From the Founder

The common preconception among law students and new lawyers is that starting a solo practice is unwise, if not downright impossible. Conventional wisdom says you should work for someone else for a few years to learn the ropes. Conventional wisdom has not met today's economy.

For myself, Susan Cartier Liebel, and for thousands of law students and new lawyers who want to call their own shots practicing law right now – shuffling paper under someone else for the next few years wasn't an acceptable option. Now it's simply not an option for most new lawyers even if they want it.

And so formed the idea behind Solo Practice University®, while I was teaching a class at Quinnipiac University School of Law called How to Hang a Shingle Right Out of Law School.

Solo Practice University® was created to both replace the apprentice experience if you haven't had one and to complement the apprentice experience if you do – without sucking up years of your life. It's a single online destination where lawyers and law students learn the basics of running a solo practice, take classes and get expert feedback from lawyers and business professionals in specialized fields.

These Solo Practice University® students take charge of their professional futures. No waiting necessary.

Solo Practice University® combines all the benefits of an educational community, legal blog, a professional network, and a legal conference. You'll find teachers who are well-known and highly regarded in their fields teaching through video, podcast, live lectures, and other media to bring the experience of the classroom home to your computer.

We strive to make Solo Practice University® even better and more informative than your law school experience through a few important distinctions.

• Availability – At law school, it's often hard to get your teachers (especially the most well-regarded) to take the time to discuss anything beyond the immediate coursework – and sometimes it's hard to even get that much.

At Solo Practice University®, our primary focus is on creating relationships between you, your mentors, and your fellow legal professionals. Every question is worth asking. Every individual here has the time.

• Breadth of knowledge – Law school focuses, and rightly so, on learning the law. Unfortunately, a sound legal knowledge isn't everything you need to start your own solo practice.

Solo Practice University® takes over where law school leaves students. We offer courses in particulars of law on which you need clarification or expansion, and we also offer courses in marketing, technology, branding, copywriting, blogging, work/life balance issues and more.

At Solo Practice University®, you get all the expertise you need to get started.

• Affordability – Big or small, law schools have one thing in common: a huge price tag. Not so at Solo Practice University®.

We believe you should get the knowledge you need to start your own solo practice without paying for law school twice over. That's why we offer all our classes, courses, study groups, faculty hours, communities, and blogs for monthly tuition – or an even lower quarterly or annual tuition.

• Convenience – Remember clamoring to get that last spot with the only professor who taught a class on your special area of interest? That race never happens at Solo Practice University®.

Our live classes are recorded so you can view them at any time, and all of our previous video classes, podcasts and other media are available 24/7 whenever you're ready to learn, read, discuss, or ask questions. There's no such thing as a one-time class at Solo Practice University®.

At Solo Practice University®, we work hard to make sure you have only the best experts in the fields that interest you. We have classes on everything from entertainment law to marketing for lawyers to trial technology to operating your solo practice from home.

Even better, we'll keep adding the classes you want from the most well-respected professionals we can find.

Ultimately, Solo Practice University® has just one goal: to help you open your own solo practice. We'll keep making this community stronger, better, and easier to use until we get you there.