Solo In Chicago…Grow Your Practice!

The Shifting Careers blog over at The Times had some ideas on health insurance for the self-employed…

Have a look at Anne Zelenka’s health insurance primer for solo workers at Web Worker Daily in which she comes down strongly in favor of the high deductible plan for those who can afford it. I tend to agree that this makes sense for many people.

ehealthinsurance.com appears to be a good place to get a quick price quote on a variety of plans (which they sell) catering to individuals and small business owners. It is searchable by ZIP code. Has anyone used this site? If so, I’d like to hear about your experiences.

The Freelancers Union offers a variety of plans for independent workers. You have to join the union, but membership is free. Has anyone had any experience with these policies?

New York’s Department of Insurance has a useful site, Healthy New York, where individuals and small businesses can compare and purchase a variety of plans. If you don’t live in New York, check out State Coverage Initiatives, which offers a state-by-state chart listing different programs. You can also try your state’s insurance department to learn if there is a program similar to Healthy New York.

An interesting new law-oriented Website. Law.com had a interesting interview with the founder…his thoughts on creating the site and the many, many facets to the site.

Among the advice from Sandy Lourie of Barack Ferrazzano in Chicago Lawyer’s Q/A…

I think I would advise new lawyers to make sure they don’t over-specialize too early. I think that clients, at least on the transaction side, are looking for general advice. It is a shame, but it is interesting how quickly new lawyers are willing to say, “You need to talk to the specialist,” and really hand things off …

In my practice, where I am a general corporate lawyer, it is important to really know what’s going on with all aspects of the transactions.

My second favorite business book is Clients for Life and it uses the phrase “deep generalist” for professionals.

My $.02 on the subject, this is critical for professionals representing businesses and perhaps a bit less so for individuals. With businesses there are sooo many factors in play beyond this smallish legal problem right before your eyes…marketing, media, bottomline.

Clifford Law Offices getting in on the “accredited CLE provider in Illinois” action:

Clifford Law Offices, an approved continuing legal education provider in Illinois, is hosting its first webinar 3-5 p.m., Feb. 21.

“The Ethics of Trial Work” presented by Northwestern University School of Law Professor Robert P. Burns offers two hours of professionalism credit in Illinois. The program will be interactive via the web and is free to all Illinois attorneys who register. Click here to register.

Interesting…I understand the law schools and pro bono places giving it away; but why does a private firm do free CLE??

Yeah so Monday’s another one of those dead President court holidays so instead of spending your morning slugging it out at Daley, come and break bread at the Loyola School of Law, Protecting the Rights of Chicago Tenants – 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Seriously, you’ve got to know your Chicago Residential Landlord and Tenant Ordinance if you practice in this field and that’s the gist of what this about.

I’ll see you there.

Did you see this about the Rockford attorney who it seems was gunned down in his own driveway by an unhappy client? Sad, sad story:

A Rockford lawyer slain while clearing snow outside his home may have been gunned down by a man he had represented in a criminal case, authorities said Friday.

Of course that’s very similar to what happend to the patent lawyer at the Ogilvie Transportation Center downtown in ’06.

In the Rockford case, my advice is never, never tell clients where you live. Who knows how the gunman there found the lawyer…but go to some means to protect that info. The Ogilvie case might be more scary…I mean we want people to know where and come to our offices right?

Oh my answer would be, “it depends.” The Anti 9-to-5 Guide provides its answer…a new “blog” to me.

Saw this piece recently from the Baltimore Sun’s Eileen Ambrose…or as we get here in the Chicago paper, “a Tribune Co. Newspaper.” She outlines several options in the piece, including some that have been recently enacted by Congress. If possible keep or get your loan from the federal government, not a private lender. Take a look here if you need to consolidate private loans into a federal, direct lending loan. Also, a new student loan resource from the National Consumer Law Center.

Four options from the piece:

• Income-contingent repayment

Once you’re in the direct lending program, you can ask for this borrower-friendly plan. Lower-income borrowers can reduce their monthly payments and debt remaining after 25 years of payments is erased. Payments are 20 percent of discretionary income. That’s defined as the amount of your adjusted gross income that exceeds the poverty level. For a single person in Maryland and most other states, the poverty level was $10,210 in 2007. If you’re at the poverty level or below, your payment is zero, Kantrowitz says. And if your income stays at the poverty level for 25 years and you never make a payment, the balance would be forgiven, he says.

• Income-based repayment

This new option, which takes effect in July 2009, is more generous. Payments are 15 percent of discretionary income. And in this case, discretionary income is income exceeding 150 percent of the poverty level. Again, you don’t have to make a payment if your income falls below that. Unpaid balances after 25 years are forgiven.
You don’t have to be in the direct lending program to be eligible.

• Public service forgiveness

This new program helps those entering fields that we value in society, but underpay. That includes police, school librarians, social workers and government and nonprofit employees.
You must make 10 year’s worth of on-time payments while working in public service. After that, remaining debt is forgiven. The clock starts with payments made as of last October. Your loans must be in the direct lending program to qualify. Under the standard schedule, student loans are repaid in 10 years. This benefits those making smaller payments using income-contingent or income-based repayment plans.

• State help

Check your home state for programs that help reduce student loans.

what’s on the back? I speak of business cards of course. This post was triggered by this recent piece here but even more so by a personal experience a couple days back.

I attended a planning meeting for a fundraiser conducted by our local Rotary Chapter and our public library. Nothing too unusual, but of the 10 or so people at the meeting, a handful of them I didn’t know and we exchanged pleasantries AND business cards. And the follow-up question I got from one person was, “so what areas of law do you work in?” And I answered. But, is she likely to remember what I said down the road when she needs a lawyer or has a potential referral? Likely not. A task for ’08: new business cards with practice areas specifics and blogs URLs included.

Ivan Misner, founder of BNI, is quoted in the article. He’s written a book on effective use of business cards as advertising.

Oh, the weather outside is frightful…

So we here in the Chicago area have been getting wacked pretty hard recently with snow, slush, rain, ect. 6-12 inches predicted for today. But for me, no worries!

I’m a home office lawyer; a veritable Third Waver…another great reason to drop that commute and just enjoy the pretty white stuff w/o sitting in traffic, getting bundled up or suffering on a train platform. Plus I live in a condominium so no shoveling either.