Take the Fifth

tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-195596452024-03-23T10:59:06.163-07:00Take the FifthAgainst the advice of counsel, I am waiving my right against self-incrimination and openly sharing the trials and tribulations of my first year of solo law practice in California.Brandon Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01012909006170796556noreply@blogger.comBlogger48125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19559645.post-41622886351858890912007-03-15T08:59:00.000-07:002007-03-15T09:03:49.050-07:00Where have I been?

You may wonder why I haven't posted in over six months...uh, make that nine months. The reason is this: despite my insane attempt to quit the company where I work and go solo, I was "saved" by an 11th hour job offer that has kept me on board with the bank. The new job uses my legal education and takes advantage of my 15-ish years experience with the company, plus I keep my paid vacation and

Brandon Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01012909006170796556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19559645.post-1151701219061093812006-06-30T13:52:00.000-07:002006-06-30T14:00:19.063-07:00Friday, June 30, 2006

It's been about a month now since I decided to start a solo practice, and I'm currently in a holding pattern waiting for the house to sell. Just my luck to pick the first real estate slowdown in ten years to list and sell my property.I'm amazed at the work Jennifer and I were able to do to get the house ready. It looks great. Too bad it took selling the house to get us to finally do the paint

Brandon Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01012909006170796556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19559645.post-1151700721740443452006-06-30T13:44:00.000-07:002006-06-30T13:52:01.753-07:00Thursday, June 29, 2006

Received a belated response to my nystagmus/disability email from SOLOSEZ:No. Sorry, but it needs to be said.Trial work is perception, to the judge, to the other side and to the jury. Anything that detracts from that perception is a risk you cannot force on your clients. It would be one thing if you had a more visible disability that would explain itself. But you risk looking like something

Brandon Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01012909006170796556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19559645.post-1151700237308209862006-06-30T13:42:00.000-07:002006-06-30T13:43:57.310-07:00Wednesday, June 28, 2006

After meeting with the client I accepted the case. The potential issues I was afraid of turned out to be unimportant in the end.I'm still refining the presentation I give to prospective clients. I had a few rough edges today, but there was more good than bad by far. Some basic observations:* Helps to lead with the business card when you are meeting PCs for the first time. * Also helps to

Brandon Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01012909006170796556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19559645.post-1151700127075374382006-06-30T13:40:00.000-07:002006-06-30T13:42:07.086-07:00Tuesday, June 27, 2006

I sought and received counsel in preparation for my client meeting this week. After thinking it over, as long as I believe I can help and there are no ethical issues I'm going to take the case. Probably the best part about being a solo is getting to choose your clients, but I didn't become a lawyer for the power trip of turning people away at the door.Still, I am aware that I need to be careful

Brandon Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01012909006170796556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19559645.post-1151451880237240072006-06-27T16:35:00.000-07:002006-06-27T16:44:40.266-07:00Monday, June 26, 2006

My mom read last Wednesday's post and has forbidden me from moving to Montana or South America. Before you people from Helena or Uruguay write me angry letters, I don't think she has anything against you personally, she just doesn't want me to move my family out of driving distance. Over the weekend I picked up two new referrals from friends at church. Because of the negative stereotypes, people

Brandon Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01012909006170796556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19559645.post-1151384460467530932006-06-26T21:59:00.000-07:002006-06-26T22:01:00.480-07:00Friday, June 23, 2006

I got to "play" with Abacus Gold today, and I'm impressed. Although there is ample documentation provided out of the box, I was able to install and run the software myself (no consultants needed) without spending hours reading first.Abacus has an estate planning module, which I didn't buy but am now considering very seriously. I'm fairly happy with my existing trust software, but the upside to

Brandon Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01012909006170796556noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19559645.post-1151383608080209872006-06-26T21:44:00.000-07:002006-06-26T21:46:48.096-07:00Thursday, June 22, 2006

I drove to Sacramento to meet my friend Adrianne and her fiancee Killian. They are getting married the weekend after next and asked me to perform the ceremony.This will be the fifth wedding ceremony I have conducted (California lets anyone who pays $25 register as a Deputy Commissioner of Civil Marriage). I guess I'm a little bit of a romantic sap but I really like weddings. Officiating at a

Brandon Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01012909006170796556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19559645.post-1151019495667103682006-06-22T16:36:00.000-07:002006-06-22T16:38:15.680-07:00Wednesday, June 21, 2006

Today is day #3 that the house has been on the market. Here is a link to our listing on our realtor's site. Still no idea where we are going to end up when the dust settles. Today I joked to Jennifer that when escrow closes and we get our money we should surprise everyone by moving to someplace unexpected like Montana or South America.Tonight was my one night to come home from work and relax -

Brandon Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01012909006170796556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19559645.post-1150934453386268382006-06-21T16:59:00.000-07:002006-06-21T17:00:53.396-07:00Tuesday, June 20, 2006

The best part about SOLOSEZ is the massive number of solo lawyers who post to it. That can also be the worst part, since the number of emails generated by the list can be overwhelming. I suspended delivery back in December, opting to read the archives online instead.Before I sent yesterday's message about nystagmus to the list I changed my SOLOSEZ settings to deliver a daily digest instead - one

Brandon Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01012909006170796556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19559645.post-1150844913601876592006-06-20T15:55:00.000-07:002006-06-20T16:08:33.623-07:00Monday, June 19, 2006

SOLOSEZ is a listserv set up by the ABA's GP Solo and Small Firm Division. The list is a great resource for solos like myself. Today I sent the following email to SOLOSEZ to troll for suggestions on how to deal with an issue that has been nagging at me for some time:I was born with congenital nystagmus that causes my eyes to shake (yep, just like the police look for in the field sobriety tests

Brandon Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01012909006170796556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19559645.post-1150755629278297092006-06-19T15:12:00.000-07:002006-06-19T15:20:29.300-07:00Friday, June 16, 2006

I politely declined the paralegal job interview today. After talking with the supervising counsel, it turns out my instincts are correct and there is no career path from paralegal to corporate attorney.This job came to my attention courtesy of an aunt on my mom's side of the family. I was hoping to use a little nepotism to overcome the disadvantage of not attending an ABA school, but things

Brandon Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01012909006170796556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19559645.post-1150498125876850902006-06-16T15:46:00.000-07:002006-06-16T15:48:45.886-07:00Thursday, June 15, 2006

I shared earlier that I am not a solo by choice - I have always preferred the relative security of a regular paycheck and paid benefits. As time passed, and the rejection letters piled up, I became more comfortable with the idea of being my own boss...but I admit that every now and then a little shadow of doubt has crept in. Today's tiny cloud was courtesy of a conversation where somebody told

Brandon Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01012909006170796556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19559645.post-1150433024628608152006-06-15T20:21:00.000-07:002006-06-15T21:43:44.696-07:00Wednesday, June 14, 2006

Nothing much to report today - more packing and cleaning around the house. Why didn't anyone warn me how much work is involved in getting a house ready to sell?

Brandon Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01012909006170796556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19559645.post-1150323552795835562006-06-14T15:15:00.000-07:002006-06-14T15:19:12.813-07:00Tuesday, June 13, 2006

A day of packing and more work around the house. We finally have the house in decent shape to sell, thanks to about two weeks worth of hard labor, and our agent signalled her approval by dropping off the "for sale" signs today. They will go up sometime this weekend.I received this site from a colleague on a marketing listserv for solo practitioners, and thought it amusing and appropriate:

Brandon Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01012909006170796556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19559645.post-1150232721488057982006-06-13T14:03:00.000-07:002006-06-13T14:05:21.503-07:00Monday, June 12, 2006

I got another client today, and what makes this notable is she was referred to me by an existing client...my first referral! Hopefully the first of many.This whole "mild mannered bank employee by day, lawyer by night" scenario can't end soon enough for me. I'm not devoting much time to the actual practice of law right now, but I spend a lot of time on business planning and selling our house.

Brandon Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01012909006170796556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19559645.post-1150129742558820012006-06-12T09:28:00.000-07:002006-06-12T09:29:02.576-07:00Friday, June 9, 2006 through Sunday, June 11

On Friday Jennifer and I loaded the kids into the van for a weekend trip to the Central Valley (Fresno). A college reunion was the main event for the weekend, but at the time we planned the trip we also intended to use the opportunity to look around northeastern Fresno and Clovis to see if we could make a life there. We are not strangers to the valley - Jennifer grew up there, and we met while

Brandon Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01012909006170796556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19559645.post-1149809559060101212006-06-08T16:29:00.001-07:002006-06-08T16:32:39.090-07:00Thursday, June 8, 2006

As if it isn't hard enough figuring out what to do with my life, now I have to figure out how to pay for everything?Well, OK, we've already got that figured. But it wasn't easy. I put my love of spreadsheets and budgeting to good use and In the end my wife and I decided to sell our house and use the gain to finance the first three-plus years of my practice. By then I should know whether I am cut

Brandon Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01012909006170796556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19559645.post-1149780190989039142006-06-08T08:22:00.000-07:002006-06-08T08:23:11.016-07:00Wednesday, June 7, 2006

Tonight I attended my first official county bar association function - a Board of Directors dinner meeting. I was invited to attend along with several fellow East County lawyers to discuss any issues we are facing in our practice. It was a very interesting evening, and I especially enjoyed hearing from and talking to other East County lawyers.The ten years I have lived in Antioch have been a

Brandon Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01012909006170796556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19559645.post-1149658967035030072006-06-06T22:15:00.000-07:002006-06-08T08:34:16.286-07:00Tuesday, June 6, 2006

There are a lot of decisions left to be made, but one thing is for sure: I can't work at home. I have tried in the past, but the result would drive both me and my family nuts. For the last few weeks I have been looking for a small office to lease to give me a place to meet with clients, think, study and plan.I have chosen to set up shop in the community where I live, which is both good and bad.

Brandon Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01012909006170796556noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19559645.post-1149549530010192752006-06-05T16:17:00.000-07:002006-06-05T16:18:50.026-07:00Monday, June 5, 2006

I have decided to quit my comfortable, well-paid (but non-law related) office job and open a law office as a full-time solo practitioner. I made the decision a few weeks ago, but I have been holding off making any announcement until I had a chance to notify my boss so he would hear the news directly from me and not third-hand or through the magic of Google.Like a lot of solos, working for myself

Brandon Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01012909006170796556noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19559645.post-1147821316056419752006-05-16T16:07:00.000-07:002006-05-16T16:15:16.086-07:00Major announcement soon

I have been working on a project for the past three weeks that will change my legal future in a huge way. As of now I still can't blog about it, but when I get clearance to post the news I will start blogging status updates every weekday - much more regularly than the weekly posts (or so) that I have been writing to date. Also, I am considering rebranding the blog to more closely align with the

Brandon Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01012909006170796556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19559645.post-1146260323315697552006-04-28T14:18:00.000-07:002006-04-28T14:38:43.373-07:00Office (virtual, shared or otherwise)

I've been spending the last few days thinking about where and how I will set up my law office:Home office - least expensive, but I'm prone to distraction. I also have three kids, and not sure clients would be OK stepping over the Legos to get to my office, or the occasional shout out from the living room to fast forward the program because SpongeBob SquarePants went to commercial.If I end up

Brandon Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01012909006170796556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19559645.post-1146200949229704032006-04-27T21:58:00.000-07:002006-04-27T22:09:09.240-07:00Another Letter

"Thank you for your interest in [firm name]. We enjoyed reviewing your resume and wish to compliment you on your achievements thus far. Unfortunately, we do not have a position at this time which matches your educational background and work experience. We do, however, wish you every success in the future."=====Met with my second client in two nights tonight, and I have started to realize that

Brandon Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01012909006170796556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19559645.post-1145943357782338942006-04-24T22:29:00.000-07:002006-04-24T22:35:57.783-07:00Bonus Post - Another Rejection, but A Silver Lining

Got this letter in the mail today - short, sweet, and to the point:"Thank you for submitting your resume and related information for consideration. We were impressed with your strong credentials and accomplishments; however, we are unable to extend an interview invitation at this time."=====On the bright side, business is picking up with my solo practice. I have two new client appointments this

Brandon Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01012909006170796556noreply@blogger.com0