Erin Giglia, a founder/owner of Montage Legal Group, was interviewed by Market Mommy, a blog about mothers who create successful businesses while raising their children. Erin was selected to be part of a series called “Achieving $uccess” about mom entrepreneurs who are able to balance starting a new business and raising a family. Below is an excerpt from her Market Mommy Interview.
Market Mommy:: When and why did you found your business?Erin Giglia:: We are Laurie Rowen and Erin Giglia, the founders and owners of Montage Legal Group, LLC. We formed Montage Legal Group in 2009 after Laurie and I both voluntarily left practicing law at a large law firm. Laurie had been practicing for 5 years and had a one year old baby, and I had been practicing for 8 years and had a 3 year old and a one year old. We both felt that the traditional law firm business model did not fit well into our ideal roles as mothers, so we decided to create a new model with more flexibility. In the process we, somewhat inadvertently, formed a company focused on supporting other attorneys in similar situations to ours. Our company, Montage Legal Group, allows attorneys to remain in legal practice by doing freelance legal projects from home for other law firms, while they tend to family needs, each on their own schedules. Montage Legal Group also assists attorneys who are re-entering the legal practice after a long absence due to caring for young children. Successful female attorneys do have many resources available to them, especially when in large law firm practice. But, this often changes when we alter our priorities after having children. Montage Legal Group tries to support these educated, high-achieving women as they transition to a very different and unfamiliar situation.
Market Mommy:: How long did it take before you felt successful?
Erin Giglia:: Not long at all! All it took was having attorneys contact us wanting to join, as well as overwhelmingly positive feedback from our clients.
Market Mommy:: How do you define success?
Erin Giglia:: Success for us is providing our law firm and attorney clients with exceptional attorneys while giving Montage Legal Group attorneys the ability to practice law and tend to family (and without the crazy 2000 hour required billing at a traditional law firm). Our clients typically need and want excellent attorneys, but often cannot afford to hire someone full time. Montage Legal Group attorneys are available for the exact amount of legal work the client needs, and at a great price.
Market Mommy:: How do you balance parenting with running your business?
Erin Giglia:: We rely on each other quite a bit, and since the work we do is done from home and/or while our children are at school, we can fit it in well with our schedules. We also learned how to be incredibly efficient in law school and in legal practice, especially for me after practicing at a large law firm with two babies under 3-years-old.
To read more of Erin Giglia’s interview, click here. For more information on the creator of Market Mommy, Meet Dawn Berryman.