PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE

By Barrett H. Reasoner Gibbs & Bruns, L.L.P.

In Praise of a Small Firm or Solo Practice

This issue of The Houston Lawyer focuses on small firms and solo practice. The editorial staff has put together some very useful articles if you have, or are considering, such a practice. In this market, the unfortunate reality is that many lawyers have become solo practitioners without planning to do so. But whether you got there by choice or as a result of the downturn, there is much to recommend a solo or small firm practice. Other than two years at the Harris County District Attorney’s Office, which is the size of a large firm, I have spent my entire career at a small firm. I have found working in a small firm extremely satisfying for a number of reasons. Many of these advantages are equally or more applicable to a solo practice:

• Esprit de Corps –You know all of your colleagues and the matters they are working on very well. This allows for an esprit de corps that is hard to recreate in a larger environment. It makes the practice much more enjoyable to feel you are part of a close-knit team. Many solo attorneys I know work together on cases or matters and achieve this same sort of camaraderie. There are also many solos who have office-sharing arrangements that permit this sort of interaction and allow attorneys to have someone next door or down the hall with whom they can share ideas or ask questions.
  
  
• Impact –When you do outstanding work on a case or transaction, it can have a more direct and immediate impact on your small firm. This applies both to the firm’s reputation and its economics. In a small environment, great results will be associated more directly with you, and you will enjoy the financial benefits of the result. This is even more true for the solo practitioner, who has no help paying the bills, but also does not have to share the profits.
  
  
• Control of where the ship is headed –As a small firm partner or solo practitioner, you can have more say in the future of your practice. Things like what sorts of cases or transactions you handle, whether and how much to grow, how active to be in the community, how much to charge for your services, and how hard you want to work during a given period are all areas in which your voice is louder in the small environment. Having control over, or a real voice in, these areas can be challenging and very rewarding; and
  
  
• Experience on the front lines –Small firm and solo attorneys are often able to get more front-line experience, especially in the trial environment, because they are part of a small or one-person team as opposed to a large group. This kind of early experience can lead to more rapid development as a lawyer and greater success in your practice.

The mobility that exists in the profession today also means that a solo practitioner need not make an irreversible decision to practice from that platform. The loose alliances between solo practitioners sometimes become formal partnerships in the formation of small firms. Moreover, attorneys who establish a successful solo practice can become desirable targets as lateral hires by established firms.

As I have mentioned before, the HBA provides many resources as you pursue these opportunities. Our live and online CLE offerings are available at substantial discounts, and sometimes free, to members. We have focused this year on CLE topics we hope are relevant to solo and small firm practitioners. You can also join a section in a practice area that interests you. These sections provide outstanding networking opportunities and allow you to stay current in a particular area of the law. If you are new to the practice, the mentor protégé program (www.hba.org/folder-join-HBA/mentor.htm) allows you to get input and guidance from a seasoned attorney in your field. If you have been practicing for awhile, please consider helping a new lawyer by serving as a mentor. Outside of the HBA, the Solos Supporting Solos (www.solossupporting
solos.org) organization run by James Brill is well worth looking into. They have regular breakfasts with outstanding speakers on topics of interests to solos. All of these resources are out there, so there is no reason to reinvent the wheel.

There is much to be said for a small firm or solo practice, and with these resources, you do not have to truly go it alone.

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