By Stephen Fairley on Posted in Law Firm ManagementA law firm rarely fails for lack of talent. It fails due to a litany of bad business practices, inefficiencies, infighting and hubris, as well as a number of other reasons that have nothing to do with the intelligence or talent of the lawyers themselves. Being good at practicing law only gives you permission to… Continue Reading
By Stephen Fairley on Posted in Client RelationsThe #1 complaint clients make to bar associations is about their attorney’s failure to communicate. Communication is fundamental to building a strong, lasting relationship with clients. You must stay on top of your email and phone messages. If you spend a lot of time in court, then you need to (1) better set and manage… Continue Reading
By Stephen Fairley on Posted in Law Firm Development,Law Firm ManagementThe nation’s unemployment rate is at the lowest it’s been in almost 20 years — 3.8% in February — and still trending downward. In real estate parlance, this means it’s a seller’s market and buyers (employers) are finding it harder to recruit and retain top talent in almost every field, including legal. I’m not talking… Continue Reading
By Stephen Fairley on Posted in Law Firm ManagementIf there is one thing that all the attorneys I’ve trained have in common, it’s that they are all too busy. Busy generating leads. Busy meeting with prospects. Busy preparing for trial. Busy running their business. Busy going to court. Busy putting out fires. Busy going to networking events. Busy, busy, busy! It’s time to… Continue Reading
By Stephen Fairley on Posted in Law Firm Development,Law Firm ManagementThis interview was originally published in January 2017. At the end of that year, Landerholm Immigration, A.P.C. was named to the Law Firm 500 list of America’s Fastest Growing Law Firms, ranking #50 out of 200 U.S. law firms, with an annual percentage growth rate of 217%. Recently, the firm made the Law Firm 500… Continue Reading
By Stephen Fairley on Posted in Law Firm Management,Law Firm MarketingThere are certain traits successful law firms share. I call them habits, since they must be deeply ingrained in an organization to bear full fruit. A few years ago, Forrester Research — a global business research and advisory firm — studied the successful habits of small businesses, and it is uncanny how those habits match… Continue Reading
By Stephen Fairley on Posted in Business Development for Law Firms,Law Firm ManagementDo you know how much money each lead is really costing you? How much does it cost you to get a new client? Knowing the answers to these questions can mean the difference between a profitable firm and a struggling one. These numbers are known as “KPIs” — Key Performance Indicators. They are the critical… Continue Reading
By Stephen Fairley on Posted in Law Firm Development,Law Firm ManagementOne important lesson you have probably learned by now if you’ve been practicing law for any period of time is that knowing the law is very different from learning how to run a successful law firm. There are lessons that only experience can teach us; my experience of helping more than 18,000 attorneys learn how… Continue Reading
By Stephen Fairley on Posted in Law Firm ManagementHaving outstanding people working at every level of your law firm is one thing that can truly differentiate you from your competitors and keep clients coming in the door. Unfortunately, I hear from many attorneys that finding and keeping good people is a major challenge when it comes to law firm management. This is something… Continue Reading
By Stephen Fairley on Posted in Law Firm DevelopmentGuiding the growth of your law firm takes a disciplined approach to law firm development. While you may not have learned much about the business of law as your pursued your JD, you will need to master certain business disciplines — planning, hiring, financial management, technology, and marketing — to make your firm successful. There… Continue Reading
By Stephen Fairley on Posted in Law Firm Management,Law Firm MarketingThis post was originally published on Oct. 13, 2016 and updated on April 11, 2018. As the owner of a small or mid-sized law firm, your primary focus – after gaining competency as an attorney – is to understand and apply the key principles of business development, operations, management and law firm marketing every single… Continue Reading
By Stephen Fairley on Posted in Business Development for Law Firms,Law Firm ManagementIf you have been practicing law for awhile, you know that there are some reasons clients leave that you can do nothing about. Some may leave you for a competitor. Some may leave because they don’t need you anymore — the matter is over or they have decided not to pursue it. By far, though,… Continue Reading
By Stephen Fairley on Posted in Law Firm ManagementIf you are unhappy in your law practice, every molehill becomes a mountain that you dread climbing. The fact is, you will not create a successful law practice if you’re just in it for the financial rewards. What happy attorneys have in common is, first and foremost, a heartfelt dedication to serving their clients that… Continue Reading
By Stephen Fairley on Posted in Law Firm ManagementWhether you are a solo practitioner or the owner of a small law firm, there are 10 key principles of law firm management you must focus on to ensure your firm is successful over time: #1: Marketing. The purpose of marketing is to generate leads. There are a wide variety of ways to do this. All… Continue Reading
By Stephen Fairley on Posted in Law Firm ManagementNo one starts out in business to fail, but fail you will if you don’t recognize that while you may practice law, you run a business. To avoid running it into the ground, you need to avoid these six law firm management fails: Failing to plan. To start and run any business, you need to focus… Continue Reading
By Stephen Fairley on Posted in Law Firm ManagementA recent ruling out of the Eastern District of New York against a solo practitioner who neglected to manage her firm’s technology has resulted in her having to pay fees and costs as a sanction and provides a cautionary tale for those similarly situated. The case for legal malpractice was brought against this solo practitioner… Continue Reading
By Stephen Fairley on Posted in Law Firm Development,Rainmaker Mastermind GroupUp to this point, your competitive nature has been necessary for your survival. Competition in the legal industry is drilled into you from taking the LSAT, to being ranked in law school, to competitive internships, to selling your soul to Big Law in hopes you will be looked at as partner material. Once you become… Continue Reading
By Stephen Fairley on Posted in Law Firm ManagementThere are a lot of law firms out there with a cash flow problem. While it’s easy to blame your cash flow issues on slow-paying clients, the problem really lies with you and your lack of a process to ensure you get paid for your work. The truth is, if you don’t expect to be paid, your… Continue Reading
By Stephen Fairley on Posted in Law Firm Development,Law Firm ManagementI’d like to share with you an interview with one attorney who took what most lawyers can identify with as an adverse condition — grinding away at a practice he found unfulfilling — to reinvent himself and create a lifestyle law firm in a way that is truly inspiring. Recently, our Director of Sales, Adam Reiman,… Continue Reading
By Stephen Fairley on Posted in Internet Marketing for Lawyers,Law Firm DevelopmentThere are certain similarities that successful law firms have that unsuccessful ones don’t. I call them habits, since they must be deeply ingrained in an organization to bear full fruit. A few years ago, Forrester Research — a global business research and advisory firm — studied the successful habits of small businesses, and it is… Continue Reading
By Stephen Fairley on Posted in Law Firm ManagementIf there is one thing that all the attorneys I’ve worked with (18,000+ and counting) share, it’s that they are ALL too busy. Busy generating leads. Busy meeting with prospects. Busy mentoring associates. Busy with professional activities. Busy, busy, busy! It is usually at the end of the year that some of your time is… Continue Reading
By Stephen Fairley on Posted in Law Firm ManagementSmallLaw, a popular email newsletter for solo practitioners and those who manage and work in small law firms, reviews hundreds of articles published every week. From these articles, they select one as their SmallLaw Pick of the Week — something they feel is a must-read for this audience. While I’m making merry over the holidays,… Continue Reading
By Stephen Fairley on Posted in Law Firm ManagementSmallLaw, a popular email newsletter for solo practitioners and those who manage and work in small law firms, reviews hundreds of articles published every week. From these articles, they select one as their SmallLaw Pick of the Week — something they feel is a must-read for this audience. While I’m making merry over the holidays,… Continue Reading
By Stephen Fairley on Posted in Law Firm ManagementOne gift that never stops giving is having great people. Having Superstars at every level of your law firm is the one thing that can truly differentiate your from your competition and keep clients coming in the door. Unfortunately, I hear from many attorneys that finding and keeping good people is a major challenge when… Continue Reading
