Small Law Firms, Solo Practitioners

Being A Lawyer Is A Sales Job

You need to start networking you first day of law school, not only to get a job, but to keep one.

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Keith Lee

Keith Lee

“You need to start [networking] the day you start law school.”

– Nazleen Jiwani, director of the career resources center at South Texas, in an article titled, A Glut of Lawyers Dims Job Prospects For Many.

Sound familiar? You’ve probably read some such article, with a similar title, about the legal job market at least once a month for the past 2-3 years if I had to guess. It’s the ol’ reliable in the legal press. Can’t think of anything else to write about? Talk about how crappy job prospects are for new law school graduates (pot meet kettle).

Sometimes the articles have some merit. They might be based on a new study, or a recently released round of statistics or survey data. But often it’s just another ride around the merry-go-round. Usually some combination of the following:

  • too many law schools;
  • too many graduates;
  • legal industry in midst of upheaval;
  • #legaltech (woo!) changing everything;
  • economy sucks; and/or
  • outsourcing.

Pick three, mix together, strain, pour over ice, and you’ve got yourself a legal industry article!

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That being said, the line about starting networking the day you start law school stood out. It seems self-evident, but I continue to regularly speak with law students and recent graduates who see networking as an inconvenience at best. They’d rather be doing anything than getting out and meeting lawyers and other law students.

If you’re in law school and a complete dynamo, top 5% of your class at a good school, then you likely don’t have to worry about networking. Keep your nose to the grindstone, don’t spaz out during OCI, and you’ll likely get a job. But even that’s not a sure thing anymore. I had a student at a good regional school email me the other week after striking out with OCI. He was ranked #7 in his class out of nearly 120 students.

Effective networking is what makes someone stand out when all other factors are a wash. All things being equal, people tend to favor someone with whom they’re familiar. Better the known quantity than the unknown. A student who took the time to go to alumni events, local bar events, etc., and got to know local attorneys, likely has a better chance of landing a job than a student with similar grades, but who never attended any networking events.

That’s the funny thing about getting a job right out of law school. If you don’t already have solid relationships with some number of lawyers (a pre-existing network), then you’re going to have to network to get a job. And networking essentially means cold-calling. You’re going to have to repeatedly introduce yourself to new people, be engaging, and make an impression.

Sure, a law student might think, but once I get hired, I don’t have to worry about networking ever again! Only if you’re not concerned about remaining employed.

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Here’s the funny thing about clients — they’re often strangers. Lawyers in small firms often do not have a ready stable of institutional, corporate clients that they can rely on for regular, reoccurring work. Instead, they must constantly be on the hunt for new clients and work. It’s how they keep their doors open.

If you’re not comfortable with taking the time to meet new people and becoming adept at small talk, then your ability to develop client relationships will never amount to much. Which means that if you’re in a small firm, any firm really, you’re just another cog in the machine. If you’re hanging your shingle, then you’re going to be spending lots of long days in the office by yourself, mindlessly refreshing Facebook.

You need to start networking you first day of law school, not only to get a job, but to keep one.

Keith Lee practices law at Hamer Law Group, LLC in Birmingham, Alabama. He writes about professional development, the law, the universe, and everything at Associate’s Mind. He is also the author of The Marble and The Sculptor: From Law School To Law Practice (affiliate link), published by the ABA. You can reach him at keith.lee@hamerlawgroup.com or on Twitter at @associatesmind.

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