About

Overview:

The practice of energy law is undergoing a transformation, with opportunities for solo and small law firms emerging more rapidly than ever. As large law firms merge at an increasing pace, many clients are finding themselves jilted by their former firm due to conflicts of interest. As reported in this article from the ABA (e-report, September 8, 2006), seventy percent of corporate clients are dissatisfied with existing counsel and at least half plan to try a new law firm. As the article concludes, corporate dissatisfaction “creates an opportunity for a new set of customer-driven, proactive, savvy, well-positioned, innovative law firms.”

At the same time, associates are growing increasingly dissatisfied with life at large law firms. As this article reports, major New York law firms are experiencing a brain drain as third to fifth year associates, fed up with the grind, are departing firms in record numbers. And presumably, firms in the Washington D.C. area are not immune from this trend. The mass exodus of associates means that large law firms can no longer guarantee clients the same quality of work. And the problem is particularly acute in the energy regulatory arena, which is already a practice area low on the list of the most promising law school graduates.

Energy regulatory law is changing as well. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has finally completed all of its rule makings on implementation of the Energy Policy Act of 2005, creating numerous issues of first impression in areas like LNG permitting, transmission siting, mergers and energy corporate issues in the aftermath of the repeal of PUHCA. In the mean time, renewable energy development has emerged as a robust practice area. With so many novel issues, rapidly evolving, no longer can any one large firm assert dominance.

All of these developments have created a wealth of new opportunities for solo and small firm practices. Unfortunately, because many of us are so busy with the day to day demands of our respective practices, we can hardly keep abreast of new developments. And even if we had the time, the cost of some of the seminars and webinars are prohibitive.

Moreover, at times, we are forced to intentionally limit our practices, because of concerns that we will not have the support to handle an overload of work. As many of you realize, finding attorneys with the ability to handle complex energy regulatory issues on a contract basis is an almost impossible feat. And sometimes, larger companies are reluctant to hire a solo or even two person firm without adequate assurance of back up.

In today’s environment, traditional groups like the Energy Bar Association or the American Bar Association no longer meet our needs. Attending one or two annual marquee events does not allow us to network effectively with other law firms or lay the groundwork for collaborative relationships between our practices.

Moreover, these organizations do not provide assist us with issues such as marketing our energy practice or making technology choices that will allow us to better serve our clients. Most large firms have in house marketing staff who are always identifying new opportunities down the road, even when the firm is working at full capacity. We solo and small energy firms lack the time or resources for this constant marketing presence and may stand at a disadvantage to larger firms in competing for work in new fields.

Solo and small firm lawyers can improve our competitiveness and take advantage of these new opportunities through collaboration – sharing the load, to use an energy metaphor. If you think it’s crazy for potential competitors to collaborate, consider this
article from Entrepreneur Magazine that describes the benefits to small businesses of forming alliances with competitors.

The Solution:

The reasons discussed above are part of my motivation for creating the Solo and Small Energy Law Firm Network. The Network will serve as a collaborative organization intended to meet the needs of today’s solo and small energy law firm practitioners. Below are some of the proposed activities that the Network might undertake:

1. Hold monthly or bi-monthly events, such as a lunch, breakfast or happy hour to facilitate interaction with other solo and small firm energy law practitioners and exchange ideas on marketing, law practice management and law firm technology;
2. Invite speakers on emerging topics like renewable development, broadband over power lines, tribal energy development and areas with possible crossover energy potential;
3. Identify potential opportunities for solo and small firm energy lawyers to, for example, team up to respond to RFPs, collaborate on a client proposals or outsource overflow work;
4. Explore mechanisms to share the costs of marketing and CLE by coordinating sign ups for webinars and seminars (e.g., where possible, sharing the costs news services, webinars and seminars);
5. Collaborate on an energy law related web log or articles to increase our respective web and professional visibility;
6. Set up a listserve and wiki to facilitate communication between Network attorneys and referral of cases and
7. Identify opportunities to collaborate with other solo and small firm attorneys in related fields, like telecommunications, litigation or corporate finance.

Who Should Join:
The Solo and Small Energy Law Firm Network will benefit most from lawyers committed to bringing innovation and restoring excellence to the practice of energy regulatory law. We seek lawyers who are satisfied with the autonomy and flexibility of running their own practice, but who at the same time, recognize the potential benefits of pooling resources to achieve efficiencies and collaborating to maximize our competitive advantage. We have a new Energy Policy Act and regulations, a new Congress and new national priorities. It’s only fitting that we develop a new ways of serving our clients.

These are just some of my ideas. I am eager for input from all of you.