Author: JMF

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Minnesota Lawyer | First Post in Seven Years!

Well, I am still here.  Practicing law, on my own, with my own office, for the last ten plus years.  Who would have guessed?

I started practicing in Minnesota in 2012.  I believe I was licensed in March(?) of 2012.  I held a license in Indiana since 2007, but 2022 marks 10 years of being on my own.  It feels like a long time and a short time all at once.

What’s Next?

I don’t know.  I haven’t posted in seven years.  Why?  Probably because I have very busy being successful and practicing law.  There has not been a lot of time for reflection.  It has been go, go, go for ten years.  That and I had a couple kids.  That takes a lot of time too.   My kids are 10 and 8.  So, yeah, I was pretty busy the last ten years.

It is getting easier.  The boys are older.  I have trimmed my practice to a level and practice areas that I (mostly) want to work in.  For awhile it was just too busy.

Another Ten Years?

I don’t know.  Maybe.  I am a big Chicago Cubs baseball fan and one of my all time favorite front-office persons, Theo Epstein, won a World Series, stayed for about 10 years, and then quit to do something else.  I keep thinking about what he said about careers and life:  you got to move on and do different things every ten years or so.  I like Theo Epstein, he is a smart guy.  He also seems to be a good guy.  My point?  I agree with him.  I think it IS important to review your career and life periodically and, maybe, do something different.  I am ruminating on that.

My point here is that I am getting tired of being on my own and making ALL of the decisions ALL the time.  I drains you.  I would like somebody else to call all the shots and I just putter around and work a bit and go how with no worries.  Wouldn’t that be nice.  I have explored joining another practice on a couple of occasions.  I may do that.  I may not.

So, again, I don’t know.  What I do know is that simply treading water and making money – just because it is easy and you can – is no way to live a good life.  So, again, I don’t know.  I am thinking on it.

Minnesota Lawyer

I know this:  I am a Minnesota lawyer.  I like practicing law a lot of days.  Many days, lately, I don’t.  I am also a Minnesota probate lawyer.  I am using that link on purpose.  This is what I do and I am going to advertise it.  I am going to shout it out loud and anybody who doesn’t like it, doesn’t have to read this blog.  I am not sure I care.  What I would like to do is maybe have an “anonymous” outlet blog where I can share my feelings about practicing law and life without feeling like I am going to be chastised by the internet for my diary thoughts.  Their my thoughts, not yours.  So be nice.  Read it or don’t, it doesn’t really matter.

Moving forward:  I may not post again here for another seven years.  Or, I most post again next week.  I am going to try to use this as another blog where I can advertise for myself and my practice, though.  That’s the plan.  I may quit.  I may not.  For now, though, I will say that it has been interesting and mostly good.

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Running a Law Firm | Hiring an Associate Attorney (or other legal help)

I have reached the point where I could really use some help from another lawyer.

I knew this day would come. It is part of my business plan. Yet, I don’t really know how to hire someone and I am not sure I want to. I can see it being a total disaster. Why would I want to spend time training someone when I don’t have enough time as it is? I also don’t really need the money. I have enough. Yet, it would be really nice to have some help. Someone to rely on. Someone else to answer the calls and meet with clients. I do everything. I am pretty tired.

Pros and Cons of Hiring an Associate

(* Caveat: I don’t know that hiring an associate is a good idea. Maybe it should just be a contract employee, etc. The discussion of independent contractor versus full or part-time associate attorney is too big for this post and I am not going to think about that important delineation yet.)

I figure people like lists and they help to organize my thoughts. Therefore, let us move forward with the pros and cons of hiring someone:

Pros

  • Someone to differ tasks to
  • Someone to answer the phone
  • Someone to meet with clients
  • Someone else to generate revenue
  • Someone to share the experience of running a law practice with
  • Someone to cover you when you go on vacation, get sick, play hooky, etc
  • Someone to share some of the load

Cons

  • They want to be paid
  • They don’t know what they are doing / won’t do it right
  • They don’t do it the way you do it
  • They may not show up
  • You may have to fire them
  • Payroll tax
  • More accounting headache
  • You will likely have to take time to mentor them when you don’t want to
  • They may steal your clients and leave
  • They may just leave and not tell you
  • They may be unethical, lazy, not smart

I am sure there are other points I am missing.

Summary

In a nutshell, I think I really want to hire somebody because I think it would be fun to have a teammate. I also want to mentor somebody. I feel strongly that it is time to do that. Yet, I am also very nervous because I know being an employee is not all that fun. I never liked being an employee. I also really don’t want to manage somebody every single day.

Basically, this was a gather my thoughts post. I will think more about this later and update.

As always, I am signing off with an obligatory “who I am post”. I do this mainly to let people know I am a Minnesota probate attorney who is looking for some help, or, perhaps just a place to vent.

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Starting a Law firm – You Can Do It. Seriously.

I was going over my various blogs and I thought I would visit my first one – this one.  It has been a couple years since I started this blog to serve as my outlet while I moved from a law firm job, to taking the bar exam in another state, and, essentially starting my legal career over again.

I haven’t posted on here in months.  I may not post here again in months.  I may post next week.  I may never post again.  Who knows.

However, I wanted to say to all those lawyers who find there way to this blog  – which was started by an amateur business man who just really, really wanted his own law practice – you can do it.  Seriously.  If you want to, go start a law firm.

It isn’t always easy, it isn’t always fun.  But, if you want it bad enough, you can do it.

The first few months are probably going to be tough. The middle months can be amazing.   When you really start cooking it is a great feeling.  Then you realize you got to keep feeding the beast.

I’ve made more money than I ever did at a law firm.  I have freedom.  I save what I want for retirement.  I call all of the shots.  I am a Minnesota estate planning and probate attorney.  Nobody tells me what to do.  I pick my clients.  I work my ass off if I want to and take vacation if I want to.   I love it.  I am happy.

Getting new clients is always tough, but they are there.  Be bold.  Take a chance.  If you can stomach the risk, do it.  Do it right and don’t look back.

I will leave you with this:

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Starting Law Firm | I’m still here

I am about eight months into starting a law firm.  I don’t know if I have “made it” yet but I can tell you that the absolute terror and nervousness is gone.  I almost feel like this is my real “career” now.  I have a long ways to go, but I got a lot of it down – not everything, but a lot of it.

I am not sure what people want to hear or not.  I am also not sure I what direction I want to take this blog (if I want to take it any direction at all).  As anybody who read this may know, I haven’t posted here since June.  Will I post again next week?  Next month? Tomorrow or in three months?  I don’t know.  I can tell you that blogging takes up too much time and when I am trying to make money by selling my time, blogging tends to just get in the way.  That being said, it does work.

So how does it work?  Basically, blogging gets a search engine’s attention.  Let us not get lost in the woods.  This blog is found by search engines.  Their value  cannot be denied.  I think SEO and all that stuff is scummy and can be borderline unethical at times.  Yet, it can’t be any worse than billboards or those ads you see on television.  But, I continually questions what is the value of blogging – or anything for that matter.

If you want to start a law practice, I would probably recommend blogging if you like writing and you are an introvert.  It is long and tedious.  Have a plan and stick to it.  I haven’t stuck to it.  I have, however, gotten some good (and bad) clients from the internet.  It works.  What else works? Networking, social clubs, friends, connections, print advertising, etc.  What is the best?  I have no idea.  I will let you know when I figure it out.

Anyway, the point of this post is that I am still here.  I am still running my own law practice and I am successful.  I have branched out a little and now consider myself a Minnesota business lawyer.  I have not “made it” yet, but I think I will.  My definitions of success have changed a bit.  I have learned a lot.  I am enjoying the ride.

 

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Rural Lawyer v. Big City Lawyer

I’m struggling a bit with my practice area focus.  No, not my legal practice area, my firm location area.

I live in a small town just off the fringes of the Twin Cities.  I’m closer to St. Paul than to Minneapolis but it is all relative.  I have gotten several clients out of most of the Twin Cities counties and I am meeting with someone next week in Minneapolis.  I (try) to practice mainly in Dakota County but I get calls from all over the place.  I don’t have a network built up so I am kind of flailing a bit to try to establish something.

Blah, blah, blah.

The point I am trying to make is that starting a law firm is hard.  There are so many decisions to make and I constantly wonder which are the right ones.  I had/have a business plan, but so what?  Plans are great until you realize that logistics of practicing law make things a wee-bit difficult at times.

One thing I can say for sure – I have to develop a network.  Doing that takes time and a lot of energy.  Sometimes I don’t think I am up to the task.

My big problem right now is where do I establish that network?  I know several attorneys, financial planners, and bankers in the cities.  They have been helpful (somewhat) in mentoring and referring a little business.  Yet, I often find that the people I meet and like are in the small town where I live.  I find myself – somewhat accidentally – building a network where I live.  Big surprise huh?

I go to church in a small town, I joined a service club in the small town, everybody I meet seems to be in the small town.  You know what?  I like these people.  I want them to like me and put their faith into me.  It feels genuine.  People need estate planning and probate lawyers in small towns.  People need family law attorneys in small towns.  Banks need attorneys to draft contracts, real estate documents, etc.

A lot of my marketing efforts have been targeted towards getting clients in the Twin Cities and that has worked – sort of.  Business is not fast, but I have clients and they do pay me.  Yet, I definitely haven’t “made it” yet – if that ever happens.  I’m struggling right now with how, when, where, and why to market myself.  Should it be big city or rural?  The target population in my small town is, you guessed it:  small.  Yet, there are only a few attorneys and they are getting older.  I keep hearing that maybe they will retire.  It sounds to me that there is a need for an attorney in my small town.  So, I should grab that opportunity right?

Bruce Cameron over at Rural Lawyer provided some great tips to me on that front.  I really appreciated his candid thoughts on the issue.  After reading his post, I think I agree that lawyers can market themselves and try to get clients everywhere.  As he says, that is what practicing law on the urban fringe is all about.

Therefore, I think I have decided to market myself and network as much as I can in my small town.  We will see what happens.  It takes time out of my suburban/Twin Cities marketing efforts, but it feels better.  It feels right.  I want to practice law for several reasons: one is to make money, but another big reason is because I like people.  I want to feel like I am a part of a community.  Being a small town lawyer provides that kind of feeling.

Staring a firm is all about choosing the proper place to expend your energy.  After all, unless you have a huge budget, it is just you.

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Solo in Minneapolis has a New Look!

For any of my readers who care – I am redisgning this blog.  Why?  Because business is a little slow and I didn’t like how it looked.

Warning:  designing and redesigning the way a blog looks has very little bearing on starting a law firm.

Don’t fall into the trap of making things look pretty all the time.  I certainly have.  I am a bit of a perfectionist and when my website(s) doesn’t look good, I don’t feel good.  Thus, the change.

Yes, business has been slow the last couple weeks.  I started off gang-busters but I’ve hit a bit of a lull.  One of the most interesting (annoying?) things about starting a law practice (or any business) is keeping priorities straight.  When do I blog?  How do I advertise?  When do I get work done?  How do I answer the phone and market myself?

When you start a firm, there is nobody else there but you.  (Unless, of course, you can afford a paralegal or some help).  Since I am by myself, I do ALL of the work.  It is tough, but it is fun.  I’ll try to keep readers informed about what I have been doing.  I need to have an outlet to keep my thoughts straight.  The one thing I have realized is that you have to be diligent about creating a plan and sticking to it.  More on that later.

Creating law firm websites and blogging

I’ve also posted about creating law firm websites in the past. I’ve gotten a lot of hits on those posts.  I’ve also offered to help people with building a website if they are interested.  However, nobody ever takes me up on it.  Sad.  Maybe nobody thinks my website as an Apple Valley MN lawyer is very good.  I like it, but who knows.

Anyway, feel free to comment about the new look or ask questions.  I love comments.  Alas, nobody ever gives them.

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Starting a Law Firm | Business Plans | Solo in Minneapolis featured in Minnesota Lawyer

In an effort to post more on starting a law firm, I wanted to let my readers know that I was recently featured in a nice article on Minnesota Lawyer’s solo and small firm website:  Solo Contendre.

Reporter Dan Heilman contacted me several weeks a go to do an interview.  He was looking for my thoughts on solo and small firm business plans. I gave him my thoughts.  I won’t rehash too much of the conversation here, you should go read the article.

ARE BUSINESS PLANS REALLY NECESSARY FOR STARTING A LAW FIRM?

My two cents is that you probably should create a business plan for your law firm, but it doesn’t have to be all that intricate.  (Then again, I’m just starting out and I could be wrong – I certainly don’t feel like I’ve “made it” yet).

My general thought is that rather than call something a “business plan” it should be referred to as a marketing plan.

Below are my answers to Mr. Heilman questions:

– Is it always necessary for a solo or small-firm lawyer to have a
business plan?

I don’t think so.  I think you need to know who your client-base is and how to reach them.  More important, to me, is having a business marketing plan.  The financial projections, overhead, billing-practices, mission statement, funding, etc. are all things that can planned-out fairly easily.  My question:  what happens when there is no money coming in the door?  I’ve read that to be a solo or small firm lawyer, you need to love marketing.  If you don’t, I think it is tough to make it.  If you are very careful and you plan-out all your expenses over a year-long period, how does that help you generate revenue and bring in clients?
Again, my thought is that a solo or small-firm business plan should be minimal and should focus on marketing.  I think lenders are more interested in seeing a nice looking business plan so that they can feel comfortable lending money.  Otherwise, I think they are generally over-rated.

– What’s a good first step in developing one?

There are a lot of resources.  The small business administration has a wealth of information (www.SBA.gov).  In Minnesota, SCORE ( http://www.score-mn.org/ ) has some great mentoring and business plan resources.  Local chambers of commerce usually have some kind of class on these subjects.  A good online source for business plans is www.Bplans.com.
For my business plan, I went to the bookstore and looked at sole proprietorship and small business books.  Each of the books has more information than anybody could possible read on creating a business plan.

– What ingredients should a good business plan have?

Business plans should have a mission statement, an overhead estimate, some annual projections for the first five years, and a strong marketing focus.  Again, a good business plan should focus on marketing.  To be sure, estimating overhead and costs associated with running a practice is very important.  However, thinking hard about how you plan to get clients in the door is the key.
Therefore, the plan should have detailed information about the what, where, when, why and how you plan to generate revenue.  What is your budget for generating that revenue once you have figured out your overhead?  How will you ensure that you stick to a marketing plan?  Are there going to be some ways to check your progress so that you know you are sticking to your goals?  If your plan isn’t working, what else can you do?
Some lawyers get very detailed with this information and others (like me) use it as a platform to keep focus.  I don’t want to get too detailed on things that I can’t really control.

– Should it stay static or evolve over time?

I think a business plan should absolutely evolve over time.  For instance, I am focusing mainly on family law in the beginning because it is easier to generate revenue in a field like family law or criminal law.  As time goes on, I plan to diversify into trusts, estates, and probate.  Along the way, I know there are going to be ups and downs.  I may find myself doing a lot of work in an area of law I had not planned on.  That hasn’t happened yet, but you never know.  A business plan is simply a goal-setting platform.  We all know that goals change somewhat over time.  So, be flexible with the winds of change.

– Any other tips for solos on creating a sound business plan?

Get as much information as you can.  Read a lot.  Don’t necessarily put anything on paper until you feel like you have a firm grasp on what you want to do.  For me, I researched as much as I could about starting and running a successful law practice.  Then, I created a relatively simple plan with some financial benchmarks.  I think setting a marketing and a revenue goal has been key for me.  It gives me something to shoot for and measure myself by.  Other than that, you don’t need to take making a great business plan too seriously unless you are looking for some start-up funding.  Of course, I am also cognizant of the fact that I could be completely wrong.

This blog post was written by Joseph M. Flanders, an Apple Valley MN lawyer.

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Iowa lawyer suspended 30 days for $2,500 minimum fee.

As reported by the ABA Journal and Lawyerist, an Iowa lawyer was suspended for 30 days for keeping a $2,500 minimum fee on a criminal law matter.

According to the article, the lawyer only completed 3.7 hours of work  – including 1 hour spent doing an accounting.  The case against the client was ultimately dismissed and the client wanted some money back.

I don’t have more facts beyond the article.  I have read plenty of ethics opinions where non-refundable fees got lawyers in hot water or worse.  My question:  why use one?  It doesn’t seem worth the risk.

Here are my other thoughts:

  • Don’t be a jerk
  • Don’t charge more than your services are worth
  • Don’t mess with the disciplinary committee
  • Solo lawyers can have a hard time making a living

I feel a little bad for the lawyer.  $2,500 is a pretty reasonable retainer.  My dentist charges more for less.  Doctors charge more for less.  Lawyers seem to get the low end of the proverbial stick.

What are your thoughts?

 

-This post was written by Joseph M. Flanders and lawyer in Apple Valley, MN.

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Starting a Law Firm | Minnesota Lawyers Mutual Roadmap

I wanted any readers out there who are either (1) contemplating or (2) starting a law firm that Minnesota Lawyers Mutual (MLM) now has a blog and roadmap for lawyers who are looking to go out on their own.

This helpful tidbit of information was reported by Andrea Hable at the Minnesota State Bar Association (MSBA) Practice Blawg.  The MSBA – like any state bar association – is a wonderful resource for solo and small firm lawyers.  Furthermore, I belong to the Indiana State Bar Association (where I am also licensed) and I can say that the MSBA provides much more in terms of its membership bang-for-the-buck.  The amount of materials, forms, etc have exceeded my expectations.  Also, the membership fees are very reasonable for new bar admitees.

The Minnesota Lawyers Mutual blog is also well done and covers a lot of good ground.  Check it out.  Topics include important things like:

  • Ethics
  • Trust accounting
  • Law Office technology
  • Billing clients
  • Collecting fees

The blog is new and it appears to be directed more towards signing up new lawyers for MLM’s malpractice insurance, but it is helpful nonetheless.

I attended a CLE last fall put on by the Minnesota Solo and Small Firm section.  MLM was there handing out goodies and the like.  For those who don’t know, MLM appears to be the big-boy when it comes to attorney malpractice insurance in the state of Minnesota.  MLM does a good job marketing themselves and their materials have substance.  I don’t have a problem doing business with an organization who sells a good product and who tries to help with quality materials.

If you haven’t gone to starting and building a law practice CLE in Minnesota (or any state for that matter) I highly recommend you do so.  The presenters and materials are excellent  and the networking possibilities are even better.

Have a great weekend!

 

-This post was written by Joseph M. Flanders, an Apple Valley, MN attorney.

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Starting a Law Firm No-Nos | Minnesota Law Firm scammed to tune of $400,000

As reported by the ABA Journal, the Minnesota law firm of Milavetz, Gallop & Milavetz (MGM) has sued Wells Fargo Bank for cashing a fraudulent check in the amount of nearly $400,000 from MGM’s IOLTA account.  Click here for a copy of the complaint.  Bad news.

According to reports in the Minnesota Star Tribune, MGM was the victim of a scam, three-years-ago, involving someone who said she was a 40-year-old Korean woman who was hurt in Minnesota.  The woman apparently told the firm that she needed help securing a $400,000 legal settlement.  Believing her, the firm received a settlement check for the amount, deposited in the bank, and received assurances it had cleared from Wells Fargo.  The forwarded amount of the check was $396,500 and it went to a Hong Kong bank.

Reading the complaint filed by MGM is not entirely helpful.  As would be expected, the complaint is largely one-sided.  I will report on this more when Wells Fargo files its answer.

This story has been all over the news in Minnesota and is being discussed by bloggers (like me) and has been on multiple listservs which I belong to.  The general reaction?  Disbelief.

No, it isn’t disbelief that this could happen – this has apparently happened to over 70 lawyers in the United States and has cost an estimated $29 million dollars in damages.  The disbelief is related more to the fact that a law firm would fall for this kind of scam.

I don’t have all the facts, so I am not going to speculate on what happened.  My two cents is that I have been contacted on numerous occassions by scammers with very similar stories.  In fact, one of my former bosses came up to me in the halway about a year-ago and was giddy with news that he would be handling a very lucrative settlement.  He told me all about it and that it would be very little work.  He contacted the firm’s bank and they did a little investigation. Guess what, it was a scam.  He was almost duped.  My boss was a judge and lawyer for nearly 40-years.  It can happen to anybody.

Let this case be a warning to anybody out there who is running a law practice or starting a law firm that scammers exist, they are sophisticated, and you better watch your ass.

Luckily, as a small-fry solo practitioner who doesn’t deal in the hundreds-of-thousands of dollars, I don’t have to worry about scams quite as much.  If my bank was asked to clear a $400,000 check from my trust account, they would probably just laugh.  I guess that is one of the advantages of being a solo – less money for scammers to steal.

 

-This post was written by Joseph M. Flanders, an Apple Valley, MN attorney.