BUSINESS GUIDE
How to start a law firm in 2026
Who may own a law firm in your state, in the rule's own words; the bar's fees and the entity; the trust account and how long to keep its records; where malpractice cover is mandatory and where going without must be disclosed; the advertising filings two states charge for; what it really costs to open, from the pages that price it; what lawyers earn — and how the solos who did it found the first clients. Written for the lawyer hanging the shingle, not a designer.
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$159,670the 2025 US median pay for lawyers (O*NET) — the salary a solo gives up, and the one to beat
$598California's 2026 annual license fee — $265 in Florida, $385 in Illinois, $74 for a new Texas lawyer, $375 every two years in New York, from the bars' own pages
$3,500a year: Oregon's mandatory malpractice assessment for 2026, and the top of one insurer's typical range for a solo
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Is a law firm worth starting — and what does it pay?
This guide is about hanging your own shingle as an admitted lawyer — a solo or two-lawyer firm run from a home, virtual or small office — as against buying into a practice. There were 1.37 million US lawyers in 2025, up from 1.35 million the year before and 5.6% in a decade (ABA Journal, December 2025); no openable page prints how many practice alone, so this guide won't guess.
What it pays, and what you give up. Lawyers earned a 2025 US median of $76.76 an hour, $159,670 a year, with 863,700 employed and faster-than-average growth to 2035 (O*NET, 23-1011); a paralegal, the first hire, $30.24 an hour, $62,890 a year (O*NET, 23-2011). People search "do lawyers make $500,000 a year": O*NET prints only the median, and no openable page carries the top of the distribution, so the honest answer is that some do and the median does not. A solo's income is fees collected less overhead, and the solos below describe the overhead, not the income: one pays himself "50% of the revenue as a salary as soon as it comes in," one runs at "a 10th" of a big firm's overhead, and one set out "to be able to work remotely by myself and not really earn that much money."
What a solo charges. No page this guide can open prints a survey of solo hourly rates, so none is printed here. What the rules do fix is the contingency fee: in New York's First Department an injury fee follows a schedule — "50 percent on the first $1,000 of the sum recovered," 40 percent on the next $2,000, 35 percent on the next $22,000 and "25 percent on any amount over $25,000," or a flat "percentage not exceeding 33 percent" (22 NYCRR 603.25); in Florida, before an answer is filed, "33 1/3% of any recovery up to $1 million," and after an answer "40% of any recovery up to $1 million," with medical cases leaving the claimant "no less than 70% of the first $250,000" (Florida Rule 4-1.5, October 2026); in California a medical-negligence fee is "Twenty-five percent of the dollar amount recovered" before a complaint is filed and 33 percent after (Business and Professions Code §6146). And what you may not bill, from a 1993 opinion still cited: "a lawyer may not bill more time than she actually spends on a matter," and "A lawyer who spends four hours of time on behalf of three clients has not earned twelve billable hours" (ABA Formal Opinion 93-379, December 1993); Alabama's bar adds that the library, malpractice insurance, rent and utilities "would be subsumed within the charges" (Alabama State Bar Opinion 2005-02). The "80/20 rule" people search for is a consultant's Pareto application, not a rule of conduct: "20% of our efforts lead to 80% of our results; and 20% of inputs create 80% of outputs" (Jay Harrington in Attorney at Work, January 2024).
How to start a law firm, in plain English
Who may own a law firm is your state's rule — read it before you take a partner or an investor. In the US the license is yours, and in most states so must be the firm:
- California. "A lawyer or law firm shall not share legal fees directly or indirectly with a nonlawyer," "A lawyer shall not form a partnership or other organization with a nonlawyer if any of the activities of the partnership or other organization consist of the practice of law," and a lawyer may not practice in a professional corporation in which a non-lawyer owns an interest or directs the lawyer's judgment (California Rule 5.4, effective November 2018). The 2026 annual license fee is $598.00, due by March 30 (State Bar of California); the bar exam application is $878.00 for a general applicant and $1,650.00 for an attorney applicant, the moral character application $900.00, and a law corporation registers with the State Bar for $265.00 with a $106.00 annual renewal (2026 schedule of charges); 25 hours of MCLE every three years, four of them in ethics (MCLE requirements). A professional corporation files for $100.00, an LLC or LLP for $70.00 (California Secretary of State fee schedule), and every corporation, LLC and LLP pays "an annual minimum franchise tax of $800" (the Secretary of State's bizfile brochure).
- Texas. "A lawyer or law firm shall not share or promise to share legal fees with a non-lawyer" (Texas Rule 5.04, effective January 2022). State Bar dues are $74.00 for a lawyer licensed less than three years, $162.00 at three to five years and $258.00 after, due June 1 (State Bar of Texas, effective June 1, 2025); the Declaration of Intention to Study Law is $190 on time (Texas Board of Law Examiners, 2026) and the exam $450 for an in-state law student — $150 application, $150 examination, $150 venue — on the rulebook effective September 18, 2026 (Texas BLE rulebook); 15 hours of CLE a year, three in ethics (State Bar of Texas MCLE). A PLLC's certificate of formation is $300 (Texas Secretary of State), and vLex Fastcase is free to members and $1,140 a year to non-members (Texas Bar Blog, October 2024).
- Florida. "A lawyer or law firm shall not share legal fees with a nonlawyer" (Florida Rule 4-5.4, October 2026). "Fees remain at $265 for active members" (The Florida Bar, April 2026); the exam is $1,000 for a first-time applicant without early registration, $600 to convert an early registration, and $1,600 to $3,000 for an attorney applicant by years admitted (Florida Board of Bar Examiners); 30 hours of CLE every three years since January 2024 (The Florida Bar, July 2023). A professional association files for $70.00 and an LLC for $125.00, with a $150 or $138.75 annual report (Florida Division of Corporations, corporations; LLCs); vLex Fastcase is free to members (The Florida Bar, June 2024).
- New York. "A lawyer or law firm shall not share legal fees with a nonlawyer," and "A lawyer shall not form a partnership with a nonlawyer if any of the activities of the partnership consist of the practice of law" — with a paragraph, in that compilation, that lets a New York firm divide a fee with an out-of-state firm that has non-lawyer owners where that state allows it (New York Rule 5.4, as compiled by NYSBA through July 1, 2026). The biennial registration fee is $375 (NYSBA, October 2023); the bar exam application is $250 for a graduate of an ABA-approved school (New York Board of Law Examiners, September 2026); 24 CLE hours a cycle, 32 for the newly admitted (NYSBA). A professional service LLC files for $200 and must publish in two newspapers for six consecutive weeks, then file a $50 certificate within 120 days or lose its authority to do business (New York Department of State) — the newspapers' price isn't on any official page; a corporation files for $125 (fee schedule).
- Washington and Illinois. Washington's fee page now shows 2027: $475 for a lawyer admitted before 2025, $237.50 for the 2025 and 2026 classes, due February 1 (WSBA); the Illinois registration for 2026 is $385.00, and lawyers admitted since January 1, 2025 aren't assessed (Illinois ARDC, 2026 fee schedule).
The three jurisdictions that bent the rule. The District of Columbia allows a firm "in which a financial interest is held or managerial authority is exercised by an individual nonlawyer who performs professional services which assist the organization in providing legal services to clients," but only if the firm's sole purpose is legal services, everyone with a stake abides by the rules and the conditions "are set forth in writing" (D.C. Rule 5.4(b)). Arizona's Supreme Court "voted unanimously in August to eliminate the state's prohibition on nonlawyer ownership or investment in law firms," effective January 1, 2021, and licenses alternative business structures — the license fees are on a page this guide couldn't open, so none is printed (ABA Journal, February 2021). Utah's sandbox "is closed to new applications," its ABS-only portion ended in 2024, and it sunsets on August 14, 2027 (Utah Office of Legal Services Innovation).
The trust account, and how long to keep its records. In California, "All funds received or held by a lawyer or law firm for the benefit of a client … including advances for fees, costs and expenses, shall be deposited in one or more identifiable bank accounts labeled 'Trust Account'" in the state, with records kept "for a period of no less than five years after final appropriate distribution" (California Rule 1.15, effective January 2023), and a firm that handles trust funds "shall establish and maintain an IOLTA account" (Business and Professions Code §6211). In Texas, client funds "shall be kept in a separate account, designated as a 'trust' or 'escrow' account," records "preserved for a period of five years after termination of the representation" (Texas Rule 1.14). In Florida, "A lawyer must hold in trust, separate from the lawyer's own property, funds and property of clients," and keep the records "for 6 years after the final conclusion of each representation" (Florida Rule 5-1.1, June 2026). In New York a lawyer holding another's money "is a fiduciary, and must not misappropriate such funds or property or commingle such funds or property with his or her own," in a New York bank, with records kept "for seven years" (New York Rule 1.15).
Malpractice cover: mandatory in one state, disclosed in another, priced by the insurer. "Any OSB licensee engaged in the private practice of law whose principal office is in Oregon is required to maintain malpractice coverage with the PLF," and "In 2026 the basic assessment for this coverage is $3,500 for each licensee," for $300,000 of cover plus a $75,000 claims-expense allowance (Oregon State Bar Professional Liability Fund, 2026). In California, "A lawyer who knows or reasonably should know that the lawyer does not have professional liability insurance shall inform a client in writing, at the time of the client's engagement of the lawyer" (California Rule 1.4.2). One insurer's page puts a solo's premium "as low as $500 for an attorney with no prior acts," "as high as $6500 for an attorney practicing in a riskier area of law," and "between $2500 - $3500 for a comprehensive policy with commonly accepted limits" (ALPS, undated, read October 2026); Insureon's medians for lawyers are $29 a month for general liability, $57 a month for a business owner's policy, $52 for workers' compensation and $175 for cyber cover — and it "cannot provide professional liability insurance quotes for lawyers" (Insureon, April 2025). Idaho's bar pages wouldn't open for this guide, so nothing about Idaho is stated here; check your state.
Advertising and reviews, by state. In Florida, "any lawyer who advertises services must file with The Florida Bar a copy of each advertisement at least 20 days prior to the lawyer's first dissemination of the advertisement," and a testimonial is misleading if it "is not the actual experience of the person making the testimonial," "has been written or drafted by the lawyer," or was given "something of value" — while truthful testimonials "are beneficial to prospective clients and are permissible" (Florida Rules 4-7.19 and 4-7.13, October 2026); the filing fee is "$150 for each advertisement timely filed … and $250 for each advertisement filed late" (The Florida Bar's advertising handbook, December 2025). In Texas, "a lawyer shall file with the Advertising Review Committee, State Bar of Texas, no later than ten (10) days after the date of dissemination of an advertisement," or 30 days before for pre-approval (Texas Rule 7.04), and "The Advertising Review application fee is $100" (State Bar of Texas). In California, "A lawyer shall not make a false or misleading communication about the lawyer or the lawyer's services," advertising "through any written, recorded or electronic means" is allowed, and live solicitation for gain is not (California Rules 7.1–7.3). In New York, as compiled by the state bar association through July 1, 2026, a communication "must include the name and contact information of at least one lawyer or law firm responsible for its content," and a lawyer may not "solicit professional employment by live person-to-person contact" for gain except to lawyers, people they know or business users of their services (New York Rules 7.1 and 7.3) — the older label and copy-retention clauses don't appear in that compilation, so read your Appellate Division's current text before the site goes live.
What it costs to open — from the pages that price it, each labeled. A legal trade magazine's June 2026 guide: "A lean, cloud-first virtual practice can launch for as little as $3,000 to $5,000, while a traditional brick-and-mortar physical setup requires an upfront investment between $25,000 and $50,000," with breakeven "within 3 to 6 months" for the lean version (Attorney at Work, June 2026). A practice-software company's June 2025 guide: "Startup costs: $3,500 to $50,000 (average around $5,000 for a lean start)," with an LLC at $500 to $1,000, "Professional liability insurance $2,300/year average," "Basic technology setup $1,000-2,000," software $50 to $100 a month and an office, if not home-based, at $500 to $2,000 a month (LeanLaw, June 2025). A payments company's May 2025 guide prices the office at "$8,000 to $23,000 per year (standard 1,000-square-foot office)," "Business licensing & insurance" at "$2,000 to $10,000 per lawyer per year" and software at "$5,000 to $20,000" (LawPay, May 2025). An insurer's guide: "basic start-up costs of $1500 all the way to $50,000 and beyond" (ALPS, March 2026), and its claims attorney's advice to screen clients — "If a potential client who has an active matter tells you that they have had three prior attorneys before coming to you, you should ask yourself why" (ALPS, January 2026). A practice-software vendor: "Most experts recommend having funds for six months to stay in business" (Smokeball, January 2023). Software at list price: MyCase Basic $50, Pro $100 and Advanced $130 a user a month on an annual contract (MyCase); a registered agent, if you aren't your own, $249 a year at one national service (LegalZoom). Our free law firm business plan puts the start at $2,962–$34,052 for a solo: the bar fee, the entity and its registration, malpractice at $500 to $3,500, software, a home-office setup, the advertising filing where your state charges for one, and two months of running costs — the low end a Texas solo at a home desk, the high end a California professional corporation with a paralegal from day one.
Outside the US. In England and Wales a solicitor's practicing certificate is £382 plus a £170 compensation-fund contribution for 2026–27, and a firm that held client money pays £2,170 to the fund (SRA, October 2026); every authorized firm "must take out and maintain qualifying insurance," £3 million for a recognized or licensed body and £2 million otherwise (SRA indemnity insurance rules). In New South Wales a principal's practicing certificate is $530.00 plus a $90.00 fidelity-fund contribution and optional $440.00 membership, $1,060.00 in all, for 2025–26 (Law Society of NSW); every principal must hold professional indemnity insurance through Lawcover (Lawcover), $2 million each claim (Lawcover explanatory notes, 2025); in Victoria a principal's certificate is $723 for 2026–27 (Victorian Legal Services Board). Check your own regulator's rules before you take the first matter.
The business, and the calendar. Read the ownership rule, pick one practice area, form the entity, open the trust account, insure, set fees within the schedule, file the advertisement, then tell every lawyer you know. The law firm website templates show what a good firm's site looks like, Zarla's lawyer website builder is how a client searching for a lawyer near them finds yours, and our guide to whether you need an LLC covers the entity question for trades your state lets form one. Selling advice in a profession without a bar? How to start a consulting business follows the same shape.
What lawyers who opened a firm actually say
None of this is our opinion about the profession. It comes from lawyers who opened their own firms, talking to the ABA Journal, two legal trade magazines, a bar's news page and a podcast network's transcripts between 2008 and 2025. Read each as theirs at the time; the dollar figures in older pages are that year's. Five things come up again and again.
It starts with one case, a spreadsheet, and deciding. Michael E. Rubinstein of the Law Office of Michael E. Rubinstein in Los Angeles: “I left the firm, and with that one case started my own practice. Was I scared? Yes! Did I have pits in my stomach? I sure did. But I took a leap of faith and believed in myself” (ABA Journal, February 2022). Nate Cade of Cade Law in Milwaukee: “I literally had a spreadsheet of every expense that I thought I was going to incur from bar dues down to cost of computers and every single thing I went through and I googled and I tried to figure out what was the best in breed” (New Solo, Legal Talk Network, December 2025). Deborah Blommer of Blommer Peterman in Brookfield, Wisconsin, who started in her basement: “The one most critical factor in establishing a solo practice is deciding to do it” (ABA Journal, January 2009). Carolyn Elefant of MyShingle, who went solo in her late twenties: “What if I didn't look for a job at all and instead decided to start my own law firm?” (MyShingle, April 2021).
“So I started this out of the rental home that we're living in at a tiny desk.” — Gregory M. Rada, After Service LLC, Colorado, in the Lawyerist Podcast, November 2024
Overhead is the lever, and the office is optional. Cade: “My overhead is a 10th of theirs, and that's including paying for my own healthcare. So why would I ever go back short of someone writing a check with a lot of zeros?” (New Solo, Legal Talk Network, December 2025). Robert Theofanis, an estate-planning solo in Manhattan Beach, California, on skipping the tools he didn't need: “Not only would have it been too expensive, but it also would have been counterproductive. Even for a tech-savvy lawyer, setting up a new technology product correctly and learning how to use it effectively takes up valuable time” (Attorney at Work, September 2024). Michael Downey of Downey Law Group in St. Louis, who left a 240-lawyer firm and built out an office: “I did a gut rehab on the space; new flooring, new tiling, new carpet, new walls, new paint, really everything. And with all the technology and everything, I'm probably looking at a physical plant expense about – all the numbers haven't come in yet – but probably about $22,000 or so” (New Solo, Legal Talk Network, March 2015). Andrew Schierberg of Stages Elder Law and Estate Planning in Northern Kentucky: “I knew I was going to need office space, just with the generation of clients that I'm helping. Many of them are okay with virtual meetings, but many more of them want in-person, face-to-face” (New Solo, Legal Talk Network, June 2023). Michael Ehline of Ehline Law Firm in Southern California: “All you need to get the ball rolling is an LLC, your liability insurance, a computer, accounting software, a website, a social media presence, and either a home office or shared suite” (Attorney at Work, March 2015, updated April 2021).
The first clients come from other lawyers, and from letters. Cassandra Koenig of Aloha Divorce in San Diego, who went solo straight from law school: “Most of my clients actually come from other attorneys... I was coming from Albany, New York, and then when I got to law school, I didn't know a single soul. So I knew it was important to make connections and build relationships” (New Solo, Legal Talk Network, May 2025). Theofanis: “Send hard-copy letters to everyone you know announcing your new practice and asking for referrals. Get out of the office. Ask your law school classmates and other lawyers you know to lunch or coffee; make sure you tell them exactly who your ideal client is” (Attorney at Work, September 2024). Rubinstein: “You will get referrals from surprising sources. And you will not get cases that should have been a slam dunk” (ABA Journal, February 2022). Rada, ten years in: “I have 10 years of content and I rank on the first page of Google, and we get over half our business just from Google searches, not Google AdWords, just organic search” (the Lawyerist Podcast, November 2024). Craig Niedenthal, a solo in Birmingham, Alabama: “Marketing is a huge issue. I would tell any solo lawyer that it has to be on the top of their list” (ABA Journal, November 2009). And Randall Ryder's advice on the first client: “Go to their office and introduce yourself. Tell them who you are. Tell them you just started. Tell them you are looking for work” (Lawyerist, January 2020).
Pick the work you did best in, then learn to say no. Rubinstein: “Work in an area you are passionate about. If you did particularly well in one of your law school classes—as I did in torts—that might be an indication of an area in which you might enjoy practicing” (ABA Journal, February 2022). Koenig: “I wish someone told me when to say no. I noticed at first, I was just so excited to get a client. I was taking anything that came through the door. So I did learn to set boundaries” (New Solo, Legal Talk Network, May 2025). Megan Zavieh of Zavieh Law: “At some point, you have to decide what is the biggest you want the firm to be. The more specific you can be with it, the better,” and Brian King of King Law: “Your world will shift from dialogue to numbers. Your language in law is prose, but your language in business will be numbers” (ABA Journal, April 2021).
The money is thin at first, and some say don't go straight from school. Theofanis: “I take 50% of the revenue as a salary as soon as it comes in. As my law firm's only employee, I deserve a salary for the work I do” (Attorney at Work, September 2024). Rada: “My vision from the beginning was to be able to work remotely by myself and not really earn that much money, just wanted to be comfortable” (the Lawyerist Podcast, November 2024). Schierberg, a former police officer: “I tell people sometimes I feel like I kind of cheated at starting this practice because, number one, I've got a pension to rely on, so I don't have the worry that so many attorneys have about just, am I going to make any money?” (New Solo, Legal Talk Network, June 2023). Susan Cartier Liebel of Solo Practice University: “Be prepared to give it up if it's not paying the bills or because the economy or the clients are not cooperating,” and Elefant: “Optimistic personalities tend to fare better. If you are committed to practicing law, I think you will find ways to make your own firm happen” (ABA Journal, November 2009). Theresa Morgan, a Florida practitioner: “I would never, ever in a million years, recommend just hanging out a shingle when you're fresh out of law school” (The Florida Bar News, September 2008) — and Koenig and Ehline did exactly that.
The through-line: the lawyers who open well decide, budget every line, keep the overhead a fraction of a firm's, pick one practice area, tell every lawyer they know, hold enough cash for a thin first year, and say no to the matters that aren't theirs.
THE STARTER KIT
What you need to start a law firm
Bar admission, and the ownership rule
Your admission in the state where you'll practice, and the rule on who may own the firm — in California, Texas, Florida and New York only lawyers may share fees or own the practice; the District of Columbia, Arizona and Utah bent it; the table below has five states' fees.
The professional entity your state allows
A Texas PLLC at $300, a California professional corporation at $100 plus the State Bar's $265 registration and the $800 minimum tax, a Florida professional association at $70, a New York PLLC at $200 plus the newspaper publication — or a sole proprietorship, which most states allow.
A client trust account, and its records
A separate account for retainers and settlement funds, kept apart from your own money, with the records kept for the years your state names — five in California and Texas, six in Florida, seven in New York.
Malpractice cover, or the written disclosure
Mandatory in Oregon at $3,500 a year through the bar's fund; in California a lawyer without it must tell each client in writing at engagement. One insurer's range is $500 to $3,500 a year for a solo.
Software, and research through the bar
Practice-management software at $50 to $130 a user a month on one vendor's list, and legal research that Florida and Texas bar members get free — $1,140 a year to non-members in Texas.
An advertisement your bar has seen, and a way to be found
In Florida each advertisement is filed 20 days before use ($150); in Texas within 10 days of first use ($100). Then a Google Business Profile, and a website with your practice areas, your bio and a consultation booking form.
THE PAPERWORK
Licenses, registrations, accounts and insurance for a law firm
| Typical cost | Time to get | Legally required? | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bar admission (the exam) | CA $878 application; TX $450 in-state; FL $1,000; NY $250; plus character and fitness | Months — the exam, then the character review | In the states above, to practice — and in TX, CA, FL and NY, to own the firm |
| Annual license or registration fee | CA $598; FL $265; IL $385; TX $74 under three years, $258 after five; NY $375 every two years; WA $475 (2027) | Yearly, by the bar's deadline | In every state above, to stay active |
| Continuing legal education | Your time and the course fees; 25 hours per three years in CA, 15 a year in TX, 30 per three years in FL, 24 per cycle in NY | Each reporting period | In every state above |
| Professional entity | TX PLLC $300; CA PC $100 + $265 bar registration + $800 minimum tax; FL PA $70 or LLC $125; NY PLLC $200 + $50 publication certificate | Days; NY adds six weeks of newspaper notices | Optional — a sole proprietorship is allowed; if you form one, the professional form |
| Client trust account | Bank fees; your time to reconcile monthly | Days | In CA, TX, FL and NY, to hold any client money; records kept 5, 5, 6 and 7 years |
| Malpractice insurance | $500–$3,500/yr typical at one insurer; up to $6,500 in riskier areas; OR $3,500 assessment | Same day to weeks | Mandatory in Oregon; in California a written disclosure to each client if you go without |
| Business owner's policy and cyber | $57/month BOP and $175/month cyber medians (Insureon); general liability $29 | Same day | Not a license condition on the pages read; landlords and clients' contracts ask for it |
| Advertising review | FL $150 per advertisement filed 20 days before use ($250 late); TX $100 | 20 days before (FL); within 10 days of use (TX) | In Florida and Texas; the CA and NY pages read show no filing — only that nothing is false or misleading |
| Registered agent | $249/yr at one national service; $0 if you're your own | Same day | Where your entity needs an agent at a state address |
| Workers' compensation | $52/month median (Insureon) | Days | In most states once you hire — check yours |
| City business license | Varies by city | Days | Where your city requires one |
THE STEPS
How to start a law firm (step by step)
Eight steps from an admitted lawyer with a spreadsheet to a firm with a trust account, malpractice cover, a filed advertisement and a referral pipeline.
01
Read who may own a firm in your state
Before you take a partner, an investor or a management company, read your state's Rule 5.4: in California, Texas, Florida and New York a lawyer may not share fees with a non-lawyer or form a partnership with one to practice law. The entity you can use follows from it.
Before anything else02
Pick one practice area, and budget every line
The solos below chose the class they did best in, or the work they already knew. One built a spreadsheet of every expense from bar dues to computers before he opened; a practice-software vendor tells solos to hold six months of expenses.
03
Form the entity and register it with the bar
A Texas PLLC ($300), a California professional corporation ($100 plus the $265 law-corporation registration and the $800 minimum tax), a Florida professional association ($70) or a New York PLLC ($200, then two newspapers for six weeks and a $50 certificate) — and the free EIN.
04
Open the trust account and the operating account
A client trust account at a bank in your state, labeled as one, with every retainer and settlement in it and nothing of yours — and the records kept for five, six or seven years depending on the state. Reconcile it every month.
05
Buy malpractice cover before the first matter
One insurer's page puts a solo's premium at $500 to $3,500 a year; Oregon requires it at $3,500 through the bar's fund; California requires a written disclosure if you practice without it. Add a business owner's policy and cyber cover.
06
Set your fees within the rules
Hourly with a retainer, a flat fee per matter, or contingency where your state's schedule allows it — New York caps injury fees on a sliding scale, Florida at a third before an answer is filed and 40% after, California's medical cases at 25% to 33%. Bill only the time you spend.
07
File the advertisement, then put the website live
In Florida the advertisement goes to the bar 20 days before use with $150; in Texas within 10 days of first use with $100; everywhere, nothing false or misleading. Then the website with your practice areas, your bio and a consultation form, and the Google Business Profile.
08
Tell every lawyer you know, then ask for the review
The solos below got the first clients from other attorneys, former colleagues, classmates and hard-copy letters to everyone they knew; one gets over half his business from organic Google search. Ask for the review when the matter closes, within your bar's rules.
THE COSTS
How much does it cost to start a law firm?
The total is the plan page's sum for a solo: the bar fee, the entity and its registration, malpractice at one insurer's range, software at list price, a home-office setup, the advertising filing where your state charges for one, a registered agent if you aren't your own, and two months of running costs. The pages that price it, each labeled, run from a trade magazine's $3,000 to $5,000 lean launch and $25,000 to $50,000 with an office, to an insurer's $1,500 to $50,000. Checked October 2026.
$2,962–$34,052to start as a solo — the low end a new Texas lawyer at a home desk with free research through the bar, the high end a California professional corporation with a paralegal from day one
$500–$3,500a year for malpractice cover at one insurer's typical range for a solo; $6,500 in a riskier practice area; Oregon's mandatory fund charges $3,500
$598California's annual license fee; $265 in Florida, $385 in Illinois, $74 for a new Texas lawyer, $375 every two years in New York — the exam before it is $878, $450, $1,000 and $250
$50–$130a user a month for practice-management software at one vendor's list prices; research is free through the Florida and Texas bars and $1,140 a year to a Texas non-member
WHAT WE'VE LEARNED
What actually makes a client call a law firm
Thousands of local business websites in, the pattern for law firms is plain: the client wants to know you handle their kind of matter, what the first conversation costs, and that someone like them was treated well. Three things on a page decide who gets the call.
Your practice areas, and a phone number
The matters you take and the ones you don't, in plain words near the top, with a call button on every page — the first thing a client checks and the first reason they leave.
What the first conversation costs, and a way to book
Whether the consultation is free, your fee model in a sentence, your hours, and a consultation booking form that works on a phone at 10pm.
Your bio, your admissions and reviews in the client's words
A photo, where you're admitted, how long you've practiced, and reviews that mention a returned call or a clear fee — so the next client sees someone like them.
THE UPSIDE
What a law firm can earn
Pay from O*NET's 2025 survey; the contingency schedules from the rules themselves; the count from the ABA's 2025 profile. No openable page prints a survey of solo hourly rates or the top of the pay distribution, so neither is printed — a solo's income is fees collected less an overhead the owners above keep at a fraction of a firm's.
$159,670a year: the 2025 US median for lawyers (O*NET), $76.76 an hour, with faster-than-average growth to 2035 — the salary a solo gives up and the one to beat
$62,890a year: the 2025 US median for paralegals (O*NET) — the cost of the first hire, about $5,241 a month
33 1/3%of a recovery up to $1 million before an answer is filed, 40% after, under Florida's contingency schedule; New York's First Department caps a flat injury fee at 33% or a sliding scale from 50% to 25%
1.37 millionUS lawyers in 2025, up 5.6% in a decade (ABA Journal) — the referral network the solos above built their first year on
SEE IT WORK
Law firm website designs you can start from
All four are real Zarla templates. Open the one closest to your practice — personal injury, criminal defense, family law or estate planning — swap in your name, your practice areas and your own photo, and publish.
GET FOUND
Get found by the client who needs a lawyer this week
People search for a lawyer the day the papers are served, the week after the accident, and the night they decide to write the will — and they call the firm whose practice areas, bio and reviews they can read first. Zarla builds the website with a call button at the top, your practice areas and the area you serve, and a consultation booking form. Add your bio, your fee model and your bar admissions in chat, and once you connect your Google Business Profile, your Google rating and reviews show on the site.
“Lawyer near me”
Searched by someone served with papers, someone hurt last week, and someone finally writing a will. Your practice areas, the area you serve and a phone number at the top of the page answer it.
Google Business Profile
Your office, your hours, a photo of you and your reviews inside Google Maps — the listing a client taps before they read a word of your site. Free, and an afternoon to set up.
Reviews, within your bar's rules
Ask when the matter closes — and send the link that day. A review in the client's own words that mentions a returned call or a clear fee sells the next consultation; Florida's rule says it must be their actual experience, not drafted or paid for.
Google Search
Mmarstonreedlaw.com
Marston & Reed Law — Trusted law firm in Your AreaDivorce, custody and estate planning. Free first consultation; flat fees for wills. Call or request a consultation online.← Your Zarla siteCcitylawfirmservices.com
City law firm ServicesGoogle Maps
1
Marston & Reed Law
← You2
Metro law firm Co.
3
Quick law firm Services
AI assistants (ChatGPT / Perplexity)
For a family lawyer near me who offers a free first consultation in your area: Marston & Reed Law — a nearby firm that lists its practice areas, says whether the first consultation is free, shows the attorney's bio and bar admission, has recent reviews, and lets you request a consultation online.
YOUR LAUNCH PLAN
Your law firm launch checklist
The whole guide as things to check off. Work through them in order and you'll be admitted, formed, insured, compliant and findable before the first client sits down.
- Read your state's ownership rule — who may own, and which entity you may use.
- Pick one practice area and budget every line — six months of expenses in the bank.
- Form the entity, register it with the bar, take the EIN — PLLC, professional corporation or association.
- Open the trust account and the operating account — and set the monthly reconciliation.
- Buy malpractice cover, a BOP and cyber — or make the written disclosure your state requires.
- Set the fee model within the rules — hourly, flat or contingency on your state's schedule.
- File the advertisement where your bar reviews it — then website and Google Business Profile live.
- Tell every lawyer you know — and ask for the review when the matter closes.
REAL CUSTOMERS
Business owners who got online with Zarla
Verified reviews from real Zarla customers.
“Using Zarla to create my website saved me so much time and effort compared to hiring a developer. The template I used was perfect — I just customized a few bits and published it.”
“Quickly built my website from scratch. No hiccups. Would highly recommend Zarla for someone with no experience who wants to start a polished business website.”
“Very reliable, professional, and fast results. I was able to get my business online in no time, and the ease of access made it so simple.”
“I had no idea how to set up a website for my business. Thanks to Zarla, they've helped me a lot.”
Be the lawyer the next client calls first
Add your city and your firm's name, and Zarla builds the website from that one line — a call button at the top, your practice areas and the area you serve, and a consultation booking form. Add your bio, your fee model and your bar admissions in chat. Free to build; you pay when you publish.
Already have a website? Bring it across →Zarla keeps your old page addresses where it can and redirects the ones that change, helping you keep the Google standing you've built.
Frequently asked questions
How much money do I need to start a law firm?
In the US, about $2,962 to $34,052 for a solo, in the lines of our law firm business plan: the bar's annual fee ($74 for a new Texas lawyer to $598 in California), the professional entity and its registration ($70 for a Florida professional association to $1,165 for a California corporation with the bar registration and the $800 minimum tax), malpractice at one insurer's $500 to $3,500, practice software at $50 to $130 a user a month, a $1,000 to $2,000 home-office setup, the advertising filing where your state charges for one ($150 in Florida, $100 in Texas), a registered agent if you aren't your own ($249), and two months of running costs. The pages that price it, each labeled, say $3,000 to $5,000 for a lean cloud-first practice and $25,000 to $50,000 with an office (a trade magazine, June 2026), $3,500 to $50,000 (a software company, June 2025) and $1,500 to $50,000 (an insurer, March 2026) — and one vendor's advice is six months of expenses in the bank. Check your state bar's fees before you budget.
Do you need a license to start a law firm?
In the US, yes — admission to the bar of the state where you practice, which means the law degree, the bar exam (a $878 application in California, $450 for an in-state student in Texas, $1,000 in Florida, $250 in New York) and a character-and-fitness review, then the annual license or registration fee to stay active. The firm itself needs no separate license in the states above, but the entity is the professional form your state allows, a client trust account is required the day you hold client money, and Florida and Texas review your advertising. Check your state bar's admission and registration pages before you plan the opening.
Can a non-lawyer own a law firm?
In the US, mostly no. California, Texas, Florida and New York each say a lawyer or law firm shall not share legal fees with a non-lawyer, and California and New York add that a lawyer shall not form a partnership with a non-lawyer to practice law; California bars a professional corporation in which a non-lawyer holds any interest. Three jurisdictions bent the rule: the District of Columbia allows a non-lawyer partner who performs services that assist the firm's legal work, under conditions set out in writing; Arizona eliminated its Rule 5.4 effective January 1, 2021 and licenses alternative business structures; Utah's regulatory sandbox is closed to new applicants and sunsets in August 2027. New York's rules, as compiled in 2026, let a New York firm divide a fee with an out-of-state firm that has non-lawyer owners where that state permits it. Check your state's Rule 5.4 before you take an investor or a management company.
How do I open a law firm?
In order: read your state's ownership rule; pick one practice area and build the spreadsheet of every expense, as one Milwaukee solo did, with six months of expenses behind it; form the professional entity your state allows and take the free EIN; open the client trust account and the operating account at a bank in your state; buy malpractice cover before the first matter (or make California's written disclosure); set your fee model within the rules; file the advertisement where your bar reviews it; put the website and Google Business Profile live with your practice areas, your bio and a consultation booking form; then tell every lawyer you know. The solos quoted here got the first clients from other attorneys, former colleagues and hard-copy letters.
Can you start a law firm right after law school?
In the US nothing in the rules read here says you must work for another firm first — once admitted, you may practice. The solos quoted here disagree on whether you should: one went solo straight from law school in San Diego and gets most of her clients from other attorneys, one says all you need is an entity, liability insurance, a computer, a website and a home office, and a Florida practitioner says she would never recommend hanging out a shingle fresh out of law school. The ABA Journal's startup tips put it plainly: if you can work for another lawyer first, take it. Whichever you choose, the trust-account rule, the malpractice question and the advertising filing apply from the first client. Check your state bar's rules before you open.
Do I need a PLLC, an LLP or a professional corporation for my law firm?
In the US you may practice as a sole proprietor in the states read here; if you form an entity, it is the professional form your state allows, owned by lawyers: a Texas PLLC ($300), a California professional corporation ($100 to file, $265 to register with the State Bar, $106 a year to renew, and the $800 minimum franchise tax — California's LLC and LLP file for $70, but the rules on who may own the practice still apply), a Florida professional association ($70) or LLC ($125), or a New York professional service LLC ($200, then notices in two newspapers for six weeks and a $50 certificate of publication within 120 days). An entity never shields you from your own malpractice; that is what the insurance is for. Our general guide to whether you need an LLC covers the trade-offs; check your state bar's rules on the form.
What is an IOLTA account, and do I need one?
In the US a client trust account holds money that isn't yours — retainers, advances for costs, settlement funds — separate from the firm's operating money, and an IOLTA account is the pooled version whose interest funds legal aid. California's Rule 1.15 requires all client funds in an identifiable account labeled Trust Account, with records kept at least five years, and §6211 requires an IOLTA account for a firm that handles trust funds; the Texas Rule 1.14 requires a separate trust or escrow account with records kept five years; Florida's Rule 5-1.1 requires a separate, labeled, federally insured account with records kept six years; New York's Rule 1.15 calls the lawyer a fiduciary, bans commingling and requires seven years of records. Reconcile it every month; mishandling client money is the fastest way to lose a license. Check your state's rule for the bank and the records it names.
Is malpractice insurance required, and what does it cost?
In the US it is mandatory in Oregon — every licensee in private practice with a principal office there must carry the bar fund's cover, $3,500 a year in 2026 for $300,000 plus a $75,000 claims-expense allowance — and in California a lawyer without it must tell each client in writing at engagement (Rule 1.4.2). Idaho's bar pages wouldn't open for this guide. Elsewhere it is your choice, and no sensible solo goes without: one insurer's page puts the premium as low as $500 for a lawyer with no prior acts, $2,500 to $3,500 for a comprehensive policy with common limits, and up to $6,500 in a riskier practice area; Insureon's medians for lawyers are $57 a month for a business owner's policy, $175 for cyber cover, $52 for workers' compensation and $29 for general liability, and it can't quote malpractice at all. Check your state's rule on cover and disclosure.
What are the rules on advertising my law firm and asking for reviews?
In the US each state bar sets them, and two charge for the review. Florida: file a copy of each advertisement with the bar at least 20 days before first use, $150 on time and $250 late, and a client testimonial must be the client's actual experience, not drafted by the lawyer and not paid for — truthful ones are expressly permitted. Texas: file within 10 days of first use with the Advertising Review Committee and a $100 fee, or 30 days before for pre-approval. California: nothing false or misleading, any medium allowed, no live solicitation for gain. New York, as compiled by the state bar association through July 1, 2026: nothing false or misleading, a responsible lawyer named in every communication, and no live person-to-person solicitation for gain except to lawyers, people you know and business users of your services. Read your own bar's current rules before the website goes live and before you ask the first client for a review.
How much do lawyers make, and do lawyers make $500,000 a year?
Lawyers earned a 2025 US median of $76.76 an hour, $159,670 a year, with 863,700 employed and faster-than-average growth to 2035 (O*NET); a paralegal earned $62,890. O*NET prints only the median, and no page this guide could open carries the top of the distribution, so the honest answer to the $500,000 question is that some lawyers do and the typical lawyer does not. A solo's income is fees collected less overhead: one Manhattan Beach estate planner pays himself half of every dollar as it comes in, one Milwaukee solo runs at a tenth of a large firm's overhead, and one Colorado solo set out to work remotely and "not really earn that much money."
What is the 80/20 rule for lawyers?
The Pareto principle applied to a practice, not a rule of professional conduct: "20% of our efforts lead to 80% of our results; and 20% of inputs create 80% of outputs," as one legal marketing consultant put it in Attorney at Work in January 2024 — roughly a fifth of your clients and referral sources produce most of your revenue, so business development goes to them. It has nothing to do with the contingency schedules or the trust-account rules above, and no bar enforces it.
What can lawyers not bill for?
In the ABA's 1993 billing opinion, still the reference: "a lawyer may not bill more time than she actually spends on a matter, except to the extent that she rounds up to minimum time periods," may not charge "for overhead expenses generally associated with properly maintaining, staffing and equipping an office," may not bill the same hours to more than one client — "A lawyer who spends four hours of time on behalf of three clients has not earned twelve billable hours" — and may not re-bill recycled work: "A lawyer who is able to reuse old work product has not re-earned the hours previously billed." Alabama's 2005 opinion says the same of the library, malpractice insurance, rent and utilities: the client reasonably expects them inside the fee. Your state's rule on reasonable fees governs; check it before you set the schedule.
How do I get my first clients?
The lawyers quoted here got them from other attorneys who refer out conflicts and matters outside their area, from former colleagues and classmates, from hard-copy letters to everyone they knew, and from walking into offices to say they'd just started; one gets over half his business from organic Google search ten years in. Then answer what clients search for: your practice areas, whether the first consultation is free, your bio and your bar admissions, and a consultation booking form that works at night, on your website and your Google Business Profile, with a review asked for when the matter closes, within your bar's rules. Zarla builds the website from one sentence, with a call button at the top, your practice areas and the area you serve, and a consultation booking form.