The Life of a Managing Partner in a High Street Law Firm

Last week on HighStreetLawyer Workshare, it was the turn of Sheffield law firm Lewis Francis Blackburn Bray to inform, educate, cajole and encourage the other HSL member firms as our featured law firm. In reality LFBB Solicitors don't need an excuse to post as Rich Francis, their managing partner, is an avid networker and contributor to our social networking platform.

However, he used the week to describe the multiple roles that he has managing his South Yorkshire law firm. At times, being managing partner of a small law firm is like a series of acronyms. Rich is COLP, COFA and MLRO. While he does have the option of sharing these roles with his colleagues (unlike sole practitioners who be default have to wear many hats) Rich has decided that he needs to fulfil these roles personally to ensure that he has full coverage of what is going on. The problem it creates, even in a relatively small firm, is whether there is enough time to do any fee earning work. Other solicitors in a similar quandary, contributed to the discussion , giving examples of what works for them.

In any business cash is king and law firms are no exception. Most firms still bill monthly leaving fee earners scrabbling around at the end of the month billing work that they could have billed earlier and already had the money in for. Rich questioned why this was and whether any firms had any methods to change it. A brave move maybe, considering all of the fee earners at Lewis Francis Blackburn Bray are registered on HSL Workshare and even have their own group for their own discussions. I look forward to seeing whether they institute any changes.

Rich also spoke about the special relationship between High Street firms and their clients, acknowledging that most firms greatest asset and marketing opportunity is their existing client base but do firms really know what makes clients tick, why they use that firm, what else they need and how to get them coming back or recommending to others. It's a discussion that started at the HSL Strategy Day in March and continues to bubble along amongst our member firms.

Where else does this level of debate take place between owners and managers of small law firms across the country? Members share ideas, strategy, work referrals and even humour (dubious). We even received an insight last week into one partner's wishful day dreaming about his Bank Holiday activities. Join us for FREE on HSL Workshare. Sign yourself up or contact me for more details. A short chat to make sure that you are the type of firm that will add value to our network and that we can add value to you is needed before we approve your application but we look forward to welcoming you. 

Save the Land Registry campaign picking up momentum

The campaign to save HM Land Registry from the government’s proposed reforms is well underway. But one of the biggest obstacles to maintaining a meaningful campaign is lawyer apathy, possibly enhanced by the relatively short consultation period and the lack of publicity regarding the impact of the proposals. We hosted a mid-campaign conference call with solicitors and other interested parties last week to discuss how to take the campaign forward.

The Save the Land Registry website and Facebook page have generated a lot of web traffic and likes, but the key is converting the interest into a united voice. The solicitors and Land Registry employees that participated in the conference call were united in opposing the government’s proposals; now this unity must be spun into action. The Public and Commercial Services Union Land Registry group, representing the majority of HM Land Registry employees, has now submitted its formal response to the consultation. 

In its response, it emphasises the lack of explanation and reasoning behind the government’s proposals, much of which is couched in oblique language. Ultimately, the 98% satisfaction rate which the Land Registry enjoys is surely the best argument against the proposals, as well as the fact it costs the public purse nothing.

Meanwhile, solicitors in different parts of the UK are actively looking to generate publicity for the campaign amongst local solicitors and estate agents. They are also busy writing to their MPs to make sure they have a voice in the House of Commons.

The reforms, if implemented, may change the status of the Land Registry from a self- financing Trading Fund, with the ability to pass on cost savings to its end users, to a commercial service delivery company, potentially part owned by Government or entirely private. The proposals also suggest passing responsibility for making changes to the Land Register to conveyancers themselves. The impact on solicitors and their clients has not been made clear in the proposals.

One body whose voice has been strangely mute is the Law Society. Whether for reasons of political neutrality or lack of fight, they have not taken a clear position on the proposals. But in its stead, HighStreetLawyer is taking the lead in making sure these proposals are not quietly forced on us and is asking for further time for the proposals to be considered and for the proposals to consider keeping the current system. You can see what others are saying and add your comments on HighStreetlawyer Workshare. It's free to join. Just click here and follow the simple steps. 

What happened at HSL's Strategy Day

Wednesday 12 March saw our first High Street Lawyer Strategy Day of 2014. Delegates came from Yorkshire, Devon, Cornwall. Essex, Wales and London. Ideas were shared, problems solved and the general theme from the short interview that I conducted with delegates was that the quality of the discussions was unlike anything available to the owners and staff of small law firms anywhere else. Our fay was kindly hosted by DUAL Asset Underwriting and we look forward to launching our next project with them very soon.

Our day started with an update on the Professional Indemnity Insurance market by Stephen Levey of St Giles. It was well reported last year that over 130 firms closed due to an inability to obtain insurance cover. The reality, we learned, is that many more firms may also have failed to report and the real situation could be far worse. With the closure of the assigned risks pool and concerns around rated versus unrated insurers the situation for small law firms is far from clear for this coming year. Resisting any crystal ball gazing for the coming year, Stephen instead gave practical advice to delegates about how to get the best possible PII deal.

The next session focussed on marketing on a shoestring budget, which for most small law firms typifies the double edged sword that they face daily. Spend time and money on marketing or do the work that you have in front of you. Spend no time or money on marketing and there will be very little work in front of you. Joe Reevy of Words 4 Business gave an insight into network marketing and how to work your existing contacts, turning them into advocates for your business to generate more work.

Neil Thorogood of Lloyds Bank told us how small law firms can keep their bank managers happy. It doesn't involve boozy lunches. It involves sensible business planning, strong financial management and honesty about any problems your business might face. Neil and his colleagues are all Lexcel qualified so they understand law firms and the multiple pressures that they face.

A COLP (Compliance Officer for Legal Practice) is expected to spend up to 30% of their time on compliance activities. How that leaves any time left for fee earning is not clear. What was clear from Stephen Madge's talk was that the regimes surrounding compliance for small law firms are of procedures and preparedness. Can your firm demonstrate that it has systems in place so that it has the confidence to show that it is compliant? Stephen and his colleagues at Principle 8 advise law firms of various sizes on compliance procedure.

Our delegates other benefit from the day was Networking. Although our members meet virtually on our online platform, nothing beats a face to face meet up. Here are some of the comments I received at the end of the day.

"I really enjoyed the HighStreetLawyer Strategy Day, there is a bright future for high street firms after what I heard today."

"...a community feel and a trading of ideas that you don't get at big events"

"the presentations were fantastic. I have a renewed energy and ideas for my business"

"Very illuminating and slightly frightening"

"very useful in respect of day to day practice" 

"Excellent day, met some interesting people"

"Fantastic to meet the people we connect with on HSL Workshare"

"Delighted we came here today"

Find out more about High Street Lawyer by joining us on HSL Workshare https://cloud.workshare.com/highstreetlawyer.com/signup?1

Small but perfectly planned - HSL Featured firm last week Blakeleys Solicitors

Simon Blakeley started planning setting up his own law firm more than 25 years ago. However, D Day was in 2006 when he opened the doors (figuratively) to Blakeleys Solicitors with no work , no clients but bags of enthusiasm. Simon learnt how to generate work from referrers who trusted and respected him and the work that he could produce. This story resonated with a number of other HSL Workshare members who have followed dreams to set up their own law firms. But being in practice on your own can be a lonely existence and Simon acknowledged that there are times when having others around to bounce ideas off, whether they be for legal opinions or for management questions is a luxury that many sole practitioners don't have. Being part of an online network, such as High Street Lawyer provides a community of like minded individuals happy to comment, support and discuss topics.

One area that Simon concentrated on during his week on HSL Workshare as featured firm was Marketing, building on the earlier discussions that had taken place in the forum. Simon proved that brand visibility works for his firm and his bright yellow signs in farmers fields have led to an increase in personal injury instructions, hopefully not because drivers were distracted though! A discussion of the marketing of wills and probate has led to the creation of a High Street Lawyer wills and probate group to consider marketing solutions for this difficult to market area of law.

Being a small firm means striking the appropriate balance between not turning work away and trying to do everything. Blakeleys appears to have got this balance right and Simon explained how his good advice, coupled with genuine interest has lead him to be instructed by other law firms in certain work areas, such as low velocity personal injury claims and alleged fraud against doctor cases, proving that despite above the line marketing and promotions, good leads come from building reputations.

Marketing, compliance and regulation are the key areas of the forthcoming HSL Strategy day on 12 March, being held in London. Attendees will hear from top speakers including Neil Throrogood of Lloyds Bank, Joe Reevy of Legal RSS, Stephen Madge of Principle 8 and Gary Yantin of HSL. As with all HSL events, there will no doubt also be an opportunity to consider a bunch of other issues pertinent to the owners and managers of small law firms. Full details and how to book are here. 

Featured Firm of the Week - Watson Legal - Living the dream

When you have always dreamt of running your own law firm you don't want it to become a nightmare. Sarah Jones of Watson Legal in Bishops Stortford is living the dream. Sarah set up Watson Legal in September 2013 in serviced offices and is already looking at expanding into larger premises and adding more areas of practice to her firm.

Watson Legal deals with litigation, conveyancing, will disputes, inheritance claims, property disputes, commercial law and employment. Sarah is also a mediator and used her time as Featured Firm on High Street Lawyer to discuss the benefits that mediation can bring to a case.

Watson Legal is a new firm and Sarah shared aspects of her business plan and aspirations for the future. As a result, she received valuable feedback from other law firm sole practitioners and senior partners who have been there and done it.

Sarah questioned the audience on HSL Workshare about growth in law firms, observing that while some were satisfied in standing still, the reality of doing nothing to push your business forward can actually result in in going backwards. Taking yourself out of your comfort zone and attending networking events, organising lectures and connecting with local businesses are some of the ideas Sarah has planned for this year.

HighStreetLawyer is a support services business whose aim is to help small law firms flourish through a combination of outsourcing, collaboration and sharing. HSL Workshare is our unique platform for connecting all of our members all the time in real time. On 12 March our HSL Member firms and other interested  like minded law firm owners and senior solicitors will come together for a CPD accredited strategy day. Hosted by DUAL Asset Underwriters we will discuss marketing, insurance, banking and compliance. As always, we expect more ideas will be shared than we have anticipated and our participants go away with far more than the cost of the day. Check out the full programme and book your place. Places are strictly limited so please contact us to reserve your place. 

Featured Firm of the Week - Hutharts Law Firm Gateshead

Read most LinkedIn discussions about law firm marketing and the majority of the people involved in the discussion are marketing consultants. They may have been lawyers once too but switched from the practice of law to dispensing marketing advice to law firms. If small law firms followed all of the advice given out by marketing consultants, there would be little time left for the practice of law.

Our HSL member firms benefited this week from the marketing strategy and insights of our Featured Firm. Gillian Huthart, principal of Hutharts Law Firm of Gateshead not only told us what she had tried that worked but also what she had tried that didn't work. Gillian proved that she is not closed to trying new ideas to bring work into her firm, but that she has an acute awareness of when a strategy has not worked and it is time to move on.

One of the themes of Gillian's marketing efforts is availability. If you want people to use your law firm you have to be there for them, whether that is attending networking events at unsocial hours, opening outside of office hours so that working clients (most of them) can see you or using any spare time to call your clients and contacts to find out how their business is going and remind them that you and your business still exists.

Gillian Huthart's insights elicited one of the longest discussion threads we have seen on HSL Workshare but you'll have to sign up (for FREE) to see it in detail. It was described by one user as "the thread of the week".

Gillian extended her marketing strategy later in the week to discuss the benefits of pro bono work. Aside from the obligation some lawyers feel to give back to the community and the inherent feel good factor of helping others, Gillian revealed that her pro bono efforts of helping set up  charities and guide them though legal issues has led to lucrative commercial work as a result.

A real example of getting back more than you put in. Exemplified further by the positive comments, new followers and even a work referral that Hutharts gained in the week that they were our featured firm.

Based in Gateshead but acting for clients from across the North east and further afield, Gillian and her team of freelance lawyers looking for a better work life balance, deal with all commercial, corporate, property, IP and IT legal issues.

Connect with Gillian and other like minded law firms at HSL Workshare. Or join us on 12 March in Central London for the HSL Strategy Day 

Featured firm of the Week - Flint Bishop LLP

Dr Darren Conway is a clinical negligence solicitor at Derbyshire law firm Flint Bishop. Darren told us on HSL Workshare that he had been a solicitor for 10 years, all of which time he has specialised in clinical negligence claimant work. Prior to a career in the law, Darren was a scientist and acedemic in the field of Genetics. His previous experience and background allows him to bring a different perspective to his work in a law firm. Darren informed us that working towards a Phd is in many ways akin to running a small business. There are time limits and financial considerations. Ultimately, responsibility for the success of the project rests solely with the person doing the work. Much like running a law firm department. 

Darren also highlighted the social, medical and scientific impact that clinical negligence legal work has on wider society. Often, the primary objective in bringing a claim is financial. There may be losses to recover and future medical and care costs to consider. However, as Darren pointed out, another factor, is helping to ensure that the negligence that occurred does not reoccur and that lessons are learnt. In Darren's experience, a claim that he worked on successfully achieved multi million pound damages for his client but also influenced the practice of ante natal testing. 

On a marketing note, Darren led debate about videos on your website, a subject that I think, will be hugely important in 2014, if you want clients to engage with you. 

Flint Bishop's week as Featured Firm allowed Darren to connect with more lawyers in firms around the country who now have awareness of his experience and skills and know to instruct him if they or their clients need a clinical negligence lawyer. 

Connect with Darren by joining HSL Workshare and joining the debate.