Lawyers Aren't Entrepreneurs: NY Times
I don't know if you had a chance to read the article "The Falling-Down Professions" in the Times on Sunday. For the most part, it was your standard I'm-a-miserable-big-firm-lawyer piece and how the legal and medical professions have lost some prestige in recent years, which doesn't affect my day-to-day life much.
What I found horribly disturbing was the premise that entrepreneurialism and autonomy can't be found in the practice of law or medicine, which I find patently untrue and a total misrepresentation of our profession.
My reaction to the article was angry enough to write a letter to Alex Williams, the journalist who wrote the article. I also copied the editor and plan to circulate it among my other journalist contacts and lawyer friends.
If you are a lawyer or doctor, please write a comment to this post describing how you are entrepreneurial and autonomous. I started the first comment to provide an example. If enough of us respond, I'll make sure the Times and Mr. Williams gets notified.
January 8, 2008
Via Federal Express
Alex Williams
The New York Times Company
620 Eighth Avenue
New York, NY 10018
Re: Response to “The Falling Down Professions”
Dear Mr. Williams:
I am writing in response to your article "The Falling Down Professions" published in the New York Times on Sunday, January 6, 2008, in particular, the comment that, to some lawyers, "the daily trudge serves as a constant reminder that the entrepreneur's autonomy simply can't be found in law or medicine."
I'd like to offer you an opportunity to explore a world of some of the most entrepreneurial, autonomous and competent business people I know, who also happen to be practicing lawyers.
I am a practicing corporate attorney who represents the kinds of entrepreneurs you mention in the article. I am also a former associate from a "big" New York firm, that merged into a "big" national firm, that merged into a "big" multi-national firm (I started my practice at the time of the first merger).
I am also an entrepreneur and run a business called Law Firm Incubator that provides office space and support for solo and small firm lawyers who, like me, believe it is possible to be entrepreneurial, and be autonomous, and make good money, and have quality of life, and do all this while practicing law.
In the article you mention the allure of the big reward for cashing out of the latest, greatest website. In 2007, I represented several companies who claimed they could build a social networking website that serviced college kids much better than Facebook. Before the end of the year, the management of all but one of these companies quit and got regular, unglamorous, normal-waged jobs.
Meanwhile, of all the entrepreneurial lawyers I know who started practices recently, none are out of business. The vast majority of these attorneys have thriving practices and wouldn't change anything about their chosen profession. Here are just a few of my friends:
There's Todd Duffy who is a former Greenberg Traurig associate who now runs his own boutique bankruptcy practice and gets home to see his young daughter every night before she goes to bed.
There's Paul Wilson, a former Fried Frank Lawyer who runs his own M&A practice and still makes time to sail in the regattas held every Tuesday evening in New York Harbor.
There's Yetta Kurland, one the most dynamic litigators I know with one of the biggest LGBT practices in New York, who sponsors political fundraisers and runs a successful language school, HelloWorld, in her spare time.
There's Nance Schick, an employee benefits defense lawyer who works from her home because it wastes time and money for a self-described “road warrior” to have an office. She also owns a company that makes stylish clothing and holds Day of Beauty events for people with physical limitations.
There's my law partner, Gregory Levine, who works from his home in Jackson, New Jersey most days so he can make breakfast for his three children and see them on and off the school bus. In addition to being a practicing corporate lawyer, he runs a broker dealer compliance consulting company that employs seven people and represents 60+ broker dealers.
There's my mentor and first employer, Gregory Sichenzia, who, with his small 30 lawyer firm that he founded with two friends in 1998, does more PIPE securities transactions per year than any other law firm in the country and who, in my opinion likely makes more money than most of the bankers that you mention in your article.
And then there’s the 11 lawyers who maintain offices in my Law Firm Incubator suite who love what they do, and wouldn't change a thing.
This list only scratches the surface of the amazing entrepreneurial attorneys I know, but I think you get the point.
I’m not sure whether the legal profession has any more or less prestige than it did in previous years, nor do I find this analysis relevant to my day-to-day life. For me, and I believe for most of the lawyers I mention above, prestige is not the reason we became a lawyers in the first place.
If your primary motivation for getting into a profession--whether it be law, medicine, Web, banking or consulting-- is prestige rather than doing what you are passionate about in life, no matter what the working conditions, eventually you are going to be unhappy with your choice.
What’s disconcerting about your article is that my profession has been portrayed as one where there’s no room for autonomy, entrepreneurialism or the possibility to achieve meaningful financial rewards for taking risks. That’s just not true.
For those lawyers grinding through the "daily trudge," instead of ordering luxury goods from NeimanMarcus.com on their lunch hour, if they still think they have a glimmer of passion about the law, I encourage them to visit www.RainmakerIncubator.com, a website I created to rescue these poor souls and introduce them into my world.
Sincerely,
/s/
Stephen T. Furnari
What I found horribly disturbing was the premise that entrepreneurialism and autonomy can't be found in the practice of law or medicine, which I find patently untrue and a total misrepresentation of our profession.
My reaction to the article was angry enough to write a letter to Alex Williams, the journalist who wrote the article. I also copied the editor and plan to circulate it among my other journalist contacts and lawyer friends.
If you are a lawyer or doctor, please write a comment to this post describing how you are entrepreneurial and autonomous. I started the first comment to provide an example. If enough of us respond, I'll make sure the Times and Mr. Williams gets notified.
January 8, 2008
Via Federal Express
Alex Williams
The New York Times Company
620 Eighth Avenue
New York, NY 10018
Re: Response to “The Falling Down Professions”
Dear Mr. Williams:
I am writing in response to your article "The Falling Down Professions" published in the New York Times on Sunday, January 6, 2008, in particular, the comment that, to some lawyers, "the daily trudge serves as a constant reminder that the entrepreneur's autonomy simply can't be found in law or medicine."
I'd like to offer you an opportunity to explore a world of some of the most entrepreneurial, autonomous and competent business people I know, who also happen to be practicing lawyers.
I am a practicing corporate attorney who represents the kinds of entrepreneurs you mention in the article. I am also a former associate from a "big" New York firm, that merged into a "big" national firm, that merged into a "big" multi-national firm (I started my practice at the time of the first merger).
I am also an entrepreneur and run a business called Law Firm Incubator that provides office space and support for solo and small firm lawyers who, like me, believe it is possible to be entrepreneurial, and be autonomous, and make good money, and have quality of life, and do all this while practicing law.
In the article you mention the allure of the big reward for cashing out of the latest, greatest website. In 2007, I represented several companies who claimed they could build a social networking website that serviced college kids much better than Facebook. Before the end of the year, the management of all but one of these companies quit and got regular, unglamorous, normal-waged jobs.
Meanwhile, of all the entrepreneurial lawyers I know who started practices recently, none are out of business. The vast majority of these attorneys have thriving practices and wouldn't change anything about their chosen profession. Here are just a few of my friends:
There's Todd Duffy who is a former Greenberg Traurig associate who now runs his own boutique bankruptcy practice and gets home to see his young daughter every night before she goes to bed.
There's Paul Wilson, a former Fried Frank Lawyer who runs his own M&A practice and still makes time to sail in the regattas held every Tuesday evening in New York Harbor.
There's Yetta Kurland, one the most dynamic litigators I know with one of the biggest LGBT practices in New York, who sponsors political fundraisers and runs a successful language school, HelloWorld, in her spare time.
There's Nance Schick, an employee benefits defense lawyer who works from her home because it wastes time and money for a self-described “road warrior” to have an office. She also owns a company that makes stylish clothing and holds Day of Beauty events for people with physical limitations.
There's my law partner, Gregory Levine, who works from his home in Jackson, New Jersey most days so he can make breakfast for his three children and see them on and off the school bus. In addition to being a practicing corporate lawyer, he runs a broker dealer compliance consulting company that employs seven people and represents 60+ broker dealers.
There's my mentor and first employer, Gregory Sichenzia, who, with his small 30 lawyer firm that he founded with two friends in 1998, does more PIPE securities transactions per year than any other law firm in the country and who, in my opinion likely makes more money than most of the bankers that you mention in your article.
And then there’s the 11 lawyers who maintain offices in my Law Firm Incubator suite who love what they do, and wouldn't change a thing.
This list only scratches the surface of the amazing entrepreneurial attorneys I know, but I think you get the point.
I’m not sure whether the legal profession has any more or less prestige than it did in previous years, nor do I find this analysis relevant to my day-to-day life. For me, and I believe for most of the lawyers I mention above, prestige is not the reason we became a lawyers in the first place.
If your primary motivation for getting into a profession--whether it be law, medicine, Web, banking or consulting-- is prestige rather than doing what you are passionate about in life, no matter what the working conditions, eventually you are going to be unhappy with your choice.
What’s disconcerting about your article is that my profession has been portrayed as one where there’s no room for autonomy, entrepreneurialism or the possibility to achieve meaningful financial rewards for taking risks. That’s just not true.
For those lawyers grinding through the "daily trudge," instead of ordering luxury goods from NeimanMarcus.com on their lunch hour, if they still think they have a glimmer of passion about the law, I encourage them to visit www.RainmakerIncubator.com, a website I created to rescue these poor souls and introduce them into my world.
Sincerely,
/s/
Stephen T. Furnari
Labels: Autonomy, Entrepreneurs, Falling Down Professions, Lawyers, NY Times
posted by LawFirmIncubator at
5:46 PM
6 Comments:
Steve Furnari, Corporate Lawyer, New York, NY
I am an entrepreneur. I have been running my own corporate and securities practice for five years. I have owned a real estate business in a ski resort. I own LawFirmIncubator, a company that provides office space and support for small law firms. I am autonomous because I work where I want, when I want, and for whom I want.
I am an entrepreneur, and have been one since I started my own practice in 1996.
Since 1996, I have focused my practice exclusively on assisting attorneys with all of their legal research and writing needs. When I started my practice, there were few (if any) other lawyers who limited their practices to providing legal research and writing services to other lawyers on a contract basis. As a result, I am widely recognized as an authority on this type of practice, and work with clients nationwide. More information about my background and experience can be found at http://www.QuestionOfLaw.net.
But my law practice is only one of my many entrepreneurial ventures. Since 2005, I have been a partner in The Billable Hour Company (http://www.TheBillableHour.com), which sells humorous gifts and greeting cards for lawyers and legal professionals.
Additionally, through my consulting business, Legal Research & Writing Pro (http://www.LegalResearchandWritingPro.com), I advise other lawyers on how to start and run their own successful legal research and writing practices.
My newest venture is not law-related. In December 2007, I launched Political Party Pets (http://www.PoliticalPartyPets.com). We sell dog t-shirts and bandanas, as well as food bowls for dogs and cats, that identify the wearer (or eater) as a Repuppycan, Doggie Democrat, Republikitten or Democat.
In all of my ventures, I work where I want (from a home office), when I want, and for whom I want. The life I lead allows me to bring my son to kindergarten in the morning, be home when my 10-year old daughter gets off the school bus, feed my children dinner and tuck them in at night.I love all the work I do, and find it amazingly energizing: it couldn't be further from the daily grind described in Mr. Williams' article.
Have you seen today's NYTimes article about lawyers learning how to be business-like?
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/09/nyregion/09law.html?_r=1&ref=nyregion&oref=slogin
Thank you for your response to the NYT article.
Lawyers today are increasingly using their legal skills in a non-traditional way. I think the
financial services sector is a great example of this.
I negotiate ISDAs and Options Agreements at a bank where I continue to learn more about derivatives and equity products. My work is a great blend of business and legal-minded work. I interpret and analyze Credit Agts, Security Agts, and Investment Mgmt Agts. I also work closely with Emerging Markets desks, which further provides me the opportunity to learn about exotic financial instruments.
I come from a public interest law background and could not have anticipated this move into the private sector two years ago.
The great thing about being a lawyer is that I can teach myself anything because my skill-set is not particularized and thus provides me more mobility and flexibility in how I pursue my career.
Since I am not of-counsel, I have time to work on pro bono criminal defense matters due to prior legal experience and training in this field.
A law degree is versatile.
Steve,
I agree with your sentiments completely. In fact, I believe the nature of lawyers' businesses REQUIRES them to be autonomous entrepreneurs. We must always search for new ways to generate business and make our clients happy. Without an entreprenurial spirit we would stagnate and our practices would wither to nothing.
I agree with your take on the article. It's unfortunate that the media is not interested in reporting on the ways that lawyers and law firms are integrating more entrepreneurial approaches along with business in general. And the companies that provide legal formation and filing services do so based on a "lawyers take too much of your money without providing value" sales pitch. But perhaps, "schadenfraude" is an easier story to sell (people love to hate those "poor little rich lawyers" who have sold their souls for a high salary).
My practice is focused on the needs of entrepreneurs. By necessity, I have had to structure my practice along entrepreneurial lines. This includes using technology to automate as much as possible (for which I won an award in 2001), developing flat fee pricing options (instead of charging by the hour), and creating legal information products to help business owners protect their companies and identify the legal issues they will face in order to save money (see www.WiseCounselPress.com). I consider all of this not only good business, but also consonant with my personal mission to help others.
The article is also inaccurate in one significant aspect: it's only relatively recently that lawyers practiced in large firm settings with a seemingly stratospheric pay scale. That development began only about 40 years ago. In addition, the majority of lawyers across the country still practice in solo or small firm environments and earn less than $60,000 per year. But that doesn't make for a sexy story.
Nina Kaufman
New York City
AskTheBusinessLawyer.com
Post a Comment
Links to this post:
Create a Link
<< Home