Surviving the Law Firm “Crash”!

The law firm is a constantly changing, evolving entity.  Lawyers regularly join and leave law firms.  Sometimes the reason is for a better opportunity elsewhere and sometimes it is because of frustration.  But whatever the reason is, it is important that you never feel that you have “arrived” and that your job is totally secure. 

Always be ready for change.  That is why I stress in this e-book that you learn new software and that you constantly improve yourself and your skills.  Don’t become complacent and take your job for granted.  Keep track of your newly learned skills in a notebook and remember to include them on your resume. 

The following is taken from an article that I had written previously.  Please take the advice seriously.

Let the “games” begin. 

On Friday, you left the office pretty confident that on Monday the normal routine would ebb and flow.  Nothing “out of the ordinary” was expected.  In fact, you’d relegated yourself to the fact that your career as a paralegal/legal assistant/legal secretary was quite boring but, hey, it paid ok, you had health benefits and even enjoyed work free weekends - most of the time.

But what was going on behind the scenes was another story.

You see, over the past year some decisions were made – poor decisions – that affected the law firm you worked for.  Decisions to hire an attorney or two with a supposed “following” did not pan out.  Do you follow me?  Think of your hairdresser.  When a hairdresser graduates from beauty school, she (or he) does not have a “following” or a “book of business”.  It takes at least a few years to build up a clientele.  Some clientele stay with you, some don’t.  And so the game goes.

The same thing is true concerning attorneys.  Over the years, attorneys hopefully build a “following”.  When a partnership goes sour, the attorney quite literally takes his “book of business” with him wherever he goes (if he hasn’t signed some cockamamie agreement with his current law firm that restricts this).  Sounds fair, doesn’t it?  If the attorney has truly garnered these clients on his own, wined and dined them, nurtured the relationship, worked hard to earn their trust, etc., he should be allowed to transport the clients along to the next partnership.

But guess what?  Your attorneys, in their quest for increasing their income by bringing on a new seasoned associate or two (accompanied by their VAST “book of business) forgot to perform their due diligence.  That is, they “assumed” the new, seasoned associates (30-40 year law veterans) actually had a viable “book of business”.  Wrong. 

Instead, what the veteran attorneys were looking for was a place to hang their hat – an office to visit each day – a place to go.  Surprise!  It never was their intention to bring anything to the table – they just wanted to sit there and eat.  They also brought their high dollar assistants with them to sit at the table also.  The billable hours generated by each of the individuals (attorneys & paralegals) was not enough to cover their own salaries, benefits, etc., so the firm ended up in the “hole”.  Overhead exceeded income. 

The attorneys who brought these new employees onboard have no business sense and it all came as a complete shock to them when at the end of the year their bonuses amounted to only $100,000 over their yearly salary.  Can you hear me weeping? 

What does this have to do with you?

Ok, ok, I’ll get to the point. 

You’ve trusted foolishly in the business acumen of the folks you work for over the years.  Most people I’ve worked for have no idea how much money is tied up in their “receivables” or what the “bottom line” is.   

So, what’s my point?

Protect yourself.  Always understand that this law firm could self-destruct in what seems like a “nano-second” because of poor business practices.

How do you protect yourself?  Three areas come to mind:

Diversify your knowledge

Increase Your Skill Level

Network, Network, Network