Building Local Networks for Law Firm Expansion

If you're a lawyer at a small firm, don't underestimate the potential of generating referral opportunities from lawyers at big firms. It's a great pipeline to develop. When I started my own law firm, a substantial number of my best referral sources were other lawyers. In particular, I generated a steady stream of opportunities from a handful of lawyers at BigLaw firms who sent me work they were conflicted out of or the client couldn't pay their rates. If you do commercial litigation, transactional, corporate restructuring, IP, or many other types of work at a small firm, there are many BigLaw lawyers looking for someone like you to send work to. I can tell you from my experience working in BigLaw that there are countless "all attorney" emails flying around asking for recommendations for external lawyers to send work to or hire as local counsel. You have to be good at what you do. Take great care of the client. And keep the lawyer who referred the work up to speed. But if you can check those boxes, you will reap the rewards. Don't have these types of relationships? - Reach out to some law school classmates who work in BigLaw. - If you previously worked at a bigger firm, touch base with some former colleagues. - Add insightful comments to LinkedIn posts written by lawyers at bigger firms who have a similar practice. After engaging with them for a while, send a direct message suggesting a time to for a phone call. - Get out and network in your local community. Speak at bar association events. Build and nurture strong relationships within the legal community to build your practice. It's an invaluable, but often overlooked, source of new business.

You don’t need shady lead gen services or million-dollar ad budgets to build a great personal injury law firm. Here’s the sustainable way to grow: ✅ Build relationships. Connect with lawyers in and outside your practice area. Overflow work, cross-referrals, and collaboration happen when people know and trust you. ✅ Show up in your community. Meet people. Be present. Word-of-mouth still matters, especially when you’ve earned it. ✅ Do great work. Your results are your resume. Clients will send you their friends, family, and even cases you don’t handle. ✅ Make smart referrals. Have go-to lawyers in workers' compensation, probate, family law, criminal, business litigation, etc. As you get clients, you'll get more and more calls for cases you don't handle. This allows you to refer cases out. When you send good cases to other lawyers, they’ll send good cases back. ✅ Be visible. Post about your wins. Talk about your values. Engage on social media with people who already know you, and the people watching will start to notice too. ✅ Use SEO and digital marketing as fuel, not the engine. When you’ve got the flywheel turning, great marketing just helps it spin faster. The cases you generate online will lead to more client referrals and more people you can refer out to other lawyers, who will in turn refer you more business. This is how you build a law firm for the long haul. No shortcuts. No gimmicks. Just real work, real relationships, and real results.

Most lawyers: “I go networking to meet potential clients” 🤯🤯🤯 Or “I’ll give out my card to as many people as I can and I’m sure one day one of them will need me” I’m amazed that this is still a thing amongst lawyers In my 20 years as a litigator, I met a handful of clients networking However, I met hundreds of cross-referrers and we passed lots of work to each other over the years Many of these I met, sometimes very indirectly, via other referrers So: ✅make a list of your ideal types of clients (you have to identify your niche and avatar first) ✅repeat for referrers: eg other lawyers (this is called “follow the money” - what referrer types give you the best client types?) ✅where do they meet? ✅attend these events ✅do not sell to people and do not just look for ideal clients (they are very unlikely to be there) ✅look beyond the room: who do these attendees know? ✅meet potential referrers and contacts who may know referrers ✅follow-up with a 1 to 1 and build a relationship ✅ask the golden question: “how can I help you in business / what sort of clients and contacts can I pass your way?” ✅they will reciprocate ✅pass them clients AND referrers (if you can’t do the former, then the latter is much easier) ✅they will do the same ✅your network of clients and referrers grows ✅referrers will pass you work and you to them ✅repeat with new referrers ✅network grows exponentially and you get more and more clients too ✅you become a person of influence ✅keep in touch with - and thank - referrers It works: I brought in over £1 million of business into my small law firm per annum this way All covered in my workshop #law #lawyer #lawfirm #solicitor #networking

I deeply believe one of the most sustainable ways to grow your book of business is to build your referral network strategically. Here are four actionable steps to help you get started: 1. 𝑫𝒆𝒇𝒊𝒏𝒆 𝒀𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝑰𝒅𝒆𝒂𝒍 𝑪𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝑷𝒓𝒐𝒇𝒊𝒍𝒆 (𝑰𝑪𝑷). Think about who your perfect client is. Are they in-house counsel in a specific industry? Small business owners with revenues over $500K? Individuals facing legal challenges after an accident? Whatever your ICP is, understanding them is key to connecting with the right people. 2. 𝑪𝒐𝒏𝒏𝒆𝒄𝒕 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝑳𝒂𝒘𝒚𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝑹𝒆𝒍𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝑷𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒆 𝑨𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒔. Build relationships with other lawyers who either share your practice area or intersect with your ICP. For example, if you specialize in employment law, connect with labor law attorneys or commercial real estate lawyers—professionals who have overlapping clients or interests. 3. 𝑬𝒏𝒈𝒂𝒈𝒆 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝑶𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝑷𝒓𝒐𝒇𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍𝒔 𝑾𝒉𝒐 𝑾𝒐𝒓𝒌 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒀𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝑰𝑪𝑷. Expand your network beyond lawyers. Real estate agents, accountants, financial advisors, and other professionals regularly engage with your ICP and can become key referral partners. The more you build these relationships, the more referral opportunities you'll uncover. 𝟒. 𝐈𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐟𝐲 𝐂𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐈𝐧𝐟𝐥𝐮𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞. Some people are connected to everyone. These “centers of influence” can open doors to a world of opportunities. Make it a point to connect with these individuals and become a part of their network. Remember, most people don’t know lawyers—you want to be the go-to referral source for them. Building a robust referral network is a strategic process, and it all starts with clarity. If you don’t have a clear understanding of who your ideal client is, you risk feeling frustrated and stuck. If you're ready to take your network to the next level, sign up for a free consultation. Let’s get started! Go build that network. You got this. - M