Transitioning into solo practice presents unique challenges and opportunities, especially for attorneys coming from a legal services or public interest background. In this article, I explore what it takes to make that shift and build a successful solo elder and special needs law practice.
A solo attorney or small firm cannot survive, let alone thrive, without the requisite substantive and procedural expertise to meet the needs of potential and actual clients. For me, this expertise came from practicing elder and special needs law for more than 20 years with legal services/public interest organizations in Indiana and Ohio. The lawyering ranged from individual counseling through class action litigation in the state and federal trial and appellate courts. While doing so, I learned the ins and outs of Medicaid, Medicare, Social Security, Supplemental Security Income, long-term care facility resident rights, guardianship, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (food stamp) benefits, public/subsidized housing, and consumer protection law.
Ways to gain visibility. One way was to become certified in elder law. More than 30 years ago, I became one of the first 29 attorneys in the country to pass the examination and meet the experience requirements of the National Elder Law Foundation to be designated a Certified Elder Law Attorney.
Another way to gain personal visibility for one’s expertise is to participate in legal associations. During my 40 years of membership in the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA), I have served as President; Chair of its Public Policy Committee; and Chair of its Programs and Education Committee. I also chaired NAELA’s Professionalism and Ethics Committee for 12 years, during which the Committee drafted both the first and second editions of NAELA’s Aspirational Standards for the Practice of Elder and Special News Law with Commentaries.
State and local bar associations are another opportunity to become visible. Forty years ago, I founded OSBA’s Elder Law Committee (now the OSBA Elder & Special Needs Law Section) as well as the Cincinnati Bar Association’s Elder Law Committee (now the CBA Elder & Special Needs Law Practice Group). Chairing both committees exposed me to a large number of attorneys, leading to both collaborative and referral relationships that have lasted years.
Another way to gain visibility for one’s expertise is to make presentations. Making presentations not only forces you to really be on top of your topic but also to be on the constant lookout for changes to the law on your topic and how your topic is practiced. Another benefit is that many of my referrals come from the attorneys, health care providers, and financial advisors who attend these presentations.
The single topic that makes up the largest part of my practice and about which I have spoken the most and received the greatest number of referrals is planning for long-term care costs and the role of Medicaid in such planning. Forty-nine years ago, Medicaid was pretty straightforward. Your clients either met Medicaid’s income and asset standards and were eligible or they did not. There were no transfer of asset limitations.
The evolution of Medicaid has required increasingly sophisticated planning to ensure that persons needing long-term care receive the care they need and also maximize what they can protect of their life savings for themselves, their spouse, and their family members. These changes also have resulted in numerous speaking opportunities for organizations such as: Cincinnati Bar Association, Ohio State Bar Association, National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys, Special Needs Alliance, and American Bar Association.
Solo attorneys have two options for their office. They can pay rent or they can practice from home. I started working from home and still do. There is no commute or rent, but many of my clients are more comfortable in a home setting than an office setting. I do, though, look the part with a suit and tie.
Office location matters. My home is in the geographic center of Cincinnati and is readily accessible. There are nine steps into my home through the front door and six through the back door, each with firm railings. Potential clients for whom my home is not safely accessible can meet by Zoom, phone, their home or other location. When appropriate, I also meet clients at their home, hospital, or care facility.
Confidentiality is essential to the practice of any attorney, particularly in a home office. My private office is on the first floor. A fairly large dining room serves well for meetings.
Just as my office is simple, so is my staffing. I do my own bookkeeping and record keeping and handle my taxes, checking account, and IOLTA account. If the phone rings, I answer it. If I don’t answer it, my answering machine does. If the doorbell rings, I answer it. The bottom line to my clients is that if my client is dealing with my office, my client is dealing with me. My admin needs have been met through a succession of college students and others working part-time.
While there are a number of businesses offering services to attorneys, I stuck with and have been very pleased with the networking and professional services received from local, state, national bars and legal associations.
Through the CLE, publications, websites, committees, and listservs/networking provided by the above, I am able to easily and quickly keep up to date on the law, do legal research, and establish and maintain relationships and collegiality with the best elder and special needs law attorneys across the country.
Gregory S. French is a Past Chair of the CBA’s Solo/Small Firm Practitioners Practice Group, founder and first Chair of what is now the CBA’s Elder Law & Special Needs Law Practice Group, and a long-time member of the CBA’s Ethics Committee.