Elise Buie is the founder and CEO of Elise Buie Family Law in Seattle, Washington. After losing everything in Hurricane Katrina, she rebuilt her life and career from scratch, bringing lessons in resilience and New Orleans hospitality to her practice.
Elise is a passionate and creative family law attorney who has lived the life you're living now, juggling the endless tasks of a lawyer and law firm owner while dreaming of something better. She grew her firm from six figures to multiple seven figures, navigating the pandemic and intentionally scaling back to ensure the firm operates with healthy numbers and a culturally aligned team.
WHAT'S COVERED IN THIS EPISODE ABOUT BUILDING A PROFITABLE LAW FIRM WITHOUT BURNING OUT YOUR TEAM
Most law firms measure success by billable hours and revenue growth. But what if the path to profitability runs through shorter workweeks, lower billable targets, and generous budgets for client gifts?
Elise Buie grew a family law practice from six figures to multiple seven figures while implementing policies that sound counterintuitive. Attorneys bill around 1,200 hours annually. Paralegals work 30-hour weeks while getting paid for 40. Team members receive bonuses for "unreasonable hospitality" rather than billing more hours. The firm maintains 30% profit margins with a three-times return on investment per employee, proving that you don't need to run your team into the ground to build a successful practice.
In this episode of The Lawyer's Edge podcast, Elise Holtzman speaks with Elise Buie about building a profitable law firm without sacrificing what matters most, including how to delegate effectively, why emotional intelligence is critical in family law, and what it really takes to create a culture where people bring their best selves to work.
2:32 - Rebuilding after Hurricane Katrina and how COVID tested the firm
5:39 - What unreasonable hospitality means and why it matters
8:49 - Why the firm bonuses people for client delight, not billable hours
11:48 - Hiring for alignment and emotional intelligence
13:30 - Why the firm turns away most applicants to find the right fit
16:56 - How the firm stays profitable with attorneys billing 1,200 hours a year
18:09 - Running the business by the numbers while keeping reduced hours
21:30 - Where the business knowledge came from (hint: lots of studying)
23:04 - Why daily data dashboards reveal problems before they become crises
26:14 - Why delegated work doesn't have to be perfect to be valuable
Mentioned In Scaling With Soul: Building a Profitable Law Firm Without Burning Out Your Team
Unreasonable Hospitality by Will Guidara
Elise Buie Family Law Group | LinkedIn
Get connected with the coaching team: hello@thelawyersedge.com
SPONSOR FOR THIS EPISODE
Today's episode is brought to you by the Ignite Women's Business Development Accelerator, a 9-month business development program created BY women lawyers for women lawyers. Ignite is a carefully designed business development program containing content, coaching, and a community of like-minded women who are committed to becoming rainmakers AND supporting the retention and advancement of other women in the profession.
If you are interested in either participating in the program or sponsoring a woman in your firm to enroll, learn more about Ignite and sign up for our registration alerts by visiting www.thelawyersedge.com/ignite.
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