How to Start Your Own Criminal Defense Firm If I Can Do It, You Can Do It

Transcription

1 SESSION 305 How to Start Your Own Criminal Defense Firm If I Can Do It, You Can Do It Robert H. Ambrose Ambrose Law Firm, PLLC Minneapolis Articles reprinted with permission from lawyerist.com The 2016 Criminal Justice Institute August 22 & 23, 2016

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3 August 22, 2016 Criminal Justice Institute How to Start Your Own Criminal Defense Firm If I Can Do It, You Can Do It Dear Prospective Law Firm Owner, AMBROSE LAW FIRM Criminal Defense Flour Exchange Building 310 Fourth Avenue South, Suite 5010 Minneapolis, MN Phone: Fax: ambroselegal@icloud.com Website: The first time I tried starting my own criminal defense law firm I failed. My first attempt occurred in the fall of It was shortly after I passed the bar and the economy was in the tank. But I was full of optimism. After all, I had a year of clerking at the Ramsey County Public Defender s Office where I got to represent real clients. There, I learned how to make a bail argument and plead an indigent client guilty so he could execute his time on a trespass charge. With this experience, I could totally start my own firm. Or, so I thought. I spent massive amounts of time building a basic website, but did not put any pictures on it. I did not get either a real, or virtual, office. For my business address, I used my apartment in Minneapolis. I went to a couple of new lawyers section meetings and met with a few attorneys. I went to CLEs, because they were cheap for new lawyers and I had nothing better to do. I volunteered to help with an appellate brief, but missed a submission deadline (I was too busy steering my fantasy football team into last place). And, I got two paying clients. Both referred to me by the same lawyer. After a few months, I tapped out. I failed. I failed, miserably. My flop stemmed from laziness and a half-hearted effort. I did not jump in the water with both feet. I merely put one stinky toe in to test the temperature. In the wake of my failed solo attempt, I began working in the mortgage industry. A position heavy on customer service and in a high-volume environment. The position neither required a J.D. nor an undergraduate degree. Even though I ate humble pie for a year, I learned invaluable customer service skills that would later assist me in dealing with criminal defense clients. Eventually, I was lucky enough to network my way into an associate attorney position with a well-respected criminal defense lawyer in the twin cities. As I crisscrossed the state learning how to practice criminal defense, I still yearned to

4 August 22, 2016 Page 2 of 2 start my own firm someday. To run my own show. The hardest part was figuring out how to do it, when to do it, and if to do it at all. Those decisions were the toughest part of starting my own firm this time around. The other aspects are by no means easy, but clearing that first hurdle was the most challenging thus far. If you happen to still be reading this letter, and you are thinking about starting your own criminal defense law firm, I put together the four main steps towards a successful journey: (1) making the decision; (2) develop a budget; (3) develop your business; and (4) reevaluate routinely. By no means do I believe my blueprint is the right one for you. There are many different ways to achieve the result you desire. On my second leap into my own practice, I knew I had to jump with both feet in with a plan to stay afloat. Thus far, I am not surviving. I am thriving. If I can do it, you can do it. As you begin this process, feel free to contact me by or phone. I am always open to providing guidance to the best of my ability. Sincerely, AMBROSE LAW FIRM, PLLC /es/ Robert H. Ambrose Robert H. Ambrose

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7 Criminal Justice Institute 2016 How to Start Your Own Criminal Defense Firm If I Can Do It, You Can Do It Robert H. Ambrose Ambrose Law Firm, PLLC Step I: Making The Decision Clear the Hurdle 1. Barriers to Starting Your Own Criminal Defense Firm a. Fear of Failure b. Lack of Experience c. No Desire d. Don t Know How e. Think it Costs Too Much Money to Get Started f. Think it is Too Competitive 2. Reasons to Just Do It a. If I Can Do It, You Can Do It b. All of the Barriers Above are Mainly Psychological c. Be Your Own Boss d. Set Your Own Schedule i. Volunteer ii. Teach iii. Spend More Time with Family e. Be the Lawyer You Want to Be i. Handle the Types of Cases You Want ii. Call the Shots in Your Cases f. Invest in Yourself 3. Set Goals for the Business and Yourself a. Short term and long term 1

8 Step II: Develop a Budget 1. Start with Small Steps 2. Determine Your Costs a. Absolute Necessities i. Active Law License $ 1 1. CLEs $ ii. Malpractice Insurance $ iii. How Much and How Often to Pay Yourself $ 1. Factor In Estimated Taxes iv. That is All You Need v. Do Not Need: Fancy Letterhead, Big Office, Legal Assistant, or a Website to Get Started b. Practically Necessary i. Incorporate and Register with Secretary of State $ 1. LLC, PLLC, LLP, PLLP, etc. ii. Office 1. Actual or Virtual $ 2. Professional Address 3. Professional, and Confidential, Meeting Space 4. Share Expenses 5. Learn from Others in Office 6. Referrals from Others in Office iii. Phone # $ 1. Separate from Your Personal # 2. No Landline Needed a. Grasshopper, RingCentral, Google Voice, Skype, etc. iv. Fax # $ 1. Some Archaic Prosecutors and Government Agencies Still Use Fax Machines 2. No Actual Fax Machine Needed a. Efax Options: Grasshopper, RingCentral, efax, Myfax, etc. v. Phone Itself $ vi. Computer $ 1. Software $ vii. Printer $ viii. Scanner $ 1 $ symbol signifies that this is something that will cost you money, so budget appropriately. 2

9 ix. Office Supplies $ 1. Paper, Envelopes, Stamps, Pens, etc. x. Business Cards $ xi. Website $ c. Memberships $ i. MSBA, County Bar Association, MACDL, etc. d. Networking $ i. Lunches, Coffee, Happy Hours e. Advertising $ f. Logo $ i. Internet, Print, Radio, Billboards, etc. 3. Routinely Look for Free to Low Cost Alternatives to Keep Overhead Low 4. See Sam Glover, How Much it Really Costs to Start a Solo Practice, LAWYERIST, June 22, 2012 (noting that $5,000 15,000 is a realistic estimate of how much it will cost to start a solo practice, including an exhaustive list of essentials). Attached. 5. See Randall Ryder, How to Keep Your Solo Practice Sustainable and Lean, LAWYERIST, March 25, 2016 (stating that [w]hen you start your practice, you should worry about two things besides taking care of your clients: keeping the lights on and paying yourself consistently ). Attached. 3

10 Step III: Develop Your Business 1. Client Generation Streams of Business Income a. Referrals i. Prior Clients 1. Incentive to Provide Excellent Representation ii. Current Clients 1. Incentive to Provide Excellent Representation iii. Networking 1. Civil Attorneys 2. Criminal Defense Attorneys 3. Networking Groups iv. Referral Services 1. Bar Associations v. Friends & Family vi. Get Your Name Out There 1. People Need to Know Who You Are and What You Do 2. Announcement Letters 3. Newsletters vii. *Referrals Have the Highest Retention Rates* b. Legal Directories i. Targeted Searches for a Criminal Defense Lawyer 1. Avvo 2. FindLaw 3. Justia 4. Super Lawyers 5. Lawyer.com 6. Yelp 7. MSBA 8. Jail Books ii. Helps Create Backlinks to Your Website c. General Internet Searches i. Create a website 1. On Your Own v. Hiring Someone a. Low Cost v. High Cost 2. Make Sure It Suits You a. Personality b. Target Client Demographic 3. What You Do Needs to be Obvious 4

11 4. Make Contact Information Easy to Find 5. Pictures of You a. Personalize 6. Videos a. Way for Potential Clients to Interview You 7. Blog a. Helps Keep Content Fresh 8. Keywords a. Helps with SEO ii. Internet Advertising 1. Don t Be Afraid to Spend Some Money to Make Some Money 2. Adwords a. Target Specific Practice Areas b. Target Specific Geographic Areas c. Relatively Easy to Control Cost 3. Legal Directories a. Target Specific Practice Areas b. Target Specific Geographic Areas c. Short Contracts 4. SEO for Website a. Fresh & Original Content b. Keywords 5. Social Media a. Free to Low Cost Advertising b. Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+, etc. 6. YouTube a. Second Most Popular Search Engine Behind Google 7. Claim Your Business a. Google Maps b. Bing c. Yahoo! d. Defense Panels i. Gets You in the Courtroom ii. Helps Build a Referral Network by Allowing You to Give Out Your Business Card to Defendants e. Volunteering i. Gets You Involved in the Law and Community ii. Helps Build Referral Network 5

12 Step IV: Reevaluate Routinely 1. Revisit Why You Started Your Own Firm a. Helps Get You Through the Tough Times 2. Revisit Your Short Term and Long Term Goals a. Helps Keep You on Track 3. Evaluate Your Budget and Costs a. Accounting Software, such as QuickBooks, Breaks Down Your Expenses with Customizable Reports b. Track the Source of Each Client c. Advertising 4. Continue to Network i. What is Working? i. What is Your ROI (Return on Investment)? a. Build Referral Base 5. Make New Goals 6. Enjoy the Process 6

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