The number of recently graduated lawyers starting their own practices has gone up—way up. In fact, solo practitioners accounted for 5.7 percent off all private practice jobs for the Class of 2010, according to a recent report by the National Association of Law Placement. That’s the highest it’s been since 1997.
When you look at the country as a whole, the number gets even bigger. Almost 50 percent of the lawyers in the U.S. are solo practitioners, according to the American Bar Association.
For Evan White, a Class of 2005 graduate of New York Law School, joining the ranks of the solos has been a great experience. White, who started out in the New York City Office of Labor Relations, eventually moved to a labor law firm, and then decided to start his own practice, focusing on employment law and business litigation.
“Ultimately I wanted to be in a position where I was handling my own clients,” he said.
The key to his success has been partially due to networking.
“Solos set themselves apart because of their knack for networking…I definitely enjoy it,” he said.
How did he find his first clients? He sought out more experienced solos at first, both as mentors, and as sources of overflow business. White also actively got involved in both legal and non-legal networking forums, and kept his pulse on the changing legal market.
“For a recent graduate, right now there are so many emergent areas in the law, and there’s going to be a huge paradigm shift in the economy,” he said. “There’s going to be a need for solos in these new areas that emerge.”
White cited social media as one of the areas.
White recommends that recent grads trying to become solos look for speaking opportunities, and also get published.
“If possible, try and get published somewhere.” He said. “There are so many channels to have yourself published. You can become a specialist fairly quickly….establish yourself as a thought leader in a niche area, and you can make yourself valuable.”
