Something special about the trust accounting guides is that last year we decided to make them available to the public. The change was partly inspired by Minnesota Legal Ethics, which we also published last year, and also motivated by the overarching desire to better the legal profession. You can read more about the decision here.

So, if you want a copy of the guide:

Members can download the guide here.

Non-members go here and fill out the form to request a guide. You will receive an email with a link to download the guide.

The Lawyers Professional Responsibility Board has more general information about keeping trust accounts in  Appendix 1 to the Minnesota Rules of Professional Conduct (Maintenance of Books and Records).

What accounting software (if any) do you use for your trust accounting? Did you get help setting up your trust accounting or figure it out on your own?

© Andrea for Practice Blawg, 2012. | Permalink | No comments yet | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: IOLTA, Trust Accounting

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The Roadmap covers many topics, from choosing a business entity, to establishing prudent office procedures, to developing a marketing plan. One of MLM’s strengths is ethics, thus the Roadmap also illustrates how and where to focus your efforts and how to identify malpractice risks. The process of going through the topics will enable you to think through many of the issues that need to be addressed to establish a safe and successful practice.

This is a valuable resource for lawyers who are starting a law firm or contemplating doing so. Additionally, the site is a great resource for new associates looking to establish prudent practices and start on a path to success. Click here to access the Roadmap. For more information, check out MLM’s Roadmap blog.

For Minnesota-specific startup information, check out practicelaw’s guide to Launching a Law Practice in Minnesota (PM-050). While there, check out Jump Starts, IOLTA accounting guides, and retainer agreements.

As always, we like to hear from you. Let us know what you think of the new resource, and if there’s anything we can add to practicelaw to help you work better.

© Andrea for Practice Blawg, 2012. | Permalink | One comment | Add to del.icio.us
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Workers’ compensation insurance is one of those areas of running a business that we all know we should pay attention to, but which often suffers from neglect.  Usually that’s because business owners (including solo attorneys) know little about what workers’ comp is or where to obtain it.

Workers’ compensation insurance provides wage replacement and medical and rehabilitation benefits to employees injured during the course and scope of their employment.  Any person or firm who employs another person is required to pay for workers comp for the employee unless the employment relationship is exempt under Minn. Stat. § 176.041, subd. 1.  This means that solo attorneys will usually be required to obtain workers’ comp insurance for their legal assistants, secretaries, clerks, and other staff.

So while some solo attorneys may need to obtain workers’ compensation, can “true” solos buy the insurance?  While solo attorneys are on the job during most of their waking hours, many believe that they are precluded from purchasing workers’ compensation on themselves.  The opposite is true.  Minn. Stat. § 176.041, subd. 1a allows an owner of a business to elect to be covered by workers’ compensation insurance.

If you do not purchase long-term disability insurance, workers’ compensation may be even more important.  Solosmall attorneys seem to work 24/7/365.  There is a good chance that you could become disabled from an injury that arose out of the course and scope of your “employment” as an attorney.  It is, therefore, a low cost option to cover occupational injuries.

Furthermore, workers’ compensation insurance may be a good buy for you if you employ those covered by workers’ comp.  This is because wokers’ comp policies have a minimum premium requirement and the premiums often paid for paralegals, clerks, and secretaries may not reach the minimum premium.  There is no reason to overpay for clerical coverage when the difference between actual premium and minimum premium could be applied toward the cost to provide coverage for yourself.

Workers’ compensation insurance can be obtained through independent insurance agents, direct writing insurance companies and, as a last resort, the Minnesota’s Assigned Risk Plan.  The compensation class code for attorneys in Minnesota is 8820.  The rate for this class code is in the range of .30-.35% of payroll, depending on the insurer underwriting the coverage.  In 2012, the minimum and maximum payrolls subject to premium rating for sole proprietors, partners and officers is $23,296 and $93,184, respectively.  Assuming a class code rate of .33%, a solo attorney’s annual premium would not exceed $308 plus various debits and credits that apply in the standard premium formula and a $180 charge for an expense constant.

Visit Minnesota Workers’ Compensation Association at www.mwcia.org to calculate what your workers’ compensation premium is under the Assigned Risk Plan.  Provide the application and premium from the premium calculator function on the website to your insurance agent.  Ask the agent to place coverage for you using the information that you have developed from the MWCIA website.  The agent will submit your risk to the insurance companies that he or she represents.  If none of these insurers will offer to write coverage, then the agent will submit your application to the Assigned Risk Plan as the market of last resort.

© Debra McLain for Practice Blawg, 2012. | Permalink | No comments yet | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: solo practice

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What’s worse than graduating thousands of dollars in debt? Answer: Not having the skills to hit the ground running and start making money.

As we discussed in a previous post, law school graduates are struggling with education debt and are graduating into a poor job market. To make matters worse,  recent articles in The Atlantic  and New York Times point out that law schools teach students to graduate, but not to practice law. Although some schools have beefed up their clinical skills programs, law school education remains largely academic. Graduates are not prepared to practice nor to set up their own practice.

What’s an aspiring solo to do? Try Boot Camp - it’ll help you to whip your new practice into shape, but without the pushups. On Tuesday, December 6, the Solo and Small Firm Section of the MSBA is hosting its second annual “Going Solo and Small Boot Camp,” a full day of practical tips and resources for starting or improving your own practice. The Times article referenced a study of top-tier law school faculty hiring practices; nearly half never practiced law. Boot Camp is different. The diverse group of presenters has years of combined expertise in opening a law practice and will discuss many important, can’t miss topics:

• start-up questions such as choice of entity, where to office, practice areas, finances, and insurance
• building a professional website on a budget
• ethics
• technology
• crisis planning
• resources for solo and small firm lawyers
• finding clients, building a referral network

Of course, you can’t learn on an empty stomach so participants will be fed breakfast, lunch, and more food and drinks at an afternoon networking reception. You can attend all sessions or just the morning or afternoon session. If you attend both, you’ll earn 6.5 CLE credits.

This is a can’t miss CLE for solo and small firm lawyers.

© Susan for Practice Blawg, 2011. | Permalink | No comments yet | Add to del.icio.us
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Thanksgiving is upon us. For some, holidays are a joyful time and a wonderful reminder of what we have. For others, however, the holidays bring stress and depression.

One way to bolster your internal defenses against stress and depression is to make a conscious effort to give thanks. Being in a state of thankfulness is healthy and leads to more contentment. Just as negative emotions make themselves more permanent in your psyche the more you focus on them, positive emotions stay with you if you make them a habit. One method of cultivating an attitude of thankfulness is to write it down. At the end of each day, write down three things you were thankful for that day. Instead of looking for things to be unhappy about, you can note that for which you are grateful.

Let me suggest a place to start:

• You have the privilege to practice law. Many dream of being a lawyer, but not everyone gets to live that dream.
• You have clients. Clients don’t just pay the bills. They refer new clients, present opportunities to learn new skills, give you feedback if you’re open to it.
• You have a life filled with opportunities to experience, grow, and change. You had the smarts and energy to get yourself through law school; surely you can find these opportunities and make the most of them.
• You have challenges. While unwelcome now, challenges will make you stronger and better in the future.

You can just “be” thankful or you can acknowledge your thanks to your family, friends, colleagues,clients, and community. Do it — in person, over the phone, with a handwritten card, or by email.

Celebrate Thanksgiving this year by trying conscious thankfulness. Better yet, make it a year round habit and see if you feel differently and your practice changes as a result.

Editors’ Note: If you are concerned about stress or depression in yourself or others, check out the resources provided free through Lawyers Concerned for Lawyers.  As we’ve noted in a previous post, we can all do more to assist lawyers suffering from depression.

© Shaun G. Jamison for Practice Blawg, 2011. | Permalink | No comments yet | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Depression, stress, thanks

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