Solo Contendere

By Dan Heilman

For an attorney, working in a firm or corporate setting can have a lot of perks: a steady stream of work, a consistent paycheck, the everyday company of colleagues. But some lawyers find that their temperament and work style fit better in a solo practice.

Transferring from a firm atmosphere to a solo practice can be exhilarating, but it can also be a difficult transition. What are some key things to keep in mind that will help guarantee a smooth transition from a firm to a one-person practice?

One is to avoid burning bridges if at all possible. Law practice is a small world, and it’s very likely that you’ll encounter your former colleagues as you build up your new practice.

“Leave on good terms with your firm,” said St. Paul litigator Susan Dickel Minsberg, who entered a solo practice after several years with a small firm. “I know people who have left large firms who get referrals for years because they left with no hard feelings. If something comes in the door that it doesn’t make sense for the firm to handle, they’ll think of you.

“What I found was that people wanted to see me succeed on my own, and so they sent business to me where they might not have done that if I had still been with a firm.”

And even if you left under less-than-ideal circumstances, such as a layoff, be careful not to bad-mouth your old firm. If you need to vent about what led to your departure, do it with someone you can trust not to repeat your complaints, and then find a way to move on from the negativity.

“If you’re making that change because something ended — a layoff, a firm closing — they will have issues that may even be considered part of the grief process,” said Joan Bibelhausen, executive director of Lawyers Concerned for Lawyers. “Something they’ve built and achieved is gone. That can make the transition difficult.”

A number of lawyers who enter a solo practice — not unlike many other self-employed people who work from home — can struggle with isolation when they find that the only time they leave the house is to walk the dog or meet a client.

It’s important to your mental well-being to build and maintain social connections both in and out of your profession, Bibelhausen said.

“A lot of lawyers don’t expect to be affected by that isolation,” she said. “Ask yourself, how are you going to stay connected with members of your profession? You need to find ways to connect not only within the profession but also outside of it, because we are more than lawyers.”

Minneapolis criminal defense lawyer Ryan Garry went solo in April 2010 after six fulfilling years at the Kaplan Law Firm in Minneapolis. He said that continuing to see colleagues socially, such as by serving on the board of Minnesota Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, has helped mitigate the challenges of being alone during the day.

Another source of company can be a shared office, which is becoming a fast-growing option for solo attorneys.

“It has been an adjustment to not have people around, but office sharing helps, and so does staying active in professional associations,” Garry said.

“If someone offices at home, it’s important to create communities of their own,” agreed Kenneth Kunkle, a St. Paul business, copyright and trademark attorney who worked at Thomson-Reuters and spent a few years in a firm setting before going solo in 2007. “Whether it’s through the solo/small practice listserv or weekly meetings with colleagues, it’s very helpful to get out there and find a place to talk shop.”

One aspect of solo practice that can be either daunting or exciting is setting your own schedule and your own expectations on how much you want to learn. With no minimum billable hours, your caseload is your own to build and manage.

“I hear from many lawyers that once they started their own practice, they worked fewer hours and made more money,” Minsberg said. “If a lawyer is billing at $200 an hour, and they bill and collect — and I stress collect — 10 hours a week and they take off two weeks a year, they’ve made $100,000.”

Though you might earn more at a big firm and you won’t pay any overhead expenses, the difference can be made up by increased time to yourself and the fact that you keep what you earn, less the tax man’s cut.

Even so, the flow of work coming in can go from a torrent to a trickle and back again without any rhyme or reason, meaning you need to not only be your own firm administrator but also the one who deals with erratic paydays.

“Be prepared to make the adjustment to uncertainty,” Kunkle said. “Understand that even though you might not have business coming in this minute, it usually pops up when you need it.”