How Lawyers Caught the ‘Entrepreneur Bug’
Lawyers who left legal careers to start their own businesses tell the National Law Journal they realized their interests lay elsewhere.
David Galbenski left legal practice after just four months to create a legal staffing company now called Lumen Legal. “I didn’t dislike practicing law; it was just that I always had this entrepreneur bug,” he told the NLJ. “A lot of people go to law school not really understanding what it means to practice law and how that impacts your life.”
Lance Broumand and Aric Lavinthal left Willkie Farr & Gallagher after their in-house entertainment newsletter gained popularity and circulation. Now they are publishing a similar newsletter for high-paid professionals across the country called UrbanDaddy.
Broumand told the NLJ he enjoys his new line of work more than law practice. “My understanding of being a lawyer came from TV and movies. It didn’t turn out to be so sexy,” he said. “It was a challenge for me to sit behind a desk, thinking, ‘Should I use a semicolon or a comma?’ “
Charles Volkert, executive director of Robert Half Legal, warns that few lawyers want to take the risk of starting their own business. “You have to be entrepreneurial to go out on your own, end of story,” he told the NLJ.
