March 1, 2017
Contact: Kate Coscarelli
Senior Managing Director Communications
732-937-7548
NEW BRUNSWICK – The stereotypical image of an attorney working at a large law firm may hold true for some, but it’s not reality for the overwhelming majority of attorneys in New Jersey.
Close to 40 percent of the nearly 100,000 attorneys admitted in New Jersey have private practices. Of those, nearly half work in a firm with fewer than five attorneys, and, all told, two-thirds of the private practice population works in firms with 10 lawyers or less, according to the most recent annual report of the state Office of Attorney Ethics.
Armed with this information the New Jersey State Bar Association has made it a priority to reach out to solo and small-firm lawyers, since they often face challenges and issues that differ from attorneys in large firms. Those challenges include running a practice while managing a business, and needing to find creative ways to develop a trusted network of colleagues to rely upon.
The association has increasingly turned its resources toward helping solo and small-firm attorneys who are not only the backbone of the legal profession, but pillars of their communities, and an important force in the state’s economy.
In the coming weeks, the New Jersey State Bar Association will reach out to those attorneys when it hosts the Solo and Small-Firm Conference in two locations.
The conference is part of the bar association’s efforts to help solo and small-firm attorneys, and has become the leading event of its kind in New Jersey. Last year, over 400 practitioners took part in the conference.
This year’s event will be held March 4 in Cherry Hill and March 18 in Parsippany.
The day begins with an early morning boot camp, offering a rapid-fire look at ways attorneys can reinvigorate and ethically market their practice. It concludes with a networking reception.
In between, attendees can earn more than six continuing legal education credits at seminars that cover trust and business accounting, information technology solutions, getting paid, and tips and trends in ethics and professionalism.
In addition to the seminars and networking, Robert McAndrew will be recognized as the Solo and Small-Firm Practitioner of the Year. McAndrew, of Morris County, is a trustee of the association’s Solo and Small-Firm Section. He is a litigator whose practice includes the prosecution of professional liability claims, commercial litigation claims, commercial litigation and insurance coverage litigation. He is a former president of the Morris County Bar Association and its foundation. He has also served on New Jersey Supreme Court ethics committees and is a board member of Northwest Jersey Legal Services.
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State Bar Association to hold conference for solo and small-firm attorneys in two locations this month
Contact: NJSBA Communications Department
Tel: 732-937-7527
Email: [email protected]