Show Notes
Kevin Daisey welcomed Kaitlin, a guest from Colorado, to the Managing Partners podcast. Kaitlin was referred by recent guest Jimmy Grant, who is based out of Georgia and is a member of the group, How to Manage a Small Law Firm. Kaitlin originally moved to Manhattan for law school and worked for six years in civil rights, white collar and criminal defense cases, including the Central Park Five case. Eventually, Kaitlin was burnt out and decided to move to Colorado to start fresh. Kaitlin noticed that she was missing something in her cases, which was injury and traumatic brain injury, which she was not addressing properly. This lead her to start her own practice to better serve her clients.
Kaitlin discuss the case of traumatic brain injuries and how lawyers, the community, and sports teams often don't understand the complex factors surrounding it. She then go on to explain how she and her partner decided to start their own law firm, treating it like a tech startup rather than a traditional law firm, and how it has been incredibly successful in its first year. Kaitlin discuss the importance of not treating a law firm like a traditional one and investing in the financial, professional and personal growth of the staff. They also talk about how they have achieved tremendous results in their first year and have earned the Ink 5000 award based on their financials and growth. Finally, they emphasize the importance of scaling one's business and helping more people if one is great at what they do.
This conversation highlights the process of starting a law firm and how it differs from other business startups. The two stress that the primary things needed to start a law firm are a cell phone, laptop, malpractice insurance, and registration with the state. It is argued that lawyers have a mentality that setting up a brick-and-mortar building is necessary and that this is not the case. It is also argued that one does not need to compete with big law firms that have a lot of money for advertising and that referrals are the best way to find clients. Lastly, it is mentioned that when a person needs legal services for a traumatic or catastrophic injury, they are likely going to prioritize finding a lawyer who will best serve their needs rather than the one who is first on the Google search engine.
This conversation discusses the innovative no-cost marketing strategies that have enabled Heather's law firm to become successful. Kaitlin explains that they have focused on hyper-specialization and referrals, making use of ground games, writing letters to potential clients, being a mensch and helping people, being present in local communities and magazines, and doing CLE lectures and other events. She also suggests that other attorneys looking to get into hyper-specialization should write a book to become a benchmark in the field.