Solo Practitioners

Supreme Desperation: A Grovel By A Jaded Lad (A Struggling Lawyer’s Story)

An ethical dilemma where he must choose between the best interest of a client versus the financial ambitions of his bosses.

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Today, I want to share a recent law school graduate’s story of struggle. He started a solo practice while searching for a job. Unfortunately, a combination of a lack of clients and capital forced the protagonist to stop his practice and ask everyone he knows for help. He was able to find a job but it was not what he expected. He is faced with an ethics dilemma where he must choose between the best interest of a client versus the financial ambitions of his bosses.

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Dear Shannon,

Like many of my classmates from my so-called “first tier” law school, I did not get a job after being admitted to the bar. After unsuccessfully searching for a job for months, I set up a solo practice. My office was my bedroom and I used a PO Box address for mail. Some older attorneys in my area agreed to be my mentors. But when it came to finding clients, I was mostly on my own. While I tried to keep my overhead as low as possible, I learned that some expenses were necessary. These included advertising, going to networking events, setting up a website, research tools, and multiple bar association and other social networking fees.

As I was building my practice and to make ends meet, I had three part-time jobs that paid little with no benefits. I was also checking the job boards every day to see if any legal positions were available. For the first six months, I did not get a single client despite all the advertising and networking. I was able to get a few clients later on, but I had to constantly nag and threaten them to get them to pay me. From my meager practice and part-time jobs, I was making only $2,000 per month. This was barely enough to cover rent, food and gas. Thankfully, PAYE allowed me to pay almost nothing on my loans but the interest was accruing at $50 per day!

Things have taken a turn for the worse. I was laid off from one of my part time jobs. Also, my car had severe mechanical problems and I could not afford to fix it. It was only a matter of time before the transmission is destroyed and I cannot afford to get even a used car. And our landlord planned to increase our rent in a few months.

I was getting desperate. So I swallowed my pride and contacted everyone I knew. I told most people the truth without any spin: I was in a dire financial situation and needed a job – preferably a legal one. Unfortunately, no one in the area was hiring attorneys. Law firms wouldn’t consider me for any position. Not even the file clerk or receptionist. I didn’t know what I was going to do next.

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And then one day, I saw an ad on Craigslist. It was for an attorney position for a firm that claims to handle bankruptcies and debt restructuring. I applied and was immediately scheduled for an interview. After a few questions with the head of the company and another lawyer, I was hired. But I never learned the name of the company. I was just so excited and relieved that I was hired that I didn’t think much of it.

On my first day of work, I was assigned to a few minor debt settlement cases. It was then I learned the name of the company. When I googled it, I saw that former clients had filed numerous complaints on the Better Business Bureau, Yelp and some online websites. It made me suspicious but I dared not snoop around on the company computers. And it wouldn’t be a good idea to ask harsh questions to the boss on my first day on the job.

When I got home, I checked out the company in more detail. The former clients complained that nothing was done for them and that the sales staff was abusive. Again, I didn’t think anything of it. Since I used to extern for the public defender’s office while in law school, I ran into a lot of troubled clients and I knew that some of them just couldn’t be helped. You can’t please everybody in this business.

After working here for a few weeks, I figured out how the company operated. They had a sales staff that brought clients in from advertisements, pro bono clinics, and people they probably picked up in the street or the local shelter. The clients would get signed up and then assigned to an attorney. I was one of four. We had a supervising attorney who was quite knowledgeable but even he answered to the sales staff.

The sales staff were arrogant jerks. They were given quotas to meet. They were trained in high pressure sales techniques which involves a lot of bravado. But worst of all, they were lying to clients about the outcome of their case. So when I or another one of the attorneys would question what they were doing, we were shouted at and demeaned.

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A while later, once I realized I had no future with this company, I planned my exit strategy: Save money, buy a reliable used car, and find another job. But this will take time, especially finding another job. And many people have told me not to quit until finding something else. By this point, my caseload already grew to 250 clients and I needed to close as many of them as possible before I leave.

I abruptly quit after getting into a huge argument with the sales staff that almost turned violent. I took some time off to gather my thoughts and then started job hunting again.

But when I googled my name, I saw that some former clients had filed a complaint about me and the company I used to work for. There were five complaints accusing me of being incompetent, failing to keep them informed, missing deadlines, and unnecessarily prolonging their matter in order to collect more fees. This was total BS but I since I couldn’t determine the poster’s identity, there was no way I could adequately respond to this. I later found out that the sales staff did nothing with my file nor did they assign it to my successor. But the bigger problem is that a potential employer will see this and may reject my application because of it. And more may come.

I don’t know what to do. I sucked at being a solo practitioner and I sucked at the last job I had in four years. The money I saved is disappearing quickly and I feel the sense of desperation coming back. I don’t want to be a solo practitioner again. I feel so jaded, lost and disillusioned with law practice. If things don’t improve soon, I will leave law and do something else. I may even move somewhere else.

Please help me.

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I feel for this guy and I thank him for sharing his story. He got himself into the situation I described here. This may not end for a while. Other disgruntled clients may post nasty reviews online and some may even file a bar complaint or a malpractice lawsuit. For some reason, I doubt that his former company will help him or indemnify him.

Bad online reviews may disappear over time. But some will stay on the internet for a long time. I think the best way to counter it is to do some good things that will be noted on the first page of Google.

While the email didn’t make it clear, the young attorney faced a serious ethical dilemma. The sales staff brought in the clients and in some cases had to make misleading promises to accomplish this. If the attorney tells the client the truth, then the client may want a refund, upsetting the arrogant sales staff. But if the attorney also leads the client on, the client can be hurt both emotionally and financially. In this case, it is pretty obvious what the attorney should have done. But when legal jobs are scarce, making the right decision isn’t easy.

If you have any suggestions for the reader, please note them in the comments or email them to me.

I would like to hear from more former solo attorneys who have left the practice for hopefully greener pastures. I know it’s hard to write about a time of your life you probably want to forget. But I am hoping that these biographies will serve as a teaching moment for others. Particularly for college students who are taking the LSAT and applying to law school. And for some 1Ls who are contemplating whether they should stay on the course or drop out and do something else.

Shannon Achimalbe was a former solo practitioner for five years before deciding to sell out and get back on the corporate ladder. Shannon can be reached at sachimalbe@excite.com.

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