We hear from lots of lawyers and law students asking us about what are the first things you have to do to start a practice. Many think its picking out office space, designing business cards, and choosing letterhead. While those steps need to be taken eventually, Scott and Oscar say that Step One is to have a vision plan about what kind of law you want to practice, where is the work going to come from? Remember that you will likely not have a lot of income in the first three to six months, so what is your budget for that time period and how are you going to cover it? Step Two is to educate yourself about the area of law you want to practice and the marketplace for it. Meet other lawyers who do that kind of work; ask if you can shadow them; join Bar association sub-committees on the topic to make connections and just try and grasp what you can about that particular subject area. Step Three is to make sure you are committed to being organized and ready to handle the work that comes in. The hardest part of a solo or small practice is finding the right balance of spending time getting the work and spending time doing the work. In the beginning especially, the hours and demands are harsh and the money might be lean. You have to make sure you are in a position to get through that initial phase and do great legal work for the clients as well.
