The ABA Journal has turned its attention to solo practitioners for this year’s group of “Legal Rebels.” I am pleased to announce that the Journal has bestowed this title upon me for my virtual law office. The article written by Stephanie Ward for my profile gets to the heart of why I started my virtual law office several years ago. I’m honored to be on this year’s list with fellow solos, Carolyn Elefant and Bruce Cameron, both of whom I have gotten to know online over the past few years through our common concerns as busy solo practitioners.
I wasn’t intending to rebel against anything when I started my virtual law office – it was more a matter of necessity being the mother of invention. As I realized the potential of virtual law practice to be one solution to the lack of access to justice in our country as well as a more family friendly legal career path, I became more determined to spread the concept to the legal profession and to study ways in which the technology could be used ethically to serve the public and legal profession. But I’m just getting going…..
Congrats, Stephanie. You are just getting started, and what a great start you are off to.
For all of the complaints about the down economy in the profession and limited opportunities for new lawyers, it was gratifying to see that a good number of the rebels were either fairly new lawyers (like Bruce) or in their 30s (like you and a few others). Back when I started my firm, it was inconceivable that a fairly young lawyer could become so quickly established, but in today’s topsy-turvey world, our profession is now an open playing field, where it’s possible to succeed entirely on merit and hard work rather than seniority or high power connections. I can’t wait to see what the next generations of lawyers have in store.