Forbes.com features Montage Legal Group’s journey from idea to reality in a recent article “How Two Stay-at-Home Moms Are Changing The Legal Industry” by Mamie Joeveer. Contributing author Mamie Joeveer states, “The goal was to manage life in a way to stay at home with their children, and at the same time remain in the legal profession. How to achieve that goal was a mystery at the time, but something that had to be accomplished. ‘It was a matter of necessity,’ says Erin Giglia, co-founder of Montage Legal Group.”
Montage Legal Group took that necessity and took action with Montage by creating a network where attorneys with impressive credentials can assist busy law firms hourly, and according to their schedules. Montage is highly selective. “The attorneys at Montage have worked in top law firms and graduated from top law schools. Giglia says she must feel confident in the people Montage is hiring. Giglia says trust is imperative. “We don’t see the substantive product,” she says. Montage must rely on feedback from firms to ensure the quality is at a high level—and so far, it’s been positive.”
Joeveer interviewed Jessica Coffin, a graduate from the University of Southern California Law School. She was an associate at Snell and Wilmer in Orange County, Calif., before she became a freelance attorney with Montage in 2012. Coffin says she could not imagine a better way to practice law. “We are doing real substantive work for an hourly rate that is usually in line with our training and practice, “ says Coffin.
She reached out to Montage as a path to help her continue practicing law and follow her husband, who is in the U.S. Navy Judge Advocate General’s (JAG) Corps. “We also have a five-month old son, so I feel extra fortunate that I can work from home while taking care of him,” says Coffin.” Other attorneys like Coffin who are mothers, fathers, military spouses or just looking for an alternative mode of practicing law now have the chance to work for law firms with flexibility through Montage, according to Coffin.
For smaller firms, like Kang, Spanos and Moos, LLP, Montage has become a game-changer by helping reduce the cost of legal services. Damian Moos, a partner at Kang, Spanos and Moos LLP, has worked with Montage the past two years and said their freelance attorneys allowed him to staff cases with excellent attorneys that typically come from top law firms. “Because I don’t have to carry an employee’s salary on payroll or accommodate a larger office space, I can keep my overhead down and offer my services at a lower price,” said Moos. “In terms of capability, I can compete with a larger firm. Yet in terms of cost, I’m probably substantially cheaper.”
Josh Abel, a partner at Abel Law Offices, a boutique practice in Aliso Viejo, Calif., says having the ability to get qualified attorneys to assist him in his projects on a rush basis has served him well. “Montage attorneys communicate effectively and have the ability to jump into a project, learn it quickly, and work on it as if they were there from the beginning.” Abel also says working with Montage allows smaller firms like his to take on larger cases without having to make a big commitment to a full-time employee.
Montage Legal Group is honored that Joeveer and Forbes.com chose to feature us. Our simple need – to stay in the legal field on a substantially reduced schedule – led to a simple goal – to bring value to the profession by bringing talent and need together. We’ve created a space for happy and talented lawyers to help busy law firms. The result is happy clients. Thank you Forbes!
To read the full article, please visit How Two Stay-at-Home Moms are Changing the Legal Industry.