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‘You need to be resilient and constantly evolving’
Resilience – and building strong client relationships – are key when starting your own firm, according to this hearing-impaired lawyer and author.
Lauren Croft
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Melisa Sloan is an author with over a decade of legal experience, as well as the principal of Madison Sloan Lawyers, which she established in 2016.
Ms Sloan has also just released her first book: Legacy: Taking care of the most important people in your life when you are no longer here – which provides guidance to getting your affairs in order. She said the prolonged Melbourne lockdown was the push she needed to get started.
“Over the course of my career in law, I found myself having similar discussions in client meetings; clients wanted guidance in how to choose an executor of their will, who the best person to be their children’s guardian is, how to make provision for their business assets, how to transfer their wealth in the most tax-effective manner and so on,” she said.
“The idea transpired that I could take the basis of these conversations and expand on them in my book, providing instant guidance to the reader of their most commonly asked questions.”
In addition to being a writer and established lawyer, Ms Sloan is a member of the Law Institute of Victoria and Victorian Women Lawyers and is on the Board of Directors of Deaf Children Australia. She said that although being hearing-impaired presented a number of challenges when starting her own firm, she was able to find solutions that worked for her.
“The biggest challenge I faced is that I literally started with no client place, so had to put myself out there and build strong, solid relationships with referral partners.
“Being hearing-impaired, I knew that litigation was going to be an area that would be difficult for me to serve the best interests of my client, so I focused on how best I can make a difference as a lawyer and found my niche in estates and probates, where I really thrive on the emotive element of assisting clients,” she said.
“Telephone calls can be somewhat challenging depending on the clarity of the caller’s voice but I have fantastic staff who screen all calls, and if they determine that I may struggle to comprehend the caller on the phone then they divert them to other methods of communication whether that is email, a Zoom, or face-to-face meeting.”
In terms of having to do more virtual meetings as a result of the pandemic, Ms Sloan added that it’s actually been beneficial to her practice.
“Given Melbourne’s lengthy lockdowns over the past 18 months, most of my meetings are conducted by zoom. I have found it is a fantastic method to utilise, particularly in instances where phone calls are difficult for me to hear and follow. So, in essence, this had been a positive element that has come out of COVID-19,” she said.
“There also appears to have been a shift with so much communication now happening by email as opposed to telephone these days that it has just naturally made it easier, although there does seem to be a constant tirade of emails in my inbox!”
Whilst the last 18 months have been arduous, Ms Sloan said that owning her own firm allowed her to build lasting relationships with her clients – and cited the importance of resilience.
“You need to be resilient and constantly evolving, particularly over the past 18 months when the world as we know it has dramatically changed,” she concluded.
“It is also important to have a good team around you who share the same vision and to provide a positive work culture. Clients really want to be heard, so listen.”
Lauren Croft
Lauren is a journalist at Lawyers Weekly and graduated with a Bachelor of Journalism from Macleay College. Prior to joining Lawyers Weekly, she worked as a trade journalist for media and travel industry publications and Travel Weekly. Originally born in England, Lauren enjoys trying new bars and restaurants, attending music festivals and travelling. She is also a keen snowboarder and pre-pandemic, spent a season living in a French ski resort.
