v
Preface to the First and Second Editions. . . xi
Preface to the Third Edition . . . xiii
Preface to the Millennium Fourth Edition . . . xv
Preface to the Platinum Fifth Edition . . . xix
Acknowledgments. . . xxiii
Part I: Getting Started Why Has This Book Been Written? . . . 3
The History of This Book . . . 6
Have Confidence—You Can Do It: An Historical Perspective . 8 Should You Start Your Own Practice? (You Can Do It) . . . 10
Am I Competent to Give Legal Advice? . . . 16
Should You Work on a Job “for Experience” Before Starting Your Practice? . . . 17
Being a Contract Lawyer to Get Experience and Money While Building Your Practice . . . 19
Earning a Living Between Graduation and Opening Your Practice . . . 25
Should You Start with Another New Lawyer? . . . 35
Practicing with Your Spouse . . . 38
Should You Practice Another Business or Profession While Starting Your Law Practice?. . . 39
Should You “Specialize”? . . . 43
Naming Your Law Firm . . . 45
Sole Practice v. Partnership v. Shared Office . . . 47
The Written “Business Plan” . . . 49
Managing Your Student Loan . . . 54
vi | Contents
Part II: Getting Located
Where Is the Best Place to Open Your Office?
(From a Client-Getting Point of View) . . . 61
Where Should You Locate Your Office for Your First Year or Two? (From a Cost Point of View) . . . 65
Should You Trade “Space for Services”? . . . 68
How Do You Get the Best Space Arrangement? . . . 71
Practicing in a Law Suite . . . 74
Practicing from Your Home . . . 79
Virtual Law Offices. . . 85
Part III: Getting Equipped How Much Cash Do You Need to Start Your Practice? . . . 89
How to Get a Rich Relative or Friend to Finance Your Start-up Costs by Offering Tax Advantages . . . 92
Checklists of Needs for New Law Office . . . 94
Office Supplies and Procedures . . . 99
Personal Computers, Word Processing, and Office Technology 108 Should You Do Your Own Word Processing? . . . 131
Should Your Office Furnishings Be Lavish? . . . 134
Announcements, Stationery and Professional Cards, Christmas Cards, and “Mailing Lists” . . . 137
Part IV: Getting Clients How to Handle Friends and Relatives . . . 147
How to Market Your Services . . . 150
Cost-Effective Media Advertising. . . 152
The Internet and Your E-Mail Addresses . . . 159
Your Web Site(s) . . . 160
The Importance of Accepting and Promptly Returning Telephone Calls. . . 161
Managing Written Communication . . . 165
Can You Get Clients from Organizations? . . . 175
Cold Calling to Get Clients . . . 176
Getting Clients by Using Charities . . . 178
Insurance Claims Adjusters: A Source of Clients. . . 179
Shmooze Your Vendors . . . 181
How to Accept Personal Injury Cases . . . 183
How to Communicate Settlement Offers to Clients . . . 190
Representing Seniors . . . 192
Can You Get Clients by Running for Political Office?. . . 203
Getting Paid Work from Lawyer Referral Services . . . 205
Getting Legal Fees and Work from the Government . . . 207
Getting Legal Work and Fees from Other Lawyers . . . 210
Minority and Affirmative Action Work and Money . . . 214
How to Get More Legal Work from Existing Clients by Mining Your Closed Files . . . 217
How to Recognize and Handle Conflicts of Interest . . . 220
How to Keep Clients. . . 228
How to Satisfy a Client . . . 231
How to Lose Clients . . . 233
Cases and Clients That Should Be Turned Down . . . 234
The Prospective Client File . . . 239
How to Say “No” to a Client or Case . . . 241
Accepting Cases With Doubtful Merit . . . 246
Damage Control If You Are Fired . . . 248
Part V: Setting Fees The Fee and Representation Letter (The Engagement Letter). . 255
Referral Fees or Division of Fees . . . 261
Engagement Letters, Nonengagement Letters, and Disengagement Letters . . . 262
Balancing the Public’s Need for Legal Services and the New Lawyer’s Need to Eat . . . 267
How to Set Your Fees . . . 269
Making Yourself Affordable Without Lowering Your Fee (Alternative Billing Arrangements) . . . 277
Don’t Quote Fees or Give Legal Advice over the Telephone or by E-mail to New Clients . . . 280
“Cash Up Front”—Shelly’s Rule and Foonberg’s Rule . . . 282
Getting Money Up Front from New Clients . . . 283
Cash Fees . . . 285
Client Costs . . . 286
The Importance of Cash Up Front for Survival (Also Known as “Foonberg’s Rule”) . . . 288
Getting Paid by Client Credit Card . . . 289
Financing Your Practice with Bank Credit Cards . . . 291
How to Get Cash Up Front to Reduce Bad Debts and Increase Cash Flow and Avoid Going Under . . . 298
viii | Contents
The Importance of Monthly Billing . . . 305
Final Billing on Completion of a Matter . . . 307
How to Make Clients Happy to Pay Legal Fees by Selling Them Stationery . . . 310
How to Make Money by Reading Advance Sheets, Technical Journals and E-mail Law Bulletins . . . 313
Typical Client Costs . . . 315
Can You or Should You Pay or Receive “Forwarding Fees” or Referral Fees? . . . 316
“Bedside Manner” in Setting Fees . . . 321
Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR) . . . 324
When and How to Withdraw from a Nonpaying Matter . . . . 326
Part VI: Managing the Law Office Management of the Law Office—General Comments . . . 335
Time Management 101—Finding Time and the To-Do Lists . . 336
Organizing Your Day and Your Life to Make More Money by Planning and List-Making. . . 339
Managing Telephone Communications— Never Let the Sun Set on an Unreturned Call . . . 344
Organizing Your Desk to Make More Money . . . 355
How to Keep Time Records to Make More Money and to Preserve Evidence of Work Done . . . 358
Getting Ready for Your First Clients . . . 363
Typical Court Forms . . . 371
Sample Generic Checklists and Forms . . . 378
Your First Court Appearances . . . 386
How to Interview a Client. . . 393
What Clients Want: Learn How to Listen to Clients When They Talk (Foonberg’s Rules of Listening) . . . 400
How to Conduct a Meeting (Foonberg’s Ten Rules) . . . 402
Preceptors and Internships. . . 406
The MacCrate Report . . . 409
Negotiating Skills . . . 411
How to Maintain Bank Accounts . . . 414
How to Maintain a Trust Account to Avoid Disbarment. . . 419
Insurance Needs of the New Lawyer . . . 425
Don’t Forget Taxes and Licenses . . . 434
Why You Need a Personnel Manual . . . 436
Bookkeeping and Accounting Systems . . . 440
The Office Cash Flow Survival Budget. . . 444
The Paperless Office vs. The Less Paper Office. . . 448
Paper and Computer Document Management . . . 450
Organizing Your Computer Files . . . 455
Simple Hard-Copy Filing Systems for the New Lawyer. . . 458
Distinguishing Between “Prospective,” “Active,” “Closed” and “Dead” Files . . . 463
Closing and Disposing of Files. . . 465
Destroying Old Files . . . 467
Destroying Old Files When the Client Has Disappeared or You Did Not Follow Proper File-Closing Procedures . . . 470
What to Do With Electronic File Data . . . 472
Fondling the Files . . . 476
How to Build a Good Form File . . . 482
Library Needs and Costs . . . 489
How to Buy Law Books (If You Buy Them at All) . . . 503
Saving Money by Eliminating Postage and Express Delivery Services. . . 505
Squeezing Extra Hours into the Day to Make More Money . . 508
Timely Delivery of Work . . . 515
Should You Use a Telephone Receptionist, Telephone Exchange, Mechanical Answering Device, Telephone Company Service, or Voice Mail? . . . 517
Why You Should Use Investigators . . . 519
Part VII: Ethics and Professional Responsibility Professional Responsibility and Practice Management . . . 523
The Profession of Law Is Not the Business of Law . . . 526
Handling Anti-Lawyer Jokes and Comments . . . 531
Fifty-Two Ways to Win or Avoid the Ethics War . . . 533
What Are the Consequences of “Violating” the Canons of Professional Ethics, the Code of Professional Responsibility, or the Model Rules of Professional Conduct? . . . 561
Ten Rules for Avoiding Disciplinary Complaints . . . 564
Practicing Professional Responsibility . . . 567
A Short History of Our Ethics . . . 569
The ABA Model Code of Professional Responsibility and the ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct . . . 571
Ten Commandments of Good Trust Accounts . . . 576
x | Contents
Dealing with Foreign Lawyers . . . 584
Buying and Building a Law Practice. . . 586
Avoiding Disciplinary Problems . . . 588
Part VIII: Resources and Advice Where to Go for Help . . . 593
Getting Free Management Help from Your Local Law Practice Management Advisor . . . 595
The Importance of Continuing Education . . . 600
The Wheel Has Been Invented . . . 604
How to Manage and Collect Accounts Receivable . . . 606
Where to Get Cost-Effective Help to Build and Expand Your Practice . . . 613
Foonberg’s Short Course in Good Client Relations . . . 617
The Importance of Doing It Right . . . 624
Checklist for Opening Your First Law Office . . . 626
Part IX: Quality of Life Quality of Life—Dealing with Difficult People . . . 641
Quality of Life for the New Lawyer Starting a Practice. . . 643
Quality of Life—September 11, 2002. . . 646
Epilogue: Proof That This Book Works . . . 649
Index . . . 651
About the Author . . . 663