Q&A with the Patron Saint of Small Law Firms — Carolyn Elefant

Carolyn Elefant has been called the patron saint, the Beyonce, and the fairy godmother of small and solo law firms by legal journalists and practitioners. A practicing solo herself, 27 years and counting, she works with landowners who are impacted by gas pipelines and other clients focused on reducing the effects of climate change. As a solo practitioner, she saw that solo and small law firms were being ignored and lacked a champion. So she decided to be that champion.

December will mark the 20th anniversary of her legal blog myshingle.com, which provides resources for and spotlights small and solo law firms. On myshingle.com and in her book Solo by Choice (referred to by many as the solo and small law firm bible), she provides a wealth of honest and insightful information for solo and small firm lawyers.

We chatted with Carolyn on our ongoing Fishbowl LIVE series about the reality of small law firm life, some misconceptions, and her predictions for how the solo and small firm practice will change in years to come.

Q: Did you know that you always wanted to be an attorney? How did you end up in the profession?

It’s funny. Like most people in college who are liberal arts majors, I wasn’t sure of what I wanted to do. I always liked writing. I was a columnist for our college newspaper. I thought going to law school would improve my writing skills. Little did I know that it would adversely impact my ability to be able to express myself freely, but that was the reason why I went to law school.

When I got to law school, I discovered that I liked the tangible aspect of it. I really liked being able to have what I felt was a tangible tool that could help people, make changes, and have real impacts on the world. It wasn’t necessarily my initial desire to go to law school, but I found that I liked what I could do with the law.

Q: Can you walk us through your journey to starting your own practice?

When I graduated from law school, I had an offer at a large firm. I had been one of the more popular associates. I realized as I was working at the firm that being a popular associate just meant getting much more work and having much more pressure. I decided somewhat late in the interview process to come to Washington D.C. and see if I could find another position.

I started working at a government agency. I was there for two years. Then I moved to a small firm, and then a large firm doing energy work for them. Eventually I was told that I wasn’t partnership material. In retrospect, this does not surprise me. I was not a very good associate because I was only focused on the cases that I liked.

When I got that notice, I looked for other positions, and there wasn’t anything that really was that interesting to me. I always thought about starting my own firm. I thought, well, this is as good a time as any to do it. I just dove in.

When I started, I also saw it as an opportunity to learn new skills to do things beyond energy work. I took criminal defense cases, I did contract litigation, and just had an interesting array of cases, in addition to my energy projects.

Q: Looking back, what are some of the biggest challenges that you faced in running and growing your practice?

I think that some of the challenges that I faced are somewhat different from the challenges that people today face. When I started my firm, it was in an industry that was traditionally dominated by large firms and by men at that time. The complexion of my practice area and the diversity of it looked very different than today.

Back then, starting out and not having an office was big. I felt like it was a big red flag. That was a challenge that I don’t think exists as much today, especially in my practice area, which is very national in nature, and people don’t come to your office.

Just figuring out ways to get the word out about my business in a very affordable way was a big challenge. Back then, lawyers paid for listings in Martindale Hubbell. I paid for one the first two years I was in practice just to look established. It was like $750, which, 25 years ago, just starting out, seemed like a lot of money.

There weren’t very many research tools back then. LexisNexis was $600 a month for 12 searches. I would have to go to the library and get books out to get statutes. All of those things aren’t big challenges that exist anymore.

That’s not to say that it’s easy for people who are starting law firms today, but some of the costs are reduced. Depending on the industry you’re in, there still could be some questions or some stigma about why you’re practicing by yourself or at a small firm. In some communities, attorneys can be very territorial and not willing to help somebody who’s new to starting a practice. That’s still one of the realities that a lot of people don’t talk about.

Q: What are some common misconceptions about solo and small law firms? How do these compare to real life?

If you practice in an area that attracts large firms, or where you’re litigating against large firms, there tends to be a belief that maybe you couldn’t find a job, you couldn’t cut it at the big firm, you just wanted a more relaxed lifestyle, or you didn’t want to bill a lot of hours.

I remember one time I showed up in court, I had to bring my daughter, and it actually happened to be a pro bono case. The opposing counsel said, “it must be nice to be able to dabble in the law like that.” That was just a terrible mentality.

If you’re serving consumer clients, they don’t think twice about somebody who has started and owns a firm. In fact, even though attorneys tend to have that perception, on the whole clients look very highly at attorneys who have started their own firms.

Typically, if a client comes to you, and it doesn’t matter if it’s a client in the renewable industry that I practice in, or an immigration client or trust and estates client, chances are many of them have come to you because they saw your material on the internet or because you came highly recommended. To them, you seem like a business owner and somebody who’s the boss, rather than, you know, some big law firm like Skadden or Cravath, that honestly the majority of the population hasn’t even heard of. Even though some attorneys in the legal profession, and some judges, may look down at people who own their own practice, clients almost never do.

Q: Why do you think that the legal press and law schools do not talk about solo and small law firm life?

When I went to law school, the typical career track for becoming a law professor was a year on the Court of Appeals, maybe a year as the supreme court clerk, maybe a year or two in practice at a big firm, then you would go into academia, and you were pretty much set for life. Their experience was very limited and they focused on their own experience.

I know that there are adjunct professors at a lot of law schools, and they can talk about issues related to actual practitioners. But in general, academia is made up of people who aren’t familiar with the solo and small firm experience. They don’t know how to deal with it. When they do deal with it, I think it’s very frightening to them, because law professors, in contrast to professors anywhere else, basically, aren’t responsible for any kind of development.

I have a sister who’s a science professor, and basically her business development is applying for grants. That’s her bread and butter. Law professors have a salary, they don’t really have to go out and drum up business. I think it’s something that’s scary to them. Something that maybe even seems a little dirty to some of them, or at least again, this was the prevailing mentality back then.

I remember in law school, the only time that I ever heard about somebody who was a solo practitioner was in an ethics course, where we were showing this grainy black and white movie about this attorney who took a patent and didn’t file it properly. The inventor lost all his money and brought action to disbar the patent attorney. The lawyer was crying and saying, “I wish I hadn’t done that.”

After the movie went off, our professor said, “can any of you see yourself doing that?” I was the only person who raised my hand. I was honest. I could see myself making a mistake or, you know, being overly eager to take on business. He said, “Fortunately, most of you won’t have that problem, because you’ll be working at firms. You’ll have secretaries who can stay on top of your files, and you’ll have other partners who will have the expertise that you need.”

I think law school has changed. Law schools are focusing more on clinical experience. I know that there are some law schools that have solo and small firm incubators, and that have really tried to focus more on entrepreneurship. I think, because the world has changed, hopefully law schools are changing a little bit more in that direction, too.

Q: I think there is this idea that solo and small law firms face more disciplinary claims than other legal practitioners. Is this the case? Why so?

This is something that’s very unfortunate. I actually testified before the Maryland legislature this past spring on that very issue. I think that solo and small firm lawyers tend to be disproportionately targeted in disciplinary proceedings for a couple of reasons. First of all, many times solos and small firms are representing clients in criminal defense cases or immigration cases where there’s not necessarily a lot of money on the line or where you can show where you couldn’t bring a malpractice claim and actually recover some substantial amount of damages. Because there isn’t an opportunity for a client to vent their frustration through a malpractice suit, they bring these grievance claims, and because small firm lawyers don’t have the same kinds of connections that many large firms do, they do tend to be the subject of many more bar proceedings.

One of the things that the Maryland legislature had proposed was to track the number of disciplinary complaints brought, how many were brought against attorneys of color, because that’s another terrible issue, too, is that it’s not just lawyers who are or solo and small, firm lawyers who are targeted, but it’s also attorneys of color who comprise a large percentage of solo and small firm owners. Also just because bar associations tend to be racist or can be racist.

The Maryland legislation would have tracked the number and the percentage of complaints brought against attorneys, small firms, and the race and gender of those attorneys. The legislation, of course, did not pass because the judiciary was so offended that anybody could think that they would be anything less than unbiased. But, there are some jurisdictions, including California, that do track and collect the data on that. The data does confirm that the solo and small firms do tend to be targeted more frequently.

Q: What has surprised you most about meeting so many solo and small law firm attorneys?

Whenever I go to these bar events, and talk to attorneys who work at big firms, they’re so fungible to me. I always leave these meetings, and I never remember who I spoke to.

Meeting solo and small firm attorneys has been so surprising because everybody has their own unique story of why they started and how they practice. There’s just so many amazing stories within the solo and small firm community. I don’t see that kind of diversity and richness of experience in other areas.

Another thing that surprises me are the solo and small firm lawyers who surprise themselves. Those who start out one day, and they’re not that hopeful, or they just think, “I’m just gonna see where this leads.” Then I meet up with them a couple of years later, and they’ve got like five people working for them, or they’ve grown their firm enormously, through hard work and paying attention to their market.

Also, the range of practices. There’s many solo and small firms who are very dogmatic about how they practice. They will tell you, “I do it this way, because it’s always been done this way.” But there’s so many others who are pushing the envelope with arguments that they raise and different innovations. Some people are making firms family friendly. Some are practicing completely remotely. Some have different billing structures. It’s such an exciting and vibrant place to be. That’s something that never changes. I’ve been covering solos and smalls for 20 years. There’s always new stories, new faces, new ways of doing business. It’s a very vibrant community.

Q: How would you say that the power dynamics and politics differ in a small law firm than at a bigger law firm?

Even though I am an advocate for solo and small firms, it doesn’t mean that everybody in the space is a good actor. Sadly, I think some of the most abusive situations I’ve seen are in solo or small firm settings, especially in terms of salary and what they’re expected to do.

It seems like the biggest influx of people to solo and small firm practice are not necessarily coming from big firms or from being unemployed, but are predominantly women who are working as a junior associate who just got sick and tired of being paid $60,000 a year and not being credited for bringing any business. That’s very problematic.

On the other hand, there are small firms that are owned by more progressive attorneys who are looking to the next generation of attorneys to potentially even take over the firm. Depending on the type of firm you work at, that can be a great opportunity. If you’re working with a more progressive owner, you can, as a younger person, introduce new concepts and help to transition to the next generation.

If you’re working with somebody who isn’t willing to entertain those ideas and give you credit for advancing them, it may be time to think about opening your own practice. That’s the really unfortunate thing about small firms is it’s very hit or miss when it comes to the experience. I’ve talked to some attorneys who have had amazing experiences with solo and small firm owners, but sometimes solo and small firms can be a terrible place to work, especially if the owners have not kept pace with the way the world works today.

Q: What are your thoughts on contract attorney platforms? Do you think that it’s a good idea for attorneys to use these when starting their practice to try to get money in the door?

I’ve heard very positive experiences from attorneys who use those platforms, because you can get somebody who’s very economically priced. I’ve heard mixed reviews from the people who are on the platforms in terms of how much money they’re actually able to make from them. I think that working on the platforms is a good way to fill the gaps in revenue. I think it’s a good way to make an introduction with an attorney and maybe eventually create some sort of relationship outside of the platform. Even though I’m not sure whether I’m speaking to how lawful that is or not.

I know that I have hired attorneys through platforms and then given them work off platform. Ultimately, I think it’s very difficult to earn a full-time or even part-time living.

I actually once did start a platform to place lawyers with an energy background to have them do contract work for other attorneys. I was very firm about the rates. The attorneys were paid like $75 to $100 an hour through my platform because it’s a very specialized area. I couldn’t see somebody collecting less. There may be platforms that provide more specialized services, like IP or something like that, where the rates are higher, but I think it’d be really difficult to just have a sustainable practice just on platform work alone.

I think if you’re not sure if you want to start your own firm or if you like doing contract work what I would do is focus on a niche and market myself individually to people within the community instead of trying these platforms.

There are also a lot of attorneys who don’t want to hire from the platforms, or who need somebody to maybe make a court appearance or even sign papers, or be able to draft papers and sign them.

If you are, for example, an attorney in Florida, a lot of family law attorneys often have overflow work. If you make yourself an expert on discovery and family law, and market yourself individually, you can find that kind of contract work at a much higher rate than you would get from a platform.

Q: What are some of the biggest changes you have seen in the solo and small law firm world in the last decade?

Legal always is behind other industries. A decade ago, people who were working in the tech industry often were able to work from home, they were doing things in the cloud, and they were collecting money online. Lawyers, even as recently as 10 years ago, still weren’t quite there.

What the pandemic has done is a lot of people started using cloud based practice management systems, started accepting credit cards or online payments, and other technology. The stigma of working remotely has been largely eviscerated. You see many more attorneys who are not only setting up home based firms, but proactively marketing the benefits of remote work to their clients.

The cost of legal research and of document automation have gone down. On the whole, today, we have not only cheaper and more affordable tools than were available 10 years ago, but far more powerful tools. I mean, even 10 years ago, it was a little bit of a hassle to record videos, and then you’d have to upload them to YouTube. Now you can just record things on your phone and put it on TikTok or do a Facebook Live.

You have sites like this one where you can have audio meetings. There are just a myriad of ways to market your services and to create a brand that goes beyond your community. There’s also many more ways to connect with other solo and small firm lawyers through Facebook groups and LinkedIn groups. Those were available 10 years ago, but professionals were really only just starting to use them. These communities were very nascent at that time, and now they’re very robust. These are a good way to develop business and make contacts too.

I think there’s just more. More people starting law firms, more doing things differently, more access to knowledge and information about what other people are doing. It’s been an enormous change and 100% for the better.

Q: What are your predictions on how solo and small law firms will change in the next 10 years?

In addition to lawyers changing, clients are changing. Except for a small percentage of clients, I think clients are welcoming the ability to work with attorneys online. Companies are more tolerant or more open to working with lawyers who they haven’t met.

Personally, I think we’re definitely going to see more of that. I think we are going to see not an entire deregulation of the profession, but more companies like LegalZoom or Rocket Lawyer that allow clients to generate documents themselves.

Lawyers are going to have to figure out how to compete with that. I think you’re also going to see a lot more law firms offering that as a service, because it’s much easier to create a document platform at your firm. You don’t have to hire millions of developers to do that anymore.

I think that we are definitely going to see courts starting to experiment with different ways to resolve disputes. I also think for the foreseeable future, a lot of these online mechanisms that we’ve been using are going to remain in place just because it just makes things much more affordable for people.

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