WHAT MAKES BROWNLEE DIFFERENT FROM OTHER FIRMS
Brownlee is organized differently than most firms, which influences everything from the mentorship you’ll receive as a student right up to your client relationships.
We have a unique approach at Brownlee. As opposed to the more traditional structures of, and approaches to, the operation of law firms, we treat our clients as if they are clients of the firm, not of any particular lawyer. This ensures that we are much more than a collection of practitioners (even sole practitioners) working under one name. Rather, we are an organized legal business, not only in name, but in all aspects of how we practice and interact with each other under one name.
In our experience, this approach to the operation of our firm nourishes mentorship, best serves clients and client needs, and promotes the development of strong, healthy internal relationships. Under the “firm client” approach, and our resulting organization into practice groups, each lawyer is encouraged to develop an expertise in his or her practice areas of interest, which ought to be areas of practice in which they have a personal interest or even a passion to pursue.
This client-centred philosophy allows our lawyers to more quickly become highly knowledgable in each of their chosen fields, be constantly engaged and invested in their work and interests, and ensures that lawyers are not required to dabble in other areas of the law in order to meet clients’ needs.
Because more traditional approaches to legal businesses often measure a lawyer’s worth to the firm by the clients they keep or keep happy, that lawyer may be — and often is — expected, motivated, or even required by the circumstances to meet all needs of a client, and may consequently become a jack-of-all-trades.
Our approach provides clients with a lawyer whose legal knowledge matches their particular issue or concern. Our clients know that when they contact Brownlee, they can contact any one of us and that they will be referred to the practice group, and ultimately the specific lawyer who is best able to address their legal needs. Our structure isn’t just good for our clients — it’s good for our students, too.
As a student at Brownlee, you will work with a team of lawyers invested in your development as a lawyer. Instead of becoming a single cog in a larger wheel and a potential future competitor within the firm and the community of clients that you are exposed to, our approach emphasizes the successes of the team and the firm in general. Because our lawyers are focused on their practice areas, you will have the opportunity to be mentored by some of the leading practitioners in these fields.
Best of all, because of our client-centred philosophy, the lawyers at our firm want you to become skilled and to develop close contact with clients. This ensures that you can help build upon the successes achieved to date, allowing the senior practitioner to pass the torch to the more junior lawyers. This also ensures that the senior practitioners have the support needed to allow them to take up new opportunities, and further develop existing or new practice areas for the firm.
Our students and Junior Associates are encouraged to focus on their own education and development by our approach to the business of law, not merely to focus on client recruitment or, worse yet, on competing with each other.
Because our clients are firm clients, there’s room for everyone to succeed. We have seen that this structure fosters a philosophy of collaboration and cooperation rather than competition, which is best for our students and lawyers, as well as our clients.