When Paul McCartney released his new album, “The Boys of Dungeon Lane,” it got me wondering how the Beatles’ oeuvre might help your law practice. (I know it’s a bit of a stretch, but stick with me.) Enjoy this Fab Firm Guide to Law Practice Management, inspired by some of our favorite Beatles music.
What If the Beatles Were Your Law Practice Management Advisors?
Law practice management experts generally identify four necessary pillars to support your actual lawyer work. They are technology, marketing, administration and finance.
Here’s a selective guide, inspired by The Beatles.
Technology
Technology underpins everything lawyers do today, from legal research to communication to knowledge management to managing all the things that keep the wheels turning and the doors open. Technology is Getting Better all the time.
The advances are coming quickly, but most lawyers are not early adopters for two main reasons. The first is cost. Bringing in new technology brings new expenses. The second is fear. It all makes you want to cry for Help. Before you make an expensive mistake, it makes sense to Get A Little Help From Your Friends. A technology checkup expert can answer your questions about moving forward with artificial intelligence and other tools, identify issues you didn’t realize you had, and help you move forward with Fixing a Hole.
Check with your bar association to see if they have a practice management consultant or advisor who can help you make the best decisions. If not, shop around for a reasonably priced technology consultant who can help. They’re out there.
Marketing
Most lawyers need to bring in clients. Even in-house counsel can benefit from a marketing mindset. A constant stream of new business doesn’t happen overnight. It’s a Long and Winding Road that leads the client to your door.
Most lawyers fall into their practice niche based on the opportunities they encounter early in their career. Whether you stay in that niche or move on to something different, developing expertise and a reputation for that expertise is what brings in clients. You can’t be all things to all people. Be choosy. Say Hello Goodbye to prospects that don’t fit your niche.
Law Office Administration
Lawyers work hard. It often feels like they ain’t got nothing but work Eight Days a Week.
And then, it’s not always easy to collect those billables. Confronting a client to say You Never Give Me Your Money is never pleasant. Yet, the firm’s and the lawyers’ bills (including those painful education loans) must be paid.
Compensation quarrels can be rancorous and even lead to firm breakups. It’s wise to construct a plan in advance so We Can Work It Out. For example, the partners’ agreement could include a consent to mediation.
Managing law firm personnel is not always easy. Ideally, everyone would get along and support each other. You would like to think All You Need Is Love, but human resources issues can arise in many ways.
Think of your firm as a vehicle. These issues all point to the need for a leader who knows how to Drive My Car and develop the lawyers into stars. Many firms name a manager with strong lawyering skills but poor skills in managing people and finance. The better choice to steer that vehicle may be a business professional, not a lawyer.
Finance
Some lawyers love practicing law and the lifestyle it affords to the point where they ignore financial reality to keep doing it. The disciplinary reports tell the sorry stories of a Fool on the Hill who raided or mismanaged the firm’s trust account. Solo practitioners seem particularly vulnerable to temptation, but this malfeasance has occurred in firms of every size.
One of the leader’s jobs is to create budgets and systems to make sure the money goes where it’s supposed to. The firm should be appropriately insured against this type of financial loss as well as other perils common to all businesses. A leader should also implement compensation plans that minimize obligations to the Taxman.
Leadership When Things Aren’t Going So Well
A leader knows how to steer a firm in bad times as well as good ones. Whether it’s arranging a bank loan to recover from a bad financial year, hiring a crisis management professional to get through bad press, or myriad other things that could go sideways, a leader knows how to regroup and convince the team that Here Comes The Sun.
Through good times and bad, your firm needs to Come Together so you can Get Back to where you once belonged.
Get to the Point!
More Writing Tips
Find more good ideas for improving your legal writing and communications skills in “Get to the Point” by Teddy Snyder.
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Beatles Abbey Road parody image by Joan Feldman using Gemini / Adobe FireFly.
