These past three months have been very exciting at Solo Practice University! We have introduced many more classes and new courses as well as helping more lawyers and law students discover how beneficial having an online community like SPU can be for the growth of their solo practices.

We are also expanding by leaps and bounds. Look for new faculty coming soon as we continue to add to add to our impressive roster of faculty and educational offerings. So let’s get to it!

Recent Classes

• Lesson 5 in  Introduction to Billing and Accounting was about Getting Paid by Caren Schwartz
• Richard Maseles delivered three wonderful classes in Real World Legal Research: A surprisingly useful primary law source (that you may already have), Terms and Connectors Ninja Search Tricks and Secondary Resources
• New material is available in Jay Foonberg’s Ethics and Professionalism 101, Trust Accounts
• The Law Biz Management classroom continues to provide informative and current material, including: Managing Client Expectations,  The Times, They are a Changin’ series, and the two-part Why Marketing Matters for Lawyers, thanks to faculty member Ed Poll
• Jonathan Ginsberg‘s Creating a Social Security and Disability Practice class features two new classes: Congress Increasing Scrutiny of SSDI and SSI Awards as well as Reopening Prior Applications
• Unvarnished: the 21st Century Entertainment Solo was the topic of Gordon Firemark’s most recent Entertainment Law class. Gordon also shared Podcast Episode 22 – Violent Games, (anti) Slapps and Other Painless Fun
• Katherine Frye discusses Preparing the Case for Trial (Part 2) in Lesson 7 of Child Custody Start to Finish
• The inaugural lesson of Bankruptcy Law was an Introduction by Daniel Gershburg. Daniel also gave us lesson 2, Bankruptcy Law.
• Kira Fonteneau shared Lesson 8 – Getting Ready for Court in the Landlord and Tenant Law classroom.
• In Virtual Law Practice Stephanie Kimbro discusses Social Media and the Virtual Law Office. Stephanie also provides a detailed Checklist for the Virtual Law Office Website.
• Brian Herrington discusses AT&T Mobility v. Concepcion: The Death Of (Many) Consumer Class Actions in Class Action Law. Brian also reviews Wal-Mart v. Dukes with The Hits Keep Coming
• In Construction Practice 101 Chris Hill has lessons 19 and 20: Contracts and Fraud and You Can Do It!
• Students are sure to find Jay Foonberg’s latest class in Ethics and Professionalism to be helpful: Managing Your Trust Account To Avoid Disbarment
• Greg Yaghmai provided Lesson 13 of Trial Techniques on the topic of Evidence
• Richard Granat reveals The Truth About Offering “Unbundled Legal Services” Online
• Lesson 9 of Business Law is about Intellectual Property by Trippe Fried
• Solo Practice University Founder Susan Cartier Liebel’s class, How to Hang a Shingle Right Out of Law School kicked off with four initial lessons, Ready. S.E.T. Go! – Discovering Your S.E.T. Point, Mindset and Motivations for the Solo Practitioner,Where Do You Locate Your Practice? and Location (Part 2)
• Michael Brown delivers Lesson 3, Overview of Employee Rights Law Practice, in Employee Rights Law and Lesson 4, Intake Form for an Employee Rights Practice
• Legal Storytelling Basics and Structure, (Parts 1 and 2) is the topic of Lessons 4 and 5 from Diane F. Wyzga in Storytelling Skills

Faculty News and Accomplishments

• Congratulations to SPU Faculty, Kira Fonteneau, who just had her first child, Sydney Elise Fraser
• Chris Hill says Thank You to Virginia Super Lawyers after they nominated and elected him to the Virginia Super Lawyers Rising Stars for 2011.
• Trippe Fried shared the news that InHouse Legal recently opened a New York office.
• Stephanie Kimbro presented on the topic of ethics and tech at AL State Bar’s Annual Meeting
• D. Todd Smith has multiple reasons to celebrate recently – his firm reached a benchmark anniversary and he was elected chair of the Austin Bar Appellate Section.
• Susan Cartier Liebel and faculty member, Katherine Frye were featured with 99 other women lawyers in the new ABA publication The Road To Independence

Guest Lectures

• In our What’s New lecture series we had D. Todd Smith update on Appellate Practice & Procedure, Katherine Frye updated on Child Custody, Chris Hill brings us up to par on Construction Law, Value Pricing with Ron Baker, Jennifer Laviano on Special Education Law, Bankruptcy Law with Daniel Gershburg,
• Savvy Solos with Lurie Daniel-Favors
• Savvy Solos with Spencer Aronfeld
• Savvy Solos with Judy Young

New Columnist and Faculty Announcements

• New Columnist Debra Vey Voda-Hamilton joined SPU with her column ReZooming – advice and inspiration on starting up your career after a sabbatical
• Lurie Daniel Favors is another addition to our stellar line up of columnists.  She will be providing information on how to build a community-based practice
• Bankruptcy and real estate attorney Daniel Gershburg joined the faculty and will be teaching Bankruptcy Law
• David Carson, technical director extraordinaire at SPU will be teaching  HTML, WordPress and More.

Best of the Season Blog Posts

• How Lawyers Can Handle Bad Reviews and Complaints on Social Media
• Jack Whittington asks: Could You Turn Down The ‘Dream Job’?
• You Ask….I Answer: ‘How Do I Tap My Network To Get Business’
• Susan chatted with Hollee Temple, author of Good Enough is the New Perfect, in a guest audio discourse
• Solo Growing Pains
• Be Positive….But Be Positive With A Plan
• Market More: The Case for the E-Book
• ReZoomers – Stop Saying You’re Sorry
• Getting Social: My Social Media Journey
• I’m Going to Prison. (Actually Just Studying for the Bar)
• Will Legal Services Bidding Sites Gain (Real)Traction?
• Small Efforts Can Make a Big Difference
• Back To The Root Of Things; The Role of Servant Lawyer
• Why Cash (Flow) is King
• Your Troubled Neighbor. Your Troubled Client. Your Troubled Practice?
• Virtually Anywhere. How I Created a Virtual Law Office That Works.
• With Walmart Offering Legal Services Where Will You Fit In?
• 100 Ways To Solo. The Big Debate – Part 1 – The Affirmative
• 100 Ways To Solo: The Big Debate – Part 2 – The Negative
• Do You Have A Catfish?  You Need 1 or 2 or 3.

Student Blog Highlights

• Gen Y Lawyers: Are You Moaning or Moving?
• Other Victims of Medical Errors

What’s Happening at Solo Practice University

Solo Practice University got a mention in mainstream media with the highly circulated MSNBC piece ‘Law School Grads Going Solo and Loving It!’ The article highlighted there are those coming out of law school and making it instead of just doom and gloom for all graduates.

SPU’s first New York Law School students have enrolled through the Bridges Program and we are in talks with a significant number of other law schools about helping their students and new graduates learn how to go solo through the Bridges program.  If you are interested in learning more about the Bridges Program, please contact us here.

Ready to Enroll?  Check out our Tuition Prices, pick your plan and get started!