Law firms aren’t just made up of core partners and associates these days. Instead, many firms are increasingly adding freelance attorneys to their rosters, utilizing their talents on a short-term and contractual basis.
Not sure if hiring freelance lawyers is right for you? Let’s take a look at some of the benefits of freelance attorneys now.
Benefits of Freelance Lawyers
Access to Specialized Skill Sets
One of the big benefits of hiring a freelance lawyer vs a virtual paralegal is that a freelance lawyer could provide your firm with specialized skill sets that are difficult to find anywhere else. Attorneys always specialize out of necessity, but even the most diverse firms don’t always have a lawyer for every situation or special case.
Freelance lawyers can fill in the gaps for specific cases or time periods with the understanding that they’ll go their separate way once the current case is won.
Legal Staffing Flexibility
Hiring freelance lawyers may also be a good idea due to the extra staffing flexibility you’ll enjoy. For instance, maybe your firm is currently swamped and you simply don’t have enough people to go around without risking partner burnout.
In this case, hiring a freelance lawyer can help to lighten the workload with your core staff long enough to get your cases back under control. This can be especially advantageous if you have a sudden departure from your core team, such as when a partner falls ill in the middle of a big project.
No Need to Pay for Benefits
Freelance lawyers may cost a good deal if you’re looking to secure top talent. But you don’t have to pay freelance lawyers any benefits. As they are independent contractors rather than employees, you don’t have to take all the ancillary costs associated with new staff into account. This could save your firm money in the long run.
Boost to Profits in a Down Economy
Speaking of money, freelance attorneys could help to boost your firm’s profit, even in a down economy. That’s because freelance attorneys usually cost less per hour compared to traditional associates. You’ll get a margin on their services as a result and be able to save your firm’s and your client’s money overall.
Thus, hiring freelance lawyers could be an effective strategy if you’re looking to cut costs and make every dollar count during a slow economic season.
Prevent Associate Burnout
As touched on above, freelance lawyers can help to prevent associate burnout, particularly if your firm is enjoying a lot of business that threatens to overwhelm your current capabilities. But many firms don’t want to give away business that is literally knocking on their doors.
The solution? Hiring freelance attorneys who can lighten the load and manage ancillary or less important cases while you focus on crucial projects.
All in all, hiring freelance attorneys could be a great choice for your firm. Consider the benefits and your available talent carefully. Make sure that any freelance attorneys you hire are worthwhile, as well.
Interesting related article: “What is Justice?“