HOW CAN I START A LAW FIRM WITH NO MONEY?
Back when I first considered starting my law firm nearly 25 years ago, I attended a bar-sponsored event where the speaker advised us that we’d need at least $30,000 on hand to get a law firm up and running, what with the need to find office space, hire a paralegal and receptionist and cover the cost of legal research That price tag nearly dashed my plan to start a firm. Fast forward to today - and technology has either substantially reduced many of the startup costs that once existed (such as legal research, word processing tools and marketing) or replaced the need for staff with automation, online scheduling tools, and more. Moreover, many of the tools available today - AI applications, graphic design, online video and more, far exceed the capability of what was available even a decade ago.
In short, there’s never been a time in the history of the legal profession to start a law firm.
All you need is a law degree and a vision for what you want to build. Most of the tools you need to implement that vision for your law firm won’t cost a penny and are all conveniently curated here, courtesy of MyShingle.com.
Tech changes in a heartbeat.
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Make A Plan
Create A Website
Graphics & Design
Client Intake
Law Office Operations
Research Resources
Marketing Tools
PandaDoc (free templates including nonprofit & small business)
Small Business Administration Business Plan Builder
Create A Website
IntroBar - craft offers to people based on where they came from
Hello Bar - a navigation bar to help convert traffic
Share This - Share social media posts
Click to Tweet - tweet links to posts
Tawk.io - Monitor & chat with customers on a website
Zoho Sales IQ - free live chat
Termly.com - free terms of service generator
Terms Feed - generates privacy policy & contract terms
TOSDR.com - a quick mechanism to review TOS for websites
Terms & Conditions Sample - generates sample TOS
Deadlink Checker - checks websites for deadlinks
Google Analytics - reports on site analytics
Google Page Speed - learn how quickly your page loads web speed
Readable.io - tests the readability of content (free initially, then $4.00/month)
Graphics & Design
Logo Makr - design your own logo
PicMonkey.com - create logos + edit photos
Canva.com - create logos, graphics for business cards & stationary and other DIY design
Keep Calm & Carry On Creator - a fun tool
Wordle.net - create colorful word clouds from text
Luna Pic - quick photo editor - customize colors, crop, change size and apply a range of editing tools
Pablo - image editor
PixTeller - Design & Animation Tool
Canva Font Combos - test how fonts get along together
What the Font - discover what fonts a website is using
bold. Font Combinations for Web Designers- tool for pairing fonts
Flat Icon - thousands of free icons
Icon Finder - search for free social media icons
FreePik - free graphic images for everyone
Giphy.com - search for free GIFs
FreeNatureStock.com - free nature photos
PixaBay - stunning free images
StreetWill.co - high resolution images and vintage photos
Unsplash.com -10 free photos/day
Client Intake
Typeform.com - beautiful and customizable forms
Wufoo.com - variety of free forms and surveys
Google Forms - basic, customizable forms and surveys
Calendly.com - schedule meetings or calls with clients or colleagues
Acuity Scheduling - supports scheduling, including paid consults and meetings
Docusign - ($10/month)
Template for Client Welcome Pack - create a client welcome kit
Law Office Operations
Clockify Me - time tracker and timesheet app for teams
Time Tracking for Lawyers- free time tracking app by Clio
Toggl.com - Basic timekeeping plan free
Time Doctor- Time tracking and productivity tool
Time Tracker - free timekeeping; additional fee for invoices
Time Camp - free timekeeping with fee for billing
Wave - (free accounting & invoicing
Get Harvest - billing & invoicing
Expensify - prepare expense reports free
Tools for accepting online payments
Word Processing/Document Creation
Google Docs - Google’s word processing program
MSWord online - limited version of Microsoft Word online
Open Office - oldest open source word processing programs
PDF Escape - free PDF editor and converter
Free Conference Call - free conference calls and webinars
Zoom - conference calling and webinars
Google Voice - free phone number and voicemail
CamScanner - Turn your phone into a scanner
Tiny Scanner - free scanning app
Believe it or not, some courts and banks will only accept documents via fax.
Box.net - up to 10 GB storage free
Dropbox - up to 2 GB storage free
Evernote - store notes, website links and more
Google Keep - store reminders, notes and voice memos
FormTool - basic version of Word-based form creation tool
DocAssemble.com - free open-source expert system for client interviews and document assembly
FormSwift - create and edit documents
G Suite - suite of tools to run an office, including calendaring, email domains, shared documents and storage
Airtable.com -Free spreadsheet and data table management tool
FreedCamp </A> Free project management tool
Trello - Online collaboration and management tool
Slack - interoffice work projects and communications.
Evie.ai - AI-based scheduling assistant
X.AI - ($8/mont) AI for scheduling meetings
Boomerang - email scheduling
Mailtrack.com - email tracker
Hub Spot Chatbot - free chatbot builder
FormSwift - free employee handbooks
Process.St - Manage team tools & procedures
1 Password - remembers all passwords starting at $2.99/month
LastPass.com - password storage & digital vault with free basic plan
HotShield.com - VPN (virtual private network)
Tunnel Bear – VPN
Veracrypt - data encryption for all operating systems
File Vault - encryption built into Mac
Bitlocker - encryption for windows
SendInc.com - free email encryption
Hushmail.com - free secure email
Research Resources
Fastcase App - free research app (full service often free through most bar associations)
Google Scholar - caselaw and law review articles
Casetext - caselaw and statutes (CARA AI research not part of free service)
Justia.com - caselaw and federal and state statutes; also free PACER search
SSRN - law review articles, paper & other scholarship
Lex Blog - searchable legal blogpost database
e-CFR - Code of Federal Regulations, up to date
GovTrack.com -track federal legislation & bills
MuniCode - municipal codes online
LawInsider - extensive and searchable database of contracts culled from SEC filings
ContractStandards.com - large library of contract clauses with explanations
DocTailor - create smart contracts on blockchain
Stripe Atlas - suite of free forms to start internet business
Orrick Term Sheet -Term Sheets and StartUp Forms term sheet and statup forms
Marketing Tools
CRM (Customer Relations Management)
Zoho - basic CRM suite
Hubspost CRM - robust CRM suite
Streak - plugin for CRM to manage leads from Gmail
4 Over 4 -Free business cards
VistaPrint - 500 cards for $9.99
Mailchimp.com - up to 500 subscribers free
Tiny Letter.com - short email newsletter
GetRevue.com - curated newsletter
Facebook Live - live & recorded presentations
Zoom - free webinar platform
Join Me - screen sharing and small web meetings
OBS Project - free software for video recording and live-streaming
Soapbox - record and edit video presentations through the Chrome browswer
Biteable.com - free explainer videos
Create mini-courses for clients or DIY CLE
Thinkific - basic teaching platform
Udemy - create and upload courses
Medium.com - free blogging
JD Supra - post articles and other content
Slideshare - upload, share and embed slide presentations
Google My Business - post updates and showcase information about firm
Avvo - lawyer listing directory and reviews
Justia.com - lawyer directory
Beacon.by - create ebooks
Canva - use Canva for ebook templates
Issue Wire - press releases
PR Log - press releases
Help A Reporter - respond to inquiries from journalists
© 2018 Carolyn Elefant and MyShingle.com