Effective management of law offices is becoming more and more difficult in the quickly evolving legal landscape. Lawyers need to have a development mentality and be willing to buck tradition in order to successfully manage a large or small legal practice, but often that’s easier said than done.
Having listened to numerous prosperous solo practitioners, business owners and managing partners, I feel like I know a good deal about managing legal practices. Building on topics that emerged from those discussions, this guide provides all the information you require on how to manage a law firm. We’ve provided best practices and actionable approaches. Developing your practice management should be simple using this, regardless of your level of experience as a lawyer or whether you’re just starting out.
What is Law Firm Management?
Law firm management includes all of the tasks required to oversee your legal practice’s business operations. This covers hiring, staff management, marketing, client relations, finances (including payroll, budgeting, collections, and trust accounts), hiring practices, and law firm management (including working with vendors, policies and procedures, and more).
Note: You might not be personally in charge of every department on a day-to-day basis as the managing partner of a legal firm. However, a managing partner ought to be a principal decision-maker and a leader. See our guide on law firm partnership structures for additional details.
How to manage a law firm
Your practice’s size, personnel, location and legal services will all influence the management style you choose for your law office. Having said that, the following are fundamental procedures for managing a legal practice. Whether you work alone or as a managing partner in a 50-lawyer firm, the same procedures apply. Learn how to manage a law firm successfully.
1. Write a business plan for your law firm
Initially, in order to effectively manage a legal practice, you must have a comprehensive business plan that outlines your objectives, projected financial gains, points of differentiation from competitors, and marketing strategy. There are several tools to aid with your planning:
Make a marketing strategy for your legal practice using these instructions.
The pay scales for associate and partner attorneys should also be included in your proposal. The eat-what-you-kill model, the lockstep model, the equal distribution method, and more options are available. An overview of each compensation model is given in this article. Even if you practice law alone, carefully consider how you will support yourself.
Best practice: If you need assistance with your business plan, get outside assistance. Someone with experience in marketing or finance could help position your company for success.
2. Write a handbook on legal office processes
A law office procedures handbook makes it obvious how things should be done at your legal practice, ensuring efficiency and consistency throughout. For attorneys, paralegals, legal assistants, accountants and office managers, this means a more predictable workday.
Process guides can make the onboarding of new employees easier. If you want your business to expand more quickly, this can assist.
When needed, hire personnel to assist in developing your manual: They might be the authorities! For instance, your accounting department will be the most knowledgeable about your collections process, but your receptionist might have some excellent ideas about your new customer intake procedure.
The following can be useful to add in your office handbook:
- Procedures for welcoming clients
- Procedures for billing
- Conventions for filing and matter numbering
- The best methods for monitoring time and being productive
Best practice: Regularly review and update your manual of legal office practices. There’s a chance you’ll receive new tools, which require documented processes. Or your employees might come up with more creative ways to complete tasks. Alterations to the legal industry may also call for a modification of your strategy.
3. Spend money on branding and marketing for law firms
One of the most important aspects of managing a legal practice is marketing. Your brand is your competitive moat, even if you choose to practice law for the majority of your time. Your brand has a significant impact on how clients perceive you in comparison to other lawyers.
The best approach is to understand what sets your legal practice apart. What distinguishes your services from others’ for clients? Make sure your brand reflects this. Measure your marketing initiatives as well. Put an end to investing time and energy in channels that aren’t bringing in new business for your company. Find out more about attracting new legal clients.
4. Make an investment in team development
Employees and associates are your company’s future. For your company, you should do more than just select candidates with the best bar association exam results; you should also assist them in developing. Your firm will prosper in the long run if you make an investment in the success of your attorneys, paralegals, legal assistants, and office staff.
Any management strategy for a law firm must include investments in employee health and wellbeing, as well as professional development, if it is to set up its staff for success.
Professional development could be as simple as paying for courses, sending staff members to conferences, or setting up frequent one-on-one meetings with more senior members of the company. The business plan for your legal practice should include this.
Regarding employee health and wellness, the legal profession is notorious for anxiety and burnout, so this might be difficult. Top talent can be attracted; nevertheless, if you can counter these while continuing to provide professional development.
5. Understand how well your company is doing
A key component of good law office management is the ability to evaluate your firm objectively, identifying its strengths and areas for improvement. Key performance indicators (KPIs) that you may be monitoring include revenue, billable hours, collection rate, new cases, and more.
Peter Drucker once said, “What gets measured gets managed.” You can remain aware of problems and areas for development if you monitor the performance of your legal practice areas. After that, you can act to support the success of your company.
Best practice: To ensure accountability, choose important firm KPIs and review them frequently.It’s not necessary to overdo it. Track one or two important items at first to start modestly.
6. Establish a high bar for customer service
Customer service is more crucial than ever in modern society. In every industry, including the legal field, client expectations have increased due to companies such as Uber, Netflix, and Amazon. This implies that your company’s management must place a high priority on providing excellent client service.
This does not imply that you must amaze your customers. However, you do need to understand their journey—that is, their whole legal experience—know precisely what they want, and provide it to them in a way that makes it simple for them. Whether your company interacts with individuals or corporations, this is accurate.
Best practice: Avoid assuming anything.Discuss your clients’ desires with them. Read between the lines, raise a lot of questions, and make sure you understand the issues they’re attempting to resolve. Then, consider unconventional approaches to problem-solving.
7. Prepare to guide your legal practice through transition
Change could take the form of your company expanding quickly, abruptly switching to a virtual practice model because of a pandemic, or something entirely different. In either case, your superpower will be flexibility. It is not an option to stop inventing because both the legal sector and the world are changing all the time.
Getting your team on board might be challenging when it comes to managing a legal practice and innovation or sudden change. Although change management is difficult, you can assist your staff adapt to a new environment more quickly and keep offering your services to clients by investing a little time and effort.
Best practice: Before making any new changes, clearly identify the problem you’re trying to address or enhance and provide evidence for your decision on the best course of action. Your staff will understand this and become more supportive as a result.
Final Thoughts On How To Manage A Law Firm
Running a legal practice doesn’t have to be difficult, nor does it have to take up a lot of time away from client work. Have self-assurance, remain receptive and flexible, and ask for professional assistance when necessary.
While every legal practice and clientele may require a unique strategy, by adhering to these fundamentals, your legal business will be well-positioned for success. If you are really keen on knowing how to manage a law firm successfully, reread and put into action all of the value this article had to offer.
