief in the sense it keeps you from talking to yourself but, it also provides a helping hand when the printer inevitably breaks.

So, you could try working out of a coffee shop or committing to a long-term lease when you’re unsure about your firm’s future, or you could try a coworking space like Engage. You still get to work for yourself, but with the luxury of having other attorneys nearby to collaborate with or get referrals from. Engage does yearly leases and lets you relocate to different offices or upgrade your office size as your needs change.

Office Equipment & Supplies:

Something many attorneys overlook when financially planning to start their own firm: office supplies and equipment. All of those blue pens, post-it notes, and staples get used up quickly and if you run out of them you have to stop what you’re doing and re-order online or run to the store. At Engage, many of these administrative tasks are already handled. You don’t need to start YouTubing, “How to fix my printer,” or Googling “why is the scanner making this noise,” because, let’s be honest, that stuff is annoying and time consuming and when you’re first starting out time is literally money.

Whether it’s worrying about buying the wrong size printer paper or trying to remember that brand of pen you like so much, it all takes up precious time in your day and space in your head. We understand that spending time on your billable work is the most important thing you can do in your day, that’s why having an administrative staff to keep you stocked with staples and legal pads is important, something many solo attorneys find out quickly when they start their own firm.

Staff:

In the beginning you will tell yourself that answering the phone and greeting clients will add a personal touch, but it quickly becomes time consuming as you gain momentum and obtain more clients. Having staff can free up some of your time and make you look established— but it can also consume a lot out of your budget. It’s hard to take that leap and hire someone once you consider salary, benefits, overtime, training, equipment, etc.

Engage provides fulltime reception and office management to help take some of these daily timewasters off your plate and, the best part is it doesn’t come out of your pocket. That’s an amazing perk of a coworking space like this, you get that administrative help without the time and money it takes to hire someone.

Business Management:

As an attorney there are a lot of programs created to help you do your job more efficiently. When you work for a large firm these are almost a given but being a solo means services like IT or access to forms and public records is just more money, especially without the discounts offered to large firms.

We have worked with attorneys in the past and have heard the same moans over and over, “it wasn’t this expensive at my old firm.” Since we are a coworking space targeted at attorneys we have found a way that you can still utilize these systems without hurting your budget. We have started working with vendors such as Fluid IT, Fix8Media, and LexisNexis to get you discounts for IT services, website design, and computer assisted legal research.

Networking:

One of the scariest things about going solo and starting your own firm is losing touch, with both your community of attorneys and clients. And how are you going to get leads? Engage helps with that by providing office space catered to lawyers—officing in a space where you can network and keep your fingers on the pulse. By choosing Engage, you’re gaining a whole floor of referral opportunities which can help when you’re trying to ramp-up your business. You will also be rubbing elbows with experienced solos and CEOs, who can provide insight into business management dos and don’ts.

We try to provide different opportunities to connect with other lawyers, force them out of their offices. And because we cater to attorneys, Engage is able to offer specific events such as CLEs and business coaching that wouldn’t be available in other coworking space. We realized by offering these events on location it takes stress off of our members- no more spending an entire afternoon driving across town to attend a CLE or attend a networking opportunity.

Starting your own firm is stressful and it’s impossible to explain that to anyone who hasn’t done it themselves. We understand that we can’t fix everything but, let us tackle the details so you can focus on your practice. You may be starting out as a solo attorney, but it doesn’t have to feel that way.

Engage Workspace for Lawyers is an office space for lawyers built by lawyers. Unlike other coworking spaces, Engage charges a flat monthly rate for access to a full suite of resources and limits membership to a community of lawyers. If you are looking for law office space where you can focus on your practice and be surrounded by great colleagues, please contact us or book a tour.

© Elysium Consulting LLC dba Engage Workspace for Lawyers.  2018-2023.  Represented by intellectual property law firm, Klemchuk PLLC.