Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to hit the ground running (Tom Cruise-style) into 2025. You may have set intentions for your personal life, but what about your professional goals? Instead of lofty resolutions that will fall by the wayside come February, consider these small steps you can take to build on your success from 2024 to make 2025 even better:
- Play by the rules – When I first started practicing, a senior associate I met at an ABA conference encouraged me to really learn the local court rules. She suggested I keep a rule book on my nightstand and take the time to carefully read one every night. Although I can’t say I made this a daily practice, the idea really stuck with me. I made the effort to study the rules so I would always be in compliance. A new year may also mean rule amendments have taken effect in your jurisdiction, so it is timely to check those rule books for any changes. You could also make it a practice to review your state’s Model Rules of Professional Conduct. That way, you’ll have a head start on evaluating a potential ethical dilemma if and when the time comes.
- Incorporate pro bono work – The ABA Rules state that every lawyer has a professional responsibility to provide legal services to those unable to pay. Specifically, a lawyer should aspire to provide at least fifty hours of pro bono legal services per year. While this may seem like a large chunk of time if pro bono work isn’t already part of your practice, one way to easily satisfy this requirement is by volunteering to take calls on your state bar’s pro bono hotline. Another option is to participate in the ABA Free Legal Answers program. This is a virtual legal advice clinic in which qualifying users post civil legal questions at no cost to be answered by pro bono attorneys licensed in their state.
- Schedule your breaks – Research shows that planning and anticipating a vacation is good for your mental health and can be nearly as enjoyable as the trip itself. Whether you want to relax on a beach vacation or plan a staycation to tackle those home projects you never seem to have time for, put those dates on the calendar now. And while you savor having something to look forward to, consider these tips for maximizing your time away from the office.
Another way to set yourself up for success in 2025 is to choose and build the team that best fits your practice. While Ethan Hunt didn’t always have this luxury, surrounding yourself with productive attorneys and a helpful legal staff can increase your bottom line. Take the time to evaluate whether a lateral hire could help ease the burden of your caseload or whether the addition of another practice area might be warranted this year. To minimize the risks associated with hiring a lateral, keep these best practices in mind.
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