As year-end approaches and annual evaluations are on the horizon, many junior lawyers are reflecting on their work—their strengths, cases for which they provided valuable assistance, and areas for improvement.

Attorneys in their early years of practice can also take a look at their experience and skill sets to determine how that expertise can be marketed externally. Building a business as a lawyer is invaluable to a future career in private practice. The challenge is to become skilled in an area and to develop work in that practice, even while one's knowledge of the field is developing.

The following tips can help junior attorneys to successfully work toward these lifelong career goals and market their practices, comply with ethical obligations along the way, and hopefully even acquire clients to bring new business to the firm.

Network

Establishing one's expertise in the field and acquiring clients often starts with who you know. It is important to grow a network base, maintain connections, and meet people who may be in need of legal assistance and could turn out to be potential clients. This can start with the partners for whom junior attorneys do work in the office. Partners and other supervisors at an associate's firm can provide advice on how to further develop their skills in the law.

Sometimes the most crucial relationships to a budding attorney are mentoring relationships. Many lawyers attribute their success to the help, advice or support of mentors. Mentors can provide guidance to lawyers on the best steps forward, or even introduce their mentees to clients or other decision-makers who can help support and advance the mentee.

Networking grows from there. It is a good idea to attend local events, bar committee and school functions, and industry conferences. Volunteering is also a good way to meet others and discuss legal experience without placing high pressure on "sales" or finding new clients. Networking with law school classmates or former colleagues can help an attorney spread the word about their niche practice to identify opportunities. Attorneys looking to refine their area of expertise may also consider joining a specialty organization or bar committee. There are groups that focus on nearly every specialty within the law. Finding a group, becoming an active member or attending events can help an attorney grow a network, learn more about the area of law, and become a leader in the community.

Identify a Brand

Junior associates often obtain experience in a variety of transactional, regulatory or litigation matters to "get their feet wet" and learn what practicing is like in different legal fields. It makes sense, though, that as more junior associates advance, they may want to streamline their practice. Or, after a few years in one field, associates may recognize that type of work is not for them. That recognition can help materialize career path steps when preparing to shift to a new job or different field of law.

Regardless, developing a niche could be getting experience in a type of law (like employment or criminal defense), a particular industry (like energy or insurance), or even a particular statute or legal concern (like privacy or the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act). It may also be that the associate prefers plaintiff work over defense work, or desires to spend more time in the courtroom. As associates develop, they should consider whether a selected practice area is one that the practitioner enjoys but also is one with the potential for achievable growth. Sometimes there are geographical factors that can impact a niche practice. For example, intellectual property lawyers who primarily appear before the Patent Trial & Appeals Board may find that they are best served by choosing to practice in the Washington, D.C. area.

Increase Visibility

Online presence is a great way to increase one's visibility and profile, while beginning to market a lawyer's experience. There are multiple paths. Some develop robust followings on LinkedIn or other social media platforms. Some lawyers publish legal blog entries or articles on a nuanced or relevant topic, either to lure potential clients or to add credentials to an attorney's profile. Teaching continuing legal education courses or volunteering to speak on a particular topic on a seminar panel are other ways that lawyers sometimes present their knowledge on a topic to a wider audience.

Under Rule 7.4 of the California Rules of Professional Conduct, a lawyer shall not state that he or she is a "certified specialist in a particular field of law" unless that lawyer has undergone specific credentialing with certifying organizations. R. 7.4(a). However, a lawyer may communicate that he or she practices in particular fields of law and that the practice "specializes in, is limited to, or is concentrated in a particular field of law," so long as such communication is not false or misleading in violation of Rule 7.1. See R. 7.4(b). It is thus important for junior attorneys to ensure that any post or publishing of their experience comports with their ethical obligations.

This can be particularly difficult for attorneys in the early days of establishing a niche, where an expertise may be even less clear. Thus, attorneys should consult the applicable bar rules for their jurisdiction to determine what they can or cannot say about their growing expertise in an area.

Invest in What the Future Holds

A career path is not always a linear line. Finding the type of practice that one enjoys or finds rewarding can be a helpful guiding principle. Sometimes, when that rewarding position is pursued and established, the business development will follow suit.

Moreover, sometimes career development calls for lawyers to take detours in their careers in private practice. For example, lawyers who want to specialize in white-collar defense may decide to leave private practice to get experience working for the government before returning to private practice. Some of the most successful lawyers are those that embrace the journey and continually assess (and reassess) the path that is best-suited for their career goals.

By treating career development—and the building of one's brand and potential book of business—not as a chore but as the framework, junior attorneys can help take the steps that will lead to future success.