“Not every lawyer needs a traditional office with a five-day-a-week commitment, but sometimes you really do need a professional place to go,” said the collective’s founder.
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Auburn lawyer Kathleen Reed recently opened an attorney co-working space alongside her own practice, Empire Law of Maine.
The Maine Law Collective, at 79 Main St. in downtown Auburn, offers attorneys a collaborative office environment without each having to take on the full cost and commitment of maintaining a traditional office.
Mainebiz: What’s your background?
Kathleen Reed: I transferred my law license to Maine after working for many years as a lawyer and educator in Washington State (also licensed in Georgia). I went through the admission-on-motion process rather than taking another bar exam, was sworn in and officially became a Maine attorney in April of this year.
MB: Where did you set up your practice?
KP: I live in Jay and do a lot of my legal work remotely. But “remote” doesn’t always mean working comfortably from a home office. I’ve found myself working out of my car between appointments, after court or while traveling to meet clients and get documents signed. Sometimes I just need somewhere other than a home office that is quiet and professional to take a call, meet with someone or get a few hours of work done.
That got me thinking that there are probably other attorneys who like the flexibility of remote practice but don’t always have an appropriate place to meet a client or work for a few hours. Not every lawyer needs a traditional office with a five-day-a-week commitment, but sometimes you really do need a professional place to go.
MB: What did you look for in a location?
KP: When I started looking for office space myself, I was surprised by how expensive some of the options were, particularly when I wanted something that felt welcoming and professional and big enough to spread out if needed. Then I found this space at 79 Main St. — the historic former Mechanics Federal Savings Bank building with an amazing
landlord who also shared my vision of a beautiful law office in his space. The location is perfect, with vintage “Old West” style architecture, a reception area with tall ceilings and interesting woodwork, private office space, shared workspace and conference areas, a bathroom and the original bank vault.
MB: How did the idea for a collective roll out?
KP: I didn’t want it to be simply a shared office. The goal is to create a place where independent attorneys can maintain their own practices, clients, fees and flexibility while having access to a professional office environment and, hopefully, a community of other professionals.
I met with representatives from the city of Auburn, the L/A Chamber of Commerce and the Maine Bar Association and everyone seemed very supportive of the plan. My family and friends helped us set up the office space and start advertising around the region. I’ve spoken with many other attorneys and we’ve received some great encouragement and some beginning mentors who have helped a lot with Empire Law LLC’s startup stages, too.
We are applying for grants and entering competitions for business ventures. We’re very much in the early stages. We launched the concept in July and are introducing it to the legal and business communities and figuring out what the local need looks like.
We’re hoping it becomes something attorneys tell other attorneys about.
MB: What’s the layout?
KP: It’s about 2,000 square feet, with a reception area and gathering space, a smaller conference room, a private office and a room with multiple semi-private workspaces.
MB: Investment and financing?
KP: My business account is hosting the expenses right now. Other businesses gave us good deals on desks, cubicles and chairs. We probably spent a couple of thousand dollars. Every law firm that joins would bring their own technology.
MB: Who is the membership pool likely to be?
KP: It could be newer attorneys who want to be part of a group of attorneys without joining a firm; someone who’s retiring but wants to have somewhere professional to meet clients; people visiting Auburn to go to court and need to use a desk.
MB: What are the benefits of a collective?
KP: For practitioners, it’s about flexibility and independence. An attorney can continue working remotely and running their own practice without having to maintain a full-time traditional office, while still having somewhere professional to meet clients or get work done. It’s also much less lonely to work in the sometimes highly stressful field of law when you have other people to bounce ideas off and encourage each other.
For clients, it gives their attorney another option. A lawyer doesn’t necessarily need to sit in a private office five days a week, but clients sometimes need a comfortable, professional place to sit down together. The collective is intended to provide that middle ground.
And it could bring more attorneys to the central Maine region, too. If attorneys can reduce some of their overhead and share resources, that might also make it easier for newer lawyers to establish practices and potentially take on more lower-cost or pro bono work.
