When I started Stephenson Law I didn’t have a single client. I hadn’t been in private practice long enough to build a client following, and I had no sales experience. So how did I build a business that made £17k in its first month and over £1m in its second year? This article breaks down the steps I took to win clients for my new law firm.

Making mistakes when you’re a lawyer can be catastrophic. As junior lawyers we hear horror stories of multi-million pound professional negligence claims and lawyers being struck off because they put a comma in the wrong place in a contract. The result – we are all terrified of making mistakes!

From leaving private practice to opening the doors of my own law firm. When I look back at those times now, I can see how much I’ve learned. About law, myself and business. Starting Stephenson Law has been the hardest thing I’ve ever done, but also the most rewarding and enjoyable.

In October 2020, a member of my team sent me the link to the Innovate UK ‘Women in Innovation’ award, suggesting I apply. At the time I didn’t know very much about Innovate UK and the work it does, and I’d never heard of the Women in Innovation Award, but I quickly realised it was something I needed to explore...

Before I started my business, selling wasn’t even on my radar. The ‘s’ word doesn’t really exist in the legal industry – it’s all about “BD” – and, even then, no-one actually teaches you how to do it. There’s a lot of talk about networking and pitching, but the concept of ‘sales’ in a law firm is pretty alien.