South Carolina Criminal Defense Blog

There are differing opinions, among lawyers and in the blawgosphere, about whether a new attorney should attempt a solo criminal defense practice straight out of law school. Scott Greenfield makes the case that, where he once maintained that opening a solo practice straight out of law school was decidedly wrong, in today's job market it may be a necessity:

But following the implosion of the economy, and with it the disappearance of the job market for entering lawyers, the equation has changed. Whereas once I argued that the notion of flying solo straight out of law school was decidedly wrong, the new reality is that many law students will have no choice. Solo practice is the alternative to sitting at home playing Wii. The latter is not an option.

Brian Tannebaum laments what he sees as a flood of newly minted solo practitioners who thought that criminal defense was an easy gig - take a fee, take the state's first offer, and plead your client:

What they intend to do is go to court one time, get the state's first offer, and convince the client that they should take it. What a great lawyer. When they realize that some clients understand that jail is probably not an option, that same young hungry lawyer tells them that jail is a "possibility." I tell those same clients that jail is a "possibility" like the possibility of death from a tooth extraction.

And Matt Brown gives the contrary view of one who did start his defense practice straight out of law school and disagrees with Greenfield and Tannebaum's assessments. All three are right, depending on who we are talking about. Scott's practical advice for those who are forced into solo practice, hook up with a more experienced criminal defense lawyer and/or find a mentor, applies equally well to those who chose to go into a solo practice.

Tannebaum's grim view of the new criminal defense practitioner who takes easy money to plead out his clients applies equally well to many lawyers who have been in private practice for many years. A lawyer is either dedicated or he is not, it does not matter how long they have been in practice. If a lawyer's goal is to make as much money in as little time as possible, it does not matter if they are taking on criminal cases or car wrecks - the answer is to bring in a large quantity of cases for small fees and then settle the cases fast without trials.

I envy those who began their criminal defense practice straight out of law school - I would recommend spending a couple of years at a public defender office or as an associate with a more established defense attorney, but if you are dedicated I have no doubt that you will gain the same experience learning from your fellow members of the bar, you need only reach out to enough of them. It is the lawyers who are forced into a solo practice who will fail or who will eek by while failing their clients - some people are not cut out to work on their own, and some people are not cut out for running a business. Maintaining a criminal defense firm requires dedication, long hours of work, and the ability to run a business while also finding the time to serve your clients.

That being said, I believe that the most dedicated defense lawyers have solo or small practices - it is the most efficient business model for criminal defense and it makes sense. Those attorneys who already know that criminal defense is their calling, who know that it will be hard work, and who are willing to fight for their clients right out of the gate will do well in a solo practice. Matt Brown is a case in point:

Throughout law school, I intended to do criminal defense and nothing else. I wanted to fight the big, bad government. My goal, which I made clear to everyone around me, was to immediately hang out a shingle upon receipt of my bar number. I set aside time to watch court. I did a public defender clinic, attended public defender new hire training, spoke with a number of judges, and met as many good criminal lawyers as I could. I bombarded every criminal lawyer and paralegal I encountered with questions and did about two years of work as a clerk and research assistant for a prominent criminal defense attorney who had his own solo practice. He led me through a number of his cases from start to finish, showing me exactly what he did and why he did it.

My opinion is that if you are considering starting a solo criminal defense practice out of necessity, whether straight out of law school or not, because you can't find a job doing something else - please don't. When you accept a criminal defense case you are holding a person's life in your hands, sometimes literally, and it is not something that anyone should be doing just to pay the bills or because there is no other job available at the moment. If you are considering starting a solo criminal defense practice because that is what you know you want to do, then go for it. Read and learn as much as you can about managing a solo practice, find the people who are willing to help you along the way, and do not let anyone discourage you from it.