TIPS FOR A Thriving Practice in This Economy
THE LEGAL PROFESSION CONTINUES to adapt to a changing economic climate. To provide insight into managing a law practice in a shifting economy, we spoke with several firm owners and principals who shared their strategies for maintaining growth and reducing overhead.
Meet the Contributors
NAKIA GRAY, ESQ.: Gray is a Maryland-based attorney and strategic legal adviser, and the founder of Locked & Lawyered, a boutique business and intellectual property firm. She offers services as fractional IP counsel, business succession, and estate planning for modern entrepreneurs.
MICHAEL J. BRAMNICK, ESQ.: Bramnick has been practicing law for nearly 20 years and focuses on all aspects of civil litigation. He formed his own law practice, Bramnick Law, LLC, in 2013, which became Bramnick Creed, LLC in 2019 with the addition of Joseph Creed as partner.
SAMANTHA P. RODIER, ESQ.: Rodier is an attorney with Rodier Family Law, P.A., based in Bel Air, Maryland, She is the Family Law Section representative of the MSBA Board of Governors and a member of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers (AAML).
JEREMY D. RACHLIN, ESQ.: Rachlin is a principal and shareholder at Bulman, Dunie, Burke & Feld, Chtd. in Bethesda, and is in charge of the firm’s estate and trust practice group. Rachlin was a 2022 Bar Fellow of the Maryland Bar Foundation.
JAMAAL (“JAY”) W. STAFFORD, ESQ.: Stafford is the founder and managing attorney of The Law Firm of J.W. Stafford, LLC, located in Columbia, Maryland. His firm specializes in defending professional licenses and handling complex employment law matters.
BARBARA ZEKTICK, ESQ.: Zektick is the president of Zektick + Company, a law and government relations consulting firm that bridges the gaps between the public and private sectors. Zektick is also a member of MSBA’s Environment and Energy Law Committee.
On Marketing and Revenue Generation
Nakia Gray emphasizes that growth is often a better solution than mere frugality:
“One of the most effective ways to save money in your practice is to focus on increasing organic visibility. Be active in your bar association, create valuable content on social media,
and develop a signature talk or educational series that positions you as the go-to expert. These approaches cost little to nothing but can drive steady referrals. Also, cancel those unused subscriptions. You’d be surprised how much you’re spending on tools you don’t actually use. Finally, focus your energy on income-generating activities. Growth will fix more than frugality ever could.”
Jamaal Stafford suggests that the “best way to solve this problem is to generate more revenue,” specifically through better financial management:
“The solo attorney does that by not accumulating accounts receivable with clients who are not replenishing the trust account or are slow to pay. In short, this is the principle of addition by subtraction.”
Barbara Zektick shares how she adapted her business model to the current economy:
“My government relations law practice has taken a toll as the current state of the economy drains state coffers. With less state spending, there’s less state lobbying. I’ve reevaluated my space needs and downsized my office, cut administrative expenses, and certain software to save money. I’ve also broadened my service offerings and client and case types to appeal to a wider market.”
On Technology and Operations
Michael Bramnick focuses on the role of integrated platforms: “We use technology and specialized vendor services to operate efficiently. Our practice management software is cost-effective and provides document management, secure messaging, automated drafting, and integrated time, billing, and credit card processing. It also connects seamlessly with a variety of related platforms to support document production and organization, mailing, e-filing, and other features that enhance efficiency and help reduce overhead.”
Samantha Rodier highlights the long-term benefits of going paperless and investing in management:
“Shifting to as paperless a model as a firm can tolerate, to eliminate or significantly reduce the costs of supplies (paper, ink, etc.) and offsite storage, etc. Utilizing cloud-based storage through Clio or another provider to cut down on the expense of storing large quantities of electronic copies of client-provided documents and data. Performing a careful cost-benefit analysis of any existing or potential new marketing endeavors, and negotiating multi-year contracts for the same, which could enable you to lock in rates that will not increase for a set period of time. Finally, although it may seem counterintuitive, investing resources in necessary personnel, hiring a firm administrator, for example, who can handle non-billable tasks relating to the management and operations of the firm, should enable the attorneys to maximize their actual time practicing law and, as a result, making more money.”
On Judicious Spending
Jeremy Rachlin notes a shift toward more conservative operating costs following the pandemic:
“The past year has certainly been a turbulent time, but fortunately not nearly as scary as I remember the law firm economic climate as a young associate during the Great Recession of 2007–2008 or as a new equity partner in the spring and summer of 2020. Coming out of the pandemic, while we still invest in talent, we have generally been more conservative and judicious when it comes to operating costs. For example, we have cut back significantly on hard copies of treatises and rules volumes. Whereas once each attorney had their own volume of the annotated rules, we now have a few
There are a variety of ways a law firm can save money, including periodically reviewing and cancelling unused subscriptions, taking advantage of hybrid or remote arrangements to save money on office space, and adopting electronic files.
shared hardbound volumes because all attorneys have access through our Lexis subscription.
We’ve also cut down on office spending on coffee (shocking for a law firm). Each employee is eligible for reimbursement for an Unlimited Sip Club Membership at Panera Bread, as we have a Panera just around the corner from our office. Our staff appreciates the added perk of free Panera drinks 24/7, and we appreciate not spending as much on Keurig pods!”
Jamaal Stafford also lists practical operational changes:
“There are a variety of ways a law firm can save money, including periodically reviewing and cancelling unused subscriptions, taking advantage of hybrid or remote arrangements to save money on office space, and adopting electronic files.”