UPDATE:  This contest is closed.  Winner to be announced 5/11/10

UPDATE 3/16/10: Due to overwhelming demand, ‘Proud to Be Solo’ scholarship contest is now open to ALL lawyers who have passed the bar, are in good standing, and have a solo practice or verifiably are in the process of opening their solo practice.

It’s All About Helping You.

One year ago this week, Solo Practice University opened its doors, just for you.

You, who dreamed of opening your very own solo practice.

You, who knew that law school hadn’t given you the practical knowledge you needed on how to run a solo practice.

You, who refused to buy into the status quo, who shunned the notion that you should be working 80-hour weeks under someone else, for their benefit and profit.

You, who believed you could do better.

You, who needed just a little support to help you make your solo practice become reality.

You, who were probably told that you would have to work for someone else for years in order to gain this knowledge yourself – and even then, there were no guarantees. There was no support.

We decided you deserved that knowledge and support without having to sacrifice years of your life and your independence, and that’s why we structured Solo Practice University around those gaps in your education.

We’ve been amazed by the response Solo Practice University generated, both from its students and members of faculty. In the time leading up to our launch and in the year that followed, we’ve been graced with wisdom from countless lawyers and entrepreneurs willing to share their knowledge to provide you with what you need to build your own solo practice.

You came. You soaked up that knowledge. And bit by bit, you’re building those solo practices that everyone told you weren’t possible, were just dreams.

We’re honored you trusted us with this dream of yours. We’re thrilled that so many educators are here at Solo Practice University, willing to offer their support and their expertise.

And today, on our anniversary, we’d like to give something back.

Knocking Down the Biggest Hurdle to Your Solo Practice ~ Money

We know that one of the biggest challenges you face in opening your own solo practice is funding. Sometimes the gap between what you need and and what you can afford is wide and deep.

It’s enough to frustrate anyone trying to get a good practice up and running. It costs money to:

• Take classes to get the practical knowledge law school doesn’t provide.
• Get design, programming, copy, and hosting for a website.
• Buy practice management software.
• Buy books that go into depth on your greatest concerns for solo practice.
• Hire consultants to help you through the rough patches
• Learn to utilize social media
• Create professional video
• Get published
• Outsource your administrative work so you can focus on bigger tasks
• Take CLE classes

All of this on top of staggering educational loans is often enough to make even the most determined of you despair at ever seeing your dream of a solo practice realized.

We opened Solo Practice University one year ago to help you get past some of the biggest educational roadblocks to your solo practice.

Today, on our anniversary, we’re knocking down some of the other financial roadblocks as well.

‘Proud to be Solo’ Scholarship Contest

We’re giving away 18 prizes with a total combined value of approximately $12,000 to help eliminate some of the financial hurdles standing between you and your dream of your own solo practice.

The prizes include (almost) everything you could need including cash, a scholarship to Solo Practice University, CLIO practice management software, personal consulting with our founder Susan Cartier Liebel, a complete website/blog design package from Smart Marketing, professional copy from Men with Pens, a full year of unlimited online CLE from Lawline.com, membership to the SGC Legal PR Network, and so much more.

For a full list of prizes, check out the ‘Proud to Be Solo’ Scholarship Contest page.

The ‘Proud To Be Solo’ Scholarship Contest is open to any lawyer who passed the bar and who is in good standing. You must be a legal resident of the United States and either currently operate a solo practice or be verifiably in the process of opening one. For more particulars, check out the Rules and Regulations page.

Entries will be accepted from 12:01 a.m. EDT March 15th until midnight EDT on April 19, 2010.

Enter Now

Good luck to all of you. We’re proud to have been a part of helping you build thriving solo practices for the last year, and we hope to continue to give you the practical education, expertise you need – and extra boosts like our contest prizes – for many years to come.