In this article we will tell you how to open a law firm from scratch and what niche you can fill in the market. Let's consider the features of the business, important stages its organization and promotion. We will outline approximate investments, potential profits and describe possible risks that you should be prepared for.
Features of the legal market
The law firm provides services in the legal field. And success depends only on their quality and understanding of the market. You need to know what rules your competitors play by, what their pros and cons are, and what you can do better than others.
You also need to understand the features of this field of activity. Here are the main ones.
- The quality of the service and the final result of its provision are unpredictable. It all depends on specific situation, the legal position of the client, the experience, training and judicial practice of the lawyer, as well as the law.
- The services of a law firm do not have criteria for assessing their quality. Because winning in court does not always lead to positive results, just as losing is not a bad result of a lawyer’s work.
- The company’s specialists must not only be legally savvy, know the provisions of the laws and monitor their changes, but also have well-developed creative thinking to solve non-standard and complex problems.
- Often the cost of a service cannot be announced immediately, since it may depend on many factors, including the results of the case in court.
- The legal field should employ specialists with high levels of professionalism and appropriate education. Companies that rely on amateurs and inexperienced lawyers close down within the first year.
- Clients turn to a particular law firm because they trust it. Therefore, you need to invest maximum effort in quality of services and marketing to increase loyalty target audience.
Working in the legal services industry is difficult. Because it is closely related to the law and must solve important problems for people. Sometimes these are complex problems, the solution of which determines the future of the client: his freedom or well-being.
But it is worth noting that law firms staffed by highly qualified lawyers with extensive experience are seriously strengthening their position in the market.
That is, in such a business everything depends on its organization.
How to open a law firm: 6 stages of organizing a business
- Market analysis. You need to clearly understand in which niche the company can gain a foothold, what prices competitors adhere to, and what the demand is in the chosen city. This stage is conducted in-depth and targeted to the audience.
- Choosing a niche. It is necessary to determine what services the company will offer and for whom it will work: for legal, individuals or for everyone.
- Search for premises. Before registering a company, you need to find appropriate place for an office and sign a lease agreement.
- Company registration. At this stage, you need to register as an individual entrepreneur or LLC, and also register with the Federal Tax Service.
- Search for colleagues. Competent and experienced lawyers should be found, interviews conducted and the best candidates selected.
- Marketing. This includes developing a marketing strategy, launching advertising campaigns, creating an official website, a community in in social networks and etc.
Only after going through these 6 stages can you start accepting your first clients.
Now about each stage in detail.
Which niche to choose: promising areas for a law firm
The company can work in the following areas:
- Consultations for individuals – criminal, administrative and civil law. This includes representing the interests of citizens in court or other public services. The advantages of this niche are a large number of clients, but mostly with low solvency - this is a disadvantage.
- Consultations for legal entities - legal assistance individual entrepreneurs and companies. Lawyers help clients register individual entrepreneurs, companies, obtain permits and take part in interaction with government agencies. In this area, the solvency of clients is high, but collecting money from them is much more difficult than from individuals.
- – subscriber services for corporate clients, including resolving personnel, organizational and legal issues.
- Private consultations – servicing clients from the premium segment, which can be individuals and legal entities. The target audience in such a niche can only be found in large cities, but in small towns this will be a futile endeavor.
If the state allows, then the first three directions can be combined, since they are in constant demand. This will make it possible to quickly achieve a high income and return the money spent on opening a company.
During the process of drawing up a business plan, you need to think about the services that will be provided. The most popular are:
- Debt collection from individuals and legal entities.
- Representation in court.
- Appealing illegal actions and decisions on the part of executive, government and law enforcement agencies.
- Legal assistance to foreign citizens: obtaining a residence permit, purchasing real estate, resolving legal issues and representation in court.
- Supporting the economic activities of individual entrepreneurs and LLCs.
Registration of a law firm and requirements for the director
To register a company, you need to determine the form of management: individual entrepreneur or LLC. For a legal organization, it is better to choose an LLC. In this area, trust in individual entrepreneurs on the part of the target audience is low.
The head of the company may not have a legal education. It will only be necessary to obtain permission to operate.
To register you will need:
- Passport and its copy.
- Application for registration of LLC.
- Receipt of payment of the duty.
- Premises rental agreement.
You will also need to select a code - the current activity code can be clarified in the current classifier of the Russian Federation or the country where the services will be provided.
Once the registration process is completed and a certificate is issued, you can begin organizational issues and preparations for the opening.
Choosing an office location
The best place for a law firm is the city center near business centers or company offices. This way it will always be visible and it will be easier for the target audience to remember the address. Clients will be able to quickly get there by personal or public transport, which cannot be said about companies located on the outskirts of the city or in residential areas.
But there is a possibility that the center has been occupied by other law firms. Then it’s worth taking a closer look at a large area where there are practically no competitors and there is a target audience.
You should not choose an office location in basements or multi-storey residential buildings. It will be difficult for clients to find a company.
It is advisable that the office be visible from the main road of the street.
What you need to organize your office
For the office you will need to buy:
- Office furniture for employees and clients: tables, chairs, armchairs, sofas, cabinets, etc.
- Computers and office equipment: laptops, printers, scanners, landline phones, etc.
- Stationery: printer paper, pens, diaries, stamps, etc.
To make your office look presentable, you need to organize it interior decoration. For this you should contact any construction company cities. And to create a business style, it is advisable to hire an interior designer.
Search for employees: important criteria and rules for selecting candidates
Before arranging the selection of candidates, it is necessary to plan the staff. The company will need:
- Lawyer-consultant;
- Lawyer for working with individuals;
- Lawyer for working with legal entities;
- Highly qualified lawyer;
- Legal Assistant;
- Secretary;
- Accountant;
- Cleaning woman.
Once the list of specialists has been compiled, you can begin posting vacancies on the Internet and communicating with candidates.
When interviewing lawyers, you should pay attention to their experience and specialization. They must be diligent, purposeful, determined and extraordinary, having their own point of view and ready to learn.
The main selection criteria are:
- Completed legal education.
- Positive experience as a lawyer.
- Psychological qualities.
It is worth noting that the psychological types of employees must match. This will save the team from unnecessary disagreements, and new specialists will be able to quickly join it. Managing such a team is much easier.
When interviewing, you need to remember that the right person will not appear immediately. Before this, you will have to talk to several candidates - sometimes dozens. Therefore, interviews often take more than one day and it is not possible to quickly open a law firm.
Promoting the company and attracting customers: integrated marketing
So that after opening a company, lawyers do not sit without work, you need to take care of the marketing strategy and advertising in advance.
There are 6 ways to promote the services of a law firm at the stage of its opening and subsequent work:
After the first clients arrive, word of mouth will start working and people will start contacting the company based on recommendations from friends, relatives and colleagues. But this is subject to the provision of high-quality advice and services.
The price of the issue, or how much it costs to open a law firm
You can open a law firm either with a budget of 300,000 rubles or with a budget of more than 1,000,000 rubles. It all depends on the scale of the future company.
For example, for an average staff of lawyers of 3-5 people and a small office, 300,000 - 400,000 rubles will be enough. The main expenses will go to renting premises, purchasing furniture, office equipment and advertising. And this option is optimal.
Initiative and hopeful managers who immediately invest millions in a legal organization fail and close down within the first year of operation. This is caused by the lack of regular customers and competition.
Therefore on initial stage It’s worth opening a small company and gradually developing. And when clients start coming, word of mouth starts working, you can expand and hire new specialists.
In the future there will be monthly expenses for office rent, staff salaries, advertising and utility bills. Their amount also depends on the size of the company. For example, with a staff of 3-5 people, expenses will be approximately 250,000 - 300,000 rubles, and with 10 specialists - from 600,000 rubles.
How much can you earn: law firm income
For example, legal advice – 2,000 rubles, registration of an LLC – 2,500 rubles, individual entrepreneur – 5,000 rubles, statement of claim – 10,000 rubles and liquidation of a legal entity – 50,000 rubles.
The average bill for one lawyer is 5,000 rubles. During the first month, 3 lawyers served 15 people.
3 x 15 x 5,000 = 225,000 rub.
We subtract 15% tax from the amount received: 225,000 – 33,750 = 191,250 rubles. net profit.
The calculations show how important it is to attract the maximum number of clients in the first month.
The return on investment in a law firm is 1-3 years.
Is it worth opening a law firm: pitfalls and risks
Finally, let's look at the pitfalls of business.
When opening a law firm, you need to understand what is on the market. Therefore, you will have to constantly monitor prices so as not to lose the loyalty of your target audience.
But experienced law firm owners argue that the price of services depends on their quality. That is, if they turn out to be better than those of competitors, then there is no need to reduce prices.
Young companies often resort to dumping to attract more customers. But most often this does not form the best impression of them.
Accordingly, dumping is unprofessional. Unjustified reduction in prices for services is a loss of profit. Therefore, at first, while there is no permanent customer base, income will be insignificant. Moreover, the costs can exceed them.
As mentioned above, the payback period for a law firm is 1-3 years. This long term, for which she may go bankrupt due to improper organization and business strategy. And such cases are not uncommon in the field of legal services.
But if you do everything correctly, you can achieve a decent profit in just 2-3 months and recoup all your initial investments in less than a year.
The main business risk is a decrease in the quality of services. Because of this, most customers will leave, costs will increase and profits will fall. Therefore, for the success of the company, it is worth hiring only experienced, highly qualified lawyers, constantly monitoring changes in the market and quickly responding to them.
The provision of legal services today is more relevant than ever, and both individuals and legal entities often turn to legal companies. How to open a law firm and make money on consultations and legal services?
Business specifics
Today, almost every citizen needs the help of a lawyer, since frequently changing laws and not very clear legislative norms raise questions in many situations. This means that there is a need for clarification, which only professional lawyers can give.
At the same time, people need legal assistance on many issues, including legal support for business, assistance in registering companies, filing bankruptcy, protecting the interests of legal entities and individuals in court, representing the interests of parties when concluding transactions, etc.
Some people need advice to complete a major transaction (purchase of real estate, partnerships, etc.), while others need the constant services of a lawyer and are ready to enter into a cooperation agreement with a law firm.
Services
When you decide to open a law firm, you should first decide on the range of services that you plan to provide to clients. Of course, the wider your range of services, the better. But when choosing, you should be guided by the demand for one or another type of legal services. This means that in a small town there is no point in counting on great demand from legal entities, but it is better to focus on legal assistance to individuals. In general, a law firm can offer clients:
- protection of the interests of individuals and legal entities in court, as well as representation in government bodies;
- legal consulting for individuals;
- assistance in registration activities;
- legal support for the activities of companies;
- legal examination and drafting of documents;
- preparation and drafting of agreements, statements, contracts, claims;
- information support for organizations and consulting specialists in the legal field;
- consulting and accounting support;
- Notary Services.
It is worth remembering that you can provide legal services without a license (with the exception of notaries), although many areas require obtaining additional permissions, and the activities of the law firm will be regulated by the Civil Code of the Russian Federation and the Law “On Advocacy and Advocacy.”
Registration of a law firm
- Once you have decided to create a law firm and have decided on the services provided, you can begin registering your business.
- First you need to find office space and sign a lease agreement, as well as draw up a business plan for your future law firm.
- After this, you need to undergo state registration with the tax authority. Preferably (company with limited liability). This will show that you plan to conduct serious activities and are ready for long-term cooperation.
- Choose a tax system. The best option is (according to the “income minus expenses” scheme - this is beneficial if there are a large number of employees and a significant rent for office space).
- Select codes: 74.1 Activities in the field of law, accounting and audit; consulting on commercial activities and enterprise management.
- Renovate the office, equip it with furniture and necessary equipment.
- Hire employees and organize an advertising campaign.
The office is the face of the company
Everyone understands that clients will not go to a law firm that does not inspire confidence in them. This means that your law firm's office should communicate that your business is reliable, your employees are competent and can solve any legal problems. How to achieve this? Rent office space in the city center, in a crowded place, in a prestigious building. It would be nice if there is a transport interchange, a business center and convenient parking nearby.
In addition to a good location, a design that will demonstrate the integrity and respectability of the organization is important for a law firm’s office. So what needs to be done good repair, having chosen a strict design for decoration, equip the office with a comfortable and modern furniture, which will create a positive impression on clients, as well as install computers in the office and provide high-quality communications and high-speed Internet.
The office also needs to be equipped with a convenient place for clients waiting in line, a meeting room, specialist offices (this can be one office, but with partitions that guarantee good soundproofing), a room for technical staff, and a bathroom.
Search for clients
So, you opened a law firm and started working, but clients are not in a hurry to come to your office. What to do? Conduct an advertising campaign and offer your services various companies and individual entrepreneurs. Ask your regular clients to recommend your company to their business partners and business colleagues.
You can negotiate with potential clients (we are talking about legal entities) and offer favorable terms of cooperation, as well as expand the range of services offered. This works great, especially if clients who have ever asked you for help are satisfied with the level of service from your company. So, having completed a one-time order well, you have every chance of getting a contract for permanent legal services for a specific organization.
Staff
As for personnel, a law firm must have qualified lawyers with higher education, work experience and a license to practice law. If you plan to provide a wide range of services, then it is better if you have a separate specialist with a narrow profile for each area, for example, in family, criminal, financial or land law. This will help streamline the conduct of business by area, and will once again demonstrate to clients a serious approach to working in your company.
But it’s clear what to contain large staff highly qualified workers are not suitable for everyone, especially at the beginning of the company’s activities. So it would be appropriate to hire a few law students to help the core staff. You can also invite students law schools for an internship (by concluding an agreement with an educational institution).
You also need an administrative secretary who will take calls and transfer them to the right specialist, ensure the functioning of the office, register documents and engage in archival activities (you can also take a law student with correspondence department university).
In addition to legal specialists, you will also have to hire technical personnel - office cleaners and janitors to restore order in the area adjacent to the office (if there is one, of course).
Initial Investment
For a law firm, it is very important to make a good impression on potential clients immediately after opening and create an atmosphere of respectability around itself. Therefore, there is no need to save on office, furniture and equipment. How much does it cost to open a law firm? Let's calculate the approximate costs of opening a law firm, taking into account that the office area is 200 square meters, and the cost of renting one square meter 3,000 rubles per month.
As for the profitability of the legal business and its payback, it all depends on the specific case. If we talk about average indicators, then this is about a year or a year and a half (subject to active activity). During this time, your company will demonstrate its capabilities, acquire regular customers, and it will be possible to sum up the first results.
When starting a business, you will have to work for authority, and only then will it work for you. So at first you will have to take on any matter, and each time prove that you are competent, competent and capable of resolving any issue in favor of your client. Of course, it will not be easy at first, but credibility in the legal services market is crucial, so you will have to earn it.
Qualified specialists are the main resource of any law firm. So you need to do your best to attract and retain leading legal experts in the company. This will add weight to your business in the eyes of competitors and potential customers.
Another feature of the domestic legal services market is high competition. Therefore, you always need to be aware of the market situation so as not to become an easy prey for another large law firm. And also do not spare money on advertising your services and paying for the work of qualified specialists (otherwise they will simply be bought by competitors). Well, and, of course, you need to constantly fight for clients, each time proving your high professional level.
The hero of our article, Demid Emelyanov, created his own company while studying in his fourth year at university. He, acting as a manager, registered the company and hired several employees - including a fairly experienced head of the legal department. Of course, you will need the education of a lawyer, but, as our hero says, theory is very different from practice, and knowledge of your business comes with experience. Therefore, if you are not yet very confident in your abilities, then you will need more experienced employees, whose work you will organize. For the latter you must have leadership qualities. And don’t limit yourself to just this role: the manager must be a highly qualified lawyer.
Demid Emelyanov
When I opened the company, I did not conduct market analysis. I had friends in this area, and I knew that there was a lot of work on the market, a good lawyer is always in demand. Later, of course, as we developed, we began to study the market and analyze niches. It’s one thing to be a generalist lawyer, another thing to lead a specific legal direction. There is no point in doing everything. To be a professional, you need to hone your skills in several areas, otherwise you will not be able to provide quality service. You need to choose several niches. That's what we did. We have gradually mastered several niches and are working in them. We are focused only on small and medium business- liquidation and registration of companies, bankruptcy. Sometimes we take on the personal affairs of client-business owners as an exception. To determine which niches were the most profitable, temporary marketers were hired to conduct research. I advise beginners to immediately hire marketers, if funds allow, or contact a third-party organization. Or go, as we did at the beginning, by trial and error.
The legal services market is saturated. Many new firms open every year, and many lawyers believe that they are ready to open their own company. But, experts say, there are few market participants providing high-quality services. However, in order to occupy a certain percentage of the market, you need to provide services competently and be competent. Currently, quality and price on the market are not comparable: companies often charge a lot of money for their services, but do not complete the work. If you want to work long and fruitfully, do not repeat their mistake: know that the higher the quality of your services, the more regular clients you will have.
What other market nuances do you need to know? It is necessary to constantly monitor changes in legislation. Because the relevance of the service line directly depends on these changes. For example, over the past few years we have noticed that legislation changes very often, this is due to the economic crisis and the government’s attempts to reach new level interaction with business. To stay afloat in such a situation, you need to always be in trend, study innovations, create and practice new directions, “reshape” your services to suit changes in the law and provide always up-to-date and New Product to the client.
Investment size
Demid Emelyanov
CEO legal center "KNOW"
8 years ago, when we opened the company, investments required only 50 thousand rubles. We rented an office, bought inexpensive furniture, sat down ourselves, hired a lawyer and started working. This was enough to start moving. We hired promoters who distributed leaflets with information about our company. This is how we started getting our first clients.
Demid Emelyanov
General Director of the legal center "ZNAT"
Nobody taught me how to do business; I studied literature on my own. We started with an office of 12 sq.m., paid 400 rubles per sq.m., five people sat in this nook. Now we have an office of 200 sq.m., a staff of qualified lawyers and partners throughout Russia.
Demid Emelyanov
General Director of the legal center "ZNAT"
Previously, I combined several positions. He himself was a secretary and answered calls. But after some time I realized that my time is valuable and I can bring more money if I hire a secretary. Therefore, it is better not to optimize work, but to increase incoming traffic.
Step-by-step instruction
In your activities, you will, of course, interact with representatives of government agencies, as well as with office supply suppliers, cleaning services and courier services. There's a lot of paperwork involved in running a law firm, and you need to find a good one courier service, which will be able to deliver these papers to the right place on time - and often these are other cities. As a rule, the most famous courier company works better than others. But you will still have to choose by trial and error: if they do not have time to do everything on time, change the counterparty.
There is no need to specially establish relations with government agencies. The longer you work, the more officials they will know about you. But this is not always good for a lawyer. After all, they may also not like you, knowing how persistently you fight for the client.
Demid Emelyanov
General Director of the legal center "ZNAT"
When recruiting employees, the main criteria for us are education, experience, psychological qualities. We already have an image - psychological picture the person we need. The team is friendly, and we need people to join it. When the company is small, this is important. The most important thing is the climate in the company. I am against employees being friends, but their psychotypes must match. For a lawyer, such qualities as determination, perseverance, and the desire to achieve assigned tasks are important. I like extraordinary people who have their own point of view and are ready to defend it, who are ready to prove their competence in their work and learn.
We usually post vacancies on the HR website. After this, we identify suitable candidates. But I have this rule: until I look at about a hundred people, we won’t fill the vacancy. Usually 50-70 people come out. It happens that already at the fifth or sixth interview the same person comes, but as long as there is an incoming flow, we make sure to look at everyone. There are two interviews - primary and secondary, then three months probation. If a person shows himself earlier, within a month, we are ready for a permanent relationship.
How do we attract people to work? We have good wages, everything is created so that the employee receives the necessary work experience, we have everything necessary tools. In some companies, an employee is simply given a Yellow Pages directory and tasked with looking for “I don’t know what.” We have training. Some specialists spend 3-4 years searching for our vacancies in order to get an interview with us. In general, lawyers with experience know the status of companies on the market and understand where they want to get a job.
The work schedule for a law firm is standard - from 8 to 17 or 9 to 18, five days a week. There may be extra-hour working hours, but by agreement with employees. Occasionally, you may need to meet with clients on Saturday and Sunday.
You can also create your own club card. According to them, regular customers receive several services for free (for example, an extract and a Unified State Register of Legal Entities) or at a discount. Naturally, clients who will cover your monthly revenue with one order will require a special approach.
If your company is aimed at serving small and medium-sized businesses, then it is convenient to be located next to the registration authority - the Federal Tax Service, since you will often need to be there. But the Federal Tax Service is not always located in a place convenient for clients. Of course, a regular client will come to you anywhere, but if you don’t have many of them yet, then best option- open an office in the city center, where it is easier for people to reach.
There are no special requirements for the premises. But, the hero of our article notes, as you develop, you should have at least a reception room where the secretary sits; the legal department, managers, and management should be located in separate rooms. Also needed cozy room negotiations This is very important, because a regular client comes to a lawyer as a psychologist, and in order for him to trust you with his problems, a favorable environment is needed.
Documentation
Demid Emelyanov
General Director of the legal center "ZNAT"
Our center was first registered as an individual entrepreneur, and later an LLC was opened. It is customary in society not to take this form of individual entrepreneur seriously. However, from a legal point of view, an individual entrepreneur bears more responsibility in the event legal proceedings, while a legal entity has ways of avoiding responsibility. However, it is easier to run an individual entrepreneur: it is easier to report taxes - choose UTII and have an outsourced accountant. For example, we didn’t have an accountant on staff for five years.
You do not need to obtain a license to open a law firm. A license will only be required to provide specific services - for example, if you are engaged in bankruptcy of individuals, the employee in charge of this area must obtain the status of an arbitration manager, be a member of the SRO, and pay membership fees.
Opening checklist
Is it profitable to open
In order to correctly set prices for your services, you need to constantly monitor the market and find out competitors’ prices for similar services. You also need to correctly evaluate the quality of your service.
Demid Emelyanov
General Director of the legal center "ZNAT"
Sometimes we don’t break the price, we don’t even go down to the level of the average market price, because we know that the quality of our service is very good. And people come to us - albeit a little, but they know that with us they will achieve a positive result. New companies entering the market resort to dumping and reduce prices because they have no customers. But, as a rule, the quality of the service provided suffers from this.
If you start with small investments and low expenses, with an office of 10 sq.m., then you will reach point zero in the first month. If you rented an office in the city center, hired about 10 people, and spend 700 thousand rubles a month, then you can break even no earlier than in a couple of years, having initially invested at least 10 million rubles.
From time immemorial, people turned to their smarter and more experienced brothers to help them solve various everyday and personal problems. A thorough knowledge of the laws and the ability to find a way out of the most difficult life situations first brought the experts universal respect, and then a good income.
Today, law firms remain just as in demand, and good specialists in this field continue to be highly valued in the labor market. It is these lawyers who often open their own business. Developing a legal business literally from scratch requires from a future businessman not only professional talents, but also remarkable leadership and organizational skills, as well as competent planning skills. We will talk about how to succeed in this endeavor in this article.
Market analysis
Before starting a legal business from scratch, analyze how much the labor market in your city needs such services.A lawyer, especially if he is truly a professional, will never sit idle. With proper advertising, clients will find it, even if the company is located on the outskirts of the city.
Opening a law firm does not require large expenses for an entrepreneur. He doesn't need expensive specialized equipment, a huge building or a crowd of staff.
How much does a lawyer earn?
A question that worries every specialist. What if the firm opens, but does not bring as good a profit as working in an already established law corporation? The salary of individual workers in this industry can reach $3,000 monthly. But, of course, everything depends on work experience, direction, as well as competition in the region.
Law is one of the most competitive professions. To achieve success you have to be very good specialist, or be able to break through. The company requires registration of an LLC, and this is paperwork, which also leaves much to be desired.
IN different regions There are some peculiarities associated with the field of jurisprudence. Before opening a legal enterprise, be sure to clarify them. To understand.
Business plan
A business plan for a law firm is the first thing a competent aspiring entrepreneur should do. Lay out your actions step by step, estimate how much finance will be required at each stage, and then figure out where to get these same finances. In fact, getting money is much easier than managing it correctly.
The following options are possible:
- Credit (it is doubtful that the company is worth such sacrifices);
- Sale or pledge of your property;
- Debt (I believe parents and relatives will happily support if they think the company is promising);
- Opening a company by several people (team up with friends, divide the capital equally - and the financial burden will become much lighter);
- Investment (whether you manage to get government help or you manage to interest a business angel - it will still be a huge success).
Before developing a legal business, an entrepreneur goes through the registration stage.
The company must look respectable. This is one of the main levers influencing the influx of clients, so it is best to register it as an LLC. Select a tax system (payment options are 15 or 6%).
Premises: selection criteria
Before starting a law firm from scratch, find yourself suitable premises. It could be a very small office. The main thing is that it is not located on the very outskirts (until you become a lawyer known throughout the city, the firm should be located in easily accessible places). In this room you or your assistants will meet with clients, and accounting and other documentation will be stored here.It is also possible that employees will respond to customer calls directly to their homes. Then the office is needed only for meetings with clients.
Repair and equipment
Renovations are not the most important thing a start-up law firm should spend on. However, it is needed as an indicator of status. It is best if the room is decorated in neutral colors. Light walls (choose paint, wallpaper is less reliable, and it is not advisable to wash it), plastic windows, good office furniture, several plants. It’s good if there are certificates or diplomas hanging on the wall.
The equipment you will need is very little:
- Computers;
- Fax machine;
- Telephones;
- Scanner;
- A printer;
- Xerox;
- Shelves and cabinets;
- Safe;
- Tables;
- Armchairs.
Office equipment is relatively inexpensive for the company owner, but saving on equipment and repairs is not worth it. Remember, the first impression of you will be based on appearance office.
Law firm staff
A well-promoted law firm will never have a shortage of people willing to get a job, but a start-up law firm is unlikely to attract the attention of seasoned lawyers. It may be the case with young people who have recently graduated from college. How can a lawyer make money if he has neither a name nor work experience? If your company takes on the role of a springboard for budding specialists, it will provide a service not only to them, but also to the state.
You can find young workers by placing an ad on the Internet, on special websites, in the newspaper, and by directly negotiating with universities. Provide best students opportunity to practice, write theses and after graduation he will find a job with you. To test their readiness, create an “entrance exam”. It is also necessary to provide for “working in pairs” under the guidance of an experienced lawyer.
In total, the composition of the team will be as follows:
- Several experienced specialists;
- Young lawyers;
- Accountant;
- Secretary (one or more);
- Cleaner;
- Security guard.
Security guards and janitors earn about $150, secretaries earn about $250, and lawyers can take a percentage of transactions as payment.
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Advertising campaign
Those wishing to start a legal business should place the main emphasis on advertising. Every company wants to attract customers, and advertising is the way to do this most effectively.
First, make yourself a website. The site must be designed in a strict style and contain prices and maximum information. Entrust this matter to programmers. Run advertisements on radio, television, the Internet, print out advertisements and stick them in the subway, on poles and on boards, make yourself business cards. Offer your services to large companies.
People who want to open a law firm are usually stereotyped as having to be lawyers. This is optional, just like with managers. The main thing in this matter is a tenacious grip and the ability to organize the process. Opening a company does not require any special expenses. This is interesting, useful and profitable business where you can earn income. The only real difficulty in this matter is the search good professionals. If students and beginners agree to work for not very high pay, then ready-made specialists know the value of their work. When is the staff recruited and advertising campaign launched - you can reap the fruits of your efforts. You will have to wait for the first clients, but if you show yourself well, then more visitors will flow in like a river.
