November 2010, The Start
To quote the press release:
SEATTLE, Nov. 8 – Twenty percent of America’s lawyers practice in towns smaller than 50,000 population, but with the legal job market still in free-fall more lawyers than ever before are actively considering opening a small town or rural practice.In the absence of any current resources, LawyerAvenue Press, publisher of Solo By Choice, signed Bruce Cameron, a Minnesota-based solo practitioner, to author the first-ever handbook for new grads and unemployed BigLaw associates who dream about leaving the big city to practice law in a smaller, less frantically paced small town or rural community. Bruce, a popular law blogger (rurallawyer.com), balances his own small town practice by writing about practicing law in rural America, where, as he says,“… good neighbors are a mile down the road, the next lawyer is two towns over, and the nearest Starbucks is a good hour away.”To kick off the book project, Bruce has launched a nationwide search for small town/rural solos at all stages of their careers who are interested in sharing their insights and experiences practicing law in the heartland. To add your voice to the rural lawyering handbook, contact Bruce at b.cameron(at)cameronlawpllc.com for further information.
So, there it is, Rural Lawyer the blog is officially on its way to becoming Rural Lawyer the book.
December 2011, An Update
The manuscript is off to the publisher. My thanks go out to the 20 rural lawyers who took the time to share with me their insights and experiences.
March 2013, The Release
Well, it’s official - Becoming a Rural Lawyer is here. Like RuralLawyer the blog, RuralLawyer the book is designed to help you decide if you’re meant to practice in the 128,000 small towns dotting the US landscape. Becoming a Rural Lawyer looks at the myths of practicing in small towns, discusses emerging areas of rural practice, talks about the rhythms and (unwritten) rules of small town life, and includes advice, tips, and words of wisdom from rural lawyers from across the US.
Becoming a Rural Lawyer is available through Amazon.com (where I welcome your impressions of the book).
November 17, 2010 at 11:45 pm
I am President Elect of the South Dakota Bar Association and will take the reigns in June of 2011. One of the Bar’s projects will be to address the diminishing numbers of practicing attorneys in rural areas. The Chief Justice has written & spoken on this issue and labelled this issue as one of his concerns as well. Look forward to exploring this site for any pearls of wisdom on addressing this issue. Regards from here. Pat
September 23, 2011 at 2:02 pm
I grew up in a small town in eastern Kentucky, and had no intention of returning when I headed off to college. Fast forward seven and a half years (four years of undergrad and three years of law school), and I’m back in my home town practicing law.
The economy crashed my 1L year, so I had a few years to mentally prepare myself for lackluster job opportunities. I went to a good law school, did well, and was very active with Moot Court and the like….but graduation came and went and no job. So I moved back home after the bar to regroup and save money. I called an older attorney in town who works primarily for the local bank to see if I could clerk for him…After interviewing with him and his clients I got hired as an associate a week later. He wants to retire within the next five years, and has apparently been desperate to find someone to take his practice over. It isn’t the Big Law experience I was taught to hope for, but I’m learning a lot, and really enjoying being a small town lawyer.