Practice Management

Well, it rhymes in my part of the country where we pronounce it as nich.

Some how, and I am not sure as exactly why this is true, law school or our legal education just does not seem to expose you to the wide variety of law that might allow you to satisfy this itch.  I am certain it is better than when I was in law school back in the dark ages, but too often graduates leave mentally confided to narrow established practice areas such as family law, real estate, business law, probate, criminal law, bankruptcy and personal injury.  In Texas you can add oil and gas to that mix.  I guess law schools have left this task to law firms after graduation to expose new lawyers to exiting limited practice niches.

But, what I am here to tell you is that there is a rich environment indeed for the niche practice of law.  I cannot even begin to scratch the surface of what is available out there for your to pursue.

A niche can certainly be a very narrow subset of a practice area, or it can target a select group of people.

A niche practice is desirable in my way of thinking because it generally allows you to more comfortably concentrate your efforts on a very select set of prospects, it allows you an opportunity to spend your time in the practice of law building a name for yourself, it is more satisfying because you become an expert, it allows you to custom build a set of procedures for processing and evaluating cases, and all of this saves you a lot of time and money.  In short it can allow you to develop and retain core competencies that more general practices just cannot effectively accomplish.  In my way of thinking the practicer of everything is the master of nothing.

To find a niche just look at your interest (and not just necessarily your legal interests or interests in the law).  Look at your personal preferences for things.  Look at what you enjoy in life.

Now of course, I cannot highlight every possible niche practice, because there really are endless examples.  We learn more and more about what is out there through blogging.  Niche lawyers establish blogs.  If you want to find a niche, surf the web.  If you cannot find a blog that covers your interest, you might be on to a neglected area you can exploit.

For example, here are a few:

I, of course, practice in a very limited area.  My group of lawyers only represent debtors who have filed bankruptcy and creditors and collectors have violated the automatic stay or discharge injunction in those bankruptcies.  Nothing else.  My blog is StayViolation.Com.

Carolyn Elefant has developed a niche in offshore renewable energy law.  It does not get much more specific than that.

Ken Odza primarily limits his practice to food liability law.

Alison Rowe primarily practices equine law.

Burke & Eisner markets to those diagnosed with angiosarcoma.  That is exact.

Bergeson & Campbell is a law firm focused on nanoscale chemicals, pesticides, and other speciality chemical products.

Timothy Titolo markets specifically to individuals with brain and spinal injuries.

Pete Cardillo runs a national law firm that focuses almost exclusively on the representation of property owners who have termite damage claims.

David Zachary Kaufman practices in the area of martial arts law.

Russ Brown is a motorcycle attorney.

Kenneth Phillips represents only people who have been bitten by a dog.

The list can go on and on, but I hope that you can scratch that itch to niche and get on your way to a satisfying and profitable career.