When should firms talk to clients about succession?

Are you considering scaling from a solo business to a small firm? Read about how one attorney dreamed big and found success on her path to small-firm status. Plus: Check out this AI tool designed to make scribbled deposition notes obsolete.

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In today's newsletter:

When should firms talk to clients about succession?
Growing a firm with tech tools and tiki boats
A data-centered approach to practice management
New AI tool could help attorneys meet deposition goals
Firm gives employees paid day off for election

Boston firm gives paid day off for elections

Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo recently announced that it is giving employees a paid day off on Election Day, Nov. 5, 2024. In addition, managing member Bob Bodian encourages employees to participate in volunteer opportunities “that help ensure a safe, accessible, and fair election.” 

Taking a long view look at attorney succession

Many clients learn about an attorney’s departure from a firm shortly before or even after it happens. But Sylvia Coulter of LawVision Group says a smooth succession plan begins well in advance of an attorney’s departure, even around five years prior. While of course the communications about a lawyer leaving — through retirement, a lateral move or another reason — will depend on the circumstances, Coulter notes that transparency is often better for both firms and clients. The trust built by a clear succession plan can result in stronger attorney-client ties. 

How this lawyer scaled from solo to small firm 

Well before the pandemic, Lindsey Egan of Egan Law Center began leaning on tech tools and standardizing her documents to manage her practice, which proved helpful when she decided to scale up from solo to small firm. But beyond leveraging tech for efficiency, Egan relies on decidedly more old-fashioned methods. She discusses how she has adopted the Harkness method, a student-centered classroom structure established at Exeter, to help keep staff on the same page. She also uses tiki boat cruises to relate to her clients. 

Learn more from Above The Law.

• Oct. 7-8: Clio Cloud Conference in Austin
• Oct. 8: Webinar: The 2024 Election and its Effect on Business Lawyers
• Oct. 16-18: Electronic Discovery Institute Leadership Summit in Fort Lauderdale

Using metrics to build a law firm

 Jacqueline Bretell knows a thing or two about overcoming adversity. She started law school at the height of the Great Recession and became the CEO of Bighorn Law days before the pandemic lockdown. She talks with Laurence Colletti on the On the Road podcast about collecting and using metrics like the number of new client intakes per month and the length of time from intake to resolution to make firm management decisions and create contingency plans for the inevitable downturns. Even so, she says, “you can look at the controls and the stats and the data all you want, but I think the most important thing is actually just keeping in mind the needs of your team, and actually that requires you to talk to them.” 

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Thank you for reading Raise The Bar.

Every Thursday, you'll hear from our team about the most pressing issues facing legal practices today. We'll also try to include some quick-hit reads that touch on interesting cases and precedents being set worldwide. 

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Written by Suzi Morales. Edited by Katie Parsons.