Tips for Making Your Home Office Your Law Office
Want to be a lawyer and work from home? We don't blame you. The commute is shorter, the dress code is looser, and your family (or at least your pets) are right by. Luckily for you, working as a lawyer from a home office is fairly common, and becoming commoner. Even the biggest firms are letting attorneys work from home some of the time these days.
So, if you want to locate your law practice down the hall from your living room, you can. Here are some tips to help you out, taken from the FindLaw archives.
1. 11 Ways to Start a Virtual Law Office Today
If you want to work out of your home full time, rather than just a few days a week, you probably want a "virtual office." Of course, a virtual office isn't actually "virtual," it just exists wherever your desk is. And with a few simple steps, pretty much any attorney can set up an internet-based practice.
2. 5 Tips for Working With a Virtual Paralegal
Being home-based can be tricky when you need support staff. Do your paralegals process documents on your couch? Are interns doing legal research in your living room? That can be a little awkward. Thankfully, if you can work from home, so can your support staff.
3. How to Work From Home Without Harming Your Health
Working from home isn't all homecooked lunches, nonexistent commutes, and endless rainbows. There can be downsides, including to your health. Some report that working from home can actually make you feel more physically and mentally fatigued. Here's how you can avoid these pitfalls.
4. 5 Problems Unique to Work-From-Home Solos (With Solutions!)
When you don't have a law office, how do you meet with clients? Where do you go to do your printing and faxing? Do you need a giant Xerox machine next to your Barcalounger?
These are problems all work-from-home solos face at some point. Thankfully, we've got solutions.
5. 5 Mistakes to Avoid When Setting Up a 'Virtual' Law Office
Setting up a virtual office, or any home office, isn't always straight forward. How accessible do you need to be to clients? What do you need to do to keep client information confidential -- even if it's just keeping it from your kids or nanny?
6. Home Office Tax Deduction: 4 Questions to Ask
Finally, one of the best perks of having a home office is writing it off when tax time rolls around. Here's how to see if yours qualifies.
Related Resources:
- Do Lawyers Really Want Work/Life Balance? (FindLaw's Strategist)
- How to Stay Sane in Your Home Office (FindLaw's Strategist)
- Working from Home? Tips for Telecommuters (FindLaw's Strategist)
