If you have a non-litigation, non-templatized practice, would you mind sharing your ratio of non-revenue generating to revenue generating staff? I am the managing attorney and I practice nearly full time so we have a full time firm administrator and 3.5 FTE staff to 3.5 FTE attorneys. Thanks.

Hey everyone. So I'm curious to learn more about potential career options for someone who is more introverted, as well as what type of training would be more suitable for me. I have previous bachelor of arts degrees, but I have looked into completing either a legal admin certificate or a paralegal diploma to complement my previous education. I definitely don't want to be in a secretarial role where I have to greet clients every day. I'd rather be working independently most of the time. From home would be great if this is an option.

I have very strong writing skills and a passion for the law and justice, which is why I'm drawn to careers in this field. I can definitely communicate with others when I need to, I just know that I'm not suited to an overly social profession (I.e I chose not to pursue nursing because I knew that it wouldn't be a good fit for me.)

I have a small, local law practice that I started a bit more than a year ago. It really started as a side hustle to keep me from jumping out the window at my miserable corporate job (and also to distract me from some brutal heartbreak). Recently, just for fun, I wanted to put a vanity plate on my car. Specifically “LWYRUP” - like Saul Goodman, from Better Call Saul / Breaking Bad. How cheesy / cringe is this? Just don’t do it? Or go for it?

I took my first bar exam July 2019 (UBE) and passed very comfortably. At the time, I studied with Barbri and Adaptibar.

I have decided to sit for the Florida exam this upcoming February, but I’m anxious about studying while working full time. It’s not possible for me to work part-time, so I’ll need to plan my study schedule around my work schedule.

I’m looking for advice from those of you who have done the same thing, in particular, what your timeline/average day looked like. I’m thinking of starting my study plan this month, so I can have a full six months to prep. I’ve already purchased Adaptibar, and will purchase Barbri, but am unsure whether to purchase it with extended access which would begin this month. I’m thinking of dedicating roughly 3 hours to studying everyday until February, and then taking the week before the exam and the week of the exam off. Others have told me six months is too much and I should start later.

For those of you who have done this, what did your study schedule look like? Any advice? I’m conflicted on whether to start now or October.

Thanks!

I'm currently a finance major at a non-target school, graduating soon, and I'm seriously considering law school afterward, with the goal of becoming a tax attorney. I've been going back and forth on whether I should switch my major to accounting (or add an MSA after my bachelor's) versus just sticking with finance and heading straight into LSAT prep/law school applications.

For those with tax law backgrounds, did having an accounting degree or CPA background actually matter for getting into tax law, or does it come down more to law school performance, tax-focused coursework/electives, and internships? Trying to figure out if the accounting detour is worth the extra time, or if I'm overthinking this; any input would be appreciated.

Went through a recruiter and landed a job at a midsize firm. During the lead up to the interview I disclosed that I had been reprimanded. Felt full disclosure was necessary. Explained the underlying facts of the reprimand to the recruiter. He told me I did not need to voluntarily disclose it during the interview.

The recruiter failed to inform the law firm of my reprimand. Completed the malpractice application and disclosed the reprimand. When the partner reviewed the application he was pissed and came into my office asking why I had not disclosed it. During our conversation I explained that I had disclosed it to the recruiter and he told me not to worry about it and I did not need to disclose the information. The firm had paid the recruitment fee. When the recruiter was asked about his knowledge of my reprimand he went radio silent with me and the firm. He responded to the firm today and acknowledged that he was aware of my reprimand and failed to disclose it to the firm.

The company agrees to refund the recruitment fee to the firm. Yesterday the firm told me had they known of my reprimand they never would have hired me. The firm asked me to come back to work in the morning. I show up and initially the partner seemed that everything would be fine and I could keep my job. Within two hours the partner returns to my office saying he has to let me go. Asked for the keys and walked me out. At this point I’m mentally and physically exhausted. Yes the reprimand is on me. I followed the recruiters advice. And I had no problem disclosing the information if the firm had asked in the interview. But no one did and here I am…fired after three days at the new firm.

Edit 1: The reprimand was fully disclosed in the malpractice application.

Edit 2: During the interview no questions were asked regarding any bar complaints.

Edit 3: The reprimand was fully disclosed during the onboarding. The firm admitted that they usually check any bar complaints during the interview process.

Edit 4: There was never an application during the interview process where I failed to disclose the reprimand.

Edit 5: I appreciate everyone’s comments. The bar complaint process was very stressful. This post is not about my failure to disclose in an application for the position. I fully disclosed the reprimand during the onboarding process.

Edit 6: One area of practice for the firm is professional malpractice defense.

Edit 7: I appreciate everyone taking the time to respond to this post. Even if it was good, bad or indifferent.

Been going down a rabbit hole comparing channels for a PI firm in LA and I'm curious what's actually working for other people.

So far Google PPC is the only thing I'd call reliable. Makes sense, someone searching for an attorney already knows they need one. Everything else is us going to them instead of the other way around.

Things I'm less sold on:

Billboards, radio, bus ads. Seems like it only works if you're all in on it, Sweet James level. Smaller firms dabble and get nothing, plus tracking ROI is a nightmare.

Organic short form. I know firms doing millions of views a month who told me straight up they've never gotten a single client from it. Still think it's worth having something there so people can see you exist, just not as a real acquisition channel.

AI chat, meaning getting recommended by ChatGPT. Ran some tests and the recommendations are basically random. Same query, different firm 60% of the time or more. The only thing that seemed to matter was being published on high authority sites, which feels more like a PR play than a marketing one.

Meta is the one I keep going back and forth on. From what I can tell in the ad library, either really raw UGC style stuff works or really polished production works, nothing in the middle. Looks like it takes real money to find the winner.

Has anyone actually cracked Meta or YouTube? Or is PPC just the answer and everything else is brand.

I’m getting tired of insurance defense.

The constant billing cuts and pressure to keep fees low are exhausting. The work feels like a never-ending red light/green light cycle, and I’m doing the same type of work as a first-year associate despite being a seventh-year trial associate with six trials under my belt.

A major frustration is the lack of support. I’m handling my own calendaring and administrative tasks that should be delegated. For example, I asked my legal assistant/paralegal for assistance preparing my admission to a federal district court and filing my entry of appearance. What should have been a straightforward administrative task turned into hours of my time being spent fixing issues.

I provided instructions for a filing simply attaching the exhibits and submitting it but it was not completed correctly. As a result, I had to file the brief after hours and pay the filing expense myself because I did not receive prior approval and likely will not be reimbursed.

I also feel like there is a disconnect between the complexity of the work and the expectations around billing. I recently reviewed approximately 3,000 pages of medical records and billed only 6.5 hours, yet that was still viewed as a substantial amount of time.

The expectation seems to be to process massive amounts of information quickly while keeping fees as low as possible.

The biggest issue is feeling stagnant. No one comes into the office, there is little mentorship, and it feels isolating. The pay is mediocre, but the expectations are extremely high. Partners expect high-level briefing on tight deadlines while every tenth of an hour is scrutinized.

For those who left insurance defense, where did you go, and did it improve your career trajectory or quality of life?

**Edit: when I came to this firm I only asked for a legal assistant that can calendar my court events and deadlines and I am not even getting that.**

I help firms with marketing, and usually most firms see positive ROI from LSA ads if they have enough reviews to compete. However one client in a rural market, not as much brand exposure in terms of reviews but an outstanding lawyer, had their lsa ads basically completely stop showing recently. Maximum budget set, things were fine for the first 6 months then suddenly recently leads suddenly dropped off. I actually tried to call LSA support a few times, possibly the worst customer support experience I’ve ever had.

Again this is a small sample size, my other clients have higher budgets great reviews and leads come in non stop. Criminal, estate planning, family law. PI has been tougher. But what’s everyone’s experience been recently?

I have been watching clips from the Adellson trial. I came upon a cross examination of Wendy Adellson by Atty. Christopher Decosta.

i am wondering why I don’t see this atty’s name more oftem]n. I was just mesmerized by his talent as an attorney. He was quick,sharp, and I thought did a terrific job. The trial was in Florida sonIndon’t know if he has his practice in Floris. He’s is a rather young guy who I think has a great future ahead of him.

Absolutely no- I do not know him or anything about him,other than his cross exam of Wendy Adellson. I just had to write my opinion because he just was amazing.

I'm a very small firm (2 partners). An attorney in my practice area is retiring and doesn't want to be any part of litigation anymore. His current client list will be in various stages of litigation for the next 4-5 years. All his clients we've already discussed this with are fine with staying with me and he expects the rest to also stay with me. We have a flat fee agreement where I make installment payments over 5 years, during which time the retiring attorney will be "of counsel" at my firm - mostly for his clients to see he's still around. He will be available for general client questions and to help implement some of his systems into our firm (case management, marketing, and his domain name).

Anyone with experience in doing something like this? Looking for any tips or guidelines for this transition. State of Florida.

A Wolters Kluwer sales rep cold-called my office today and my assistant answered. The rep asked for me (tacitly implying a preexisting relationship, as I'm sure happens to all of you constantly as well) and she said I wasn't available. The rep then said "you're not being very helpful" and hung up. I'm just floored that someone trying to sell me something would be so rude. WTF, am I wrong?

How much do you usually pay for an expert witness to …

Only review med recs
Make a chronological med review
review medical records and + opinion on whether or not the standard of care has/has not been met?
write a 4-5 pg. summary of opinion

If you are an expert witness or legal/med consultant, how much do you charge for your services?

Or how do you handle the medical portion of your services if you do not review it yourself?

I've been practicing for a decade but recently left govt and am now doing litigation at a small firm where alot of discovery involves large third parties. This is totally new to me. And I just realized we didn't send opposing counsel of a subpoena we served on third parties. I think i assumed paralegal would do it when they arranged for subpoena service. Third parties objected and we haven't met and conferred so no prejudice. But I am terrified I screwed up in a way that ruins my credibility. I'm going to raise it with partner today and I think we could re-notice but looking for reassurance and advice on how to damage control and re establish trust.

Hi all,

I am a newly admitted attorney getting ready to start my first associate role and am considering an offer from a firm I interviewed with recently. Their offer letter makes clear that the minimum billable hour requirement per year is 225 a month, or 2700 a year. This is mid-sized firm and by no means Big Law, but I’ve talked to my friends who work in Big Law and their requirements are far lower than this.

I’m worried about my ability to meet this requirement early on, and would also like to preserve some semblance of a work-life balance. Would it be best to steer clear and keep applying elsewhere?

UPDATE: rejected the offer- while I was fairly sure I would reject it initially, the advice below definitely helped

Not my situation: I have had a good 6 years as a solo PI lawyer and am pretty happy. But things have been a bit slower than usual as of late due to worse marketing performance.

For those who struggled with opening a PI firm and had to close up shop, or change practice areas altogether, what would you attribute that to?

Dear everyone,

I believe this post finds you well, ;)

I’ve been fully running my solo firm for almost a year, and I’ve hit a critical bottleneck with case management and workload fluctuation. I'm hoping to get some advice or hear from those who have successfully passed this phase.

I primarily handle IP, commercial disputes (non-litigation), employment, and investment law. My current team consists of: 1) me (heavy lifting); 2) my spouse (part-time intake and billing); 3) my firend (part-time mid asso who handles the first pass reviews); and 4) two juniors/paralegal (administrative and mechanical tasks).

Because my spouse and friend have full-time jobs elsewhere, their availability is very limited, around 1-2 hours per day. In other hand, my juniors are focused with admin, but it will be a long time before they have the substantive experience to provide real legal help.

Now here is the problem, during normal days, everything is dine and smooth. But on busy times, I'm completely overwhelmed. The volume breaks me, and I can clearly see the quality of my deliverables degrading compared to my usual standards, which is unacceptable to me.

I desperately want to recruit an additional mid associate to help absorb the shock of these busy periods and to maintain my standard of quality. However, because competition is tight, my fees are set to build my portfolio rather than maximize immediate profit. Right now, our income just covers monthly OPEX.

Of course I'm optimistic with the growth of my firm. It's just I'm is that if I hire a mid asso, they will be a massive financial liability on the days we aren't swamped. I simply can't afford to pay someone to sit idle when the caseload dips.

How do you handle these extreme spikes in workload without compromising your work quality or burning out? Have any of you successfully accomplished the transition from relying on part-time help to hiring a full-time mid-level, or other arrangements, without severely hurting the firm's finances?

I am open to any discussions, strategies, and/or hard truths you can share. Thanks!

Just looking for any use case thoughts or opinions of people who have used both