Episode 86-Career and Life Lessons from Jim Durham-A Pioneer in Legal Marketing

Counsel to Counsel - Career Advice for Lawyers

I met Jim Durham in the early 1990s when legal marketing was just taking off in law firms. For decades before, law was thought of more as a profession. And while it is still very much profession, there has been a dramatic shift in the way law firms think about marketing.

While there a few remaining firms that rely on longstanding institutional relationships to keep associates and partners busy, most firms today are actively looking for ways to promote their reputations. The most successful and most highly compensated lawyers are the ones who have figured out how to create a niche and build strong relationships with potential clients and referral sources.

In the late 1980s and early 1990s when law firms began hiring marketing professionals and lawyers began working with outside marketing consultants and coaches, I had the good fortune to meet some of the pioneers in this new field. One who really made an impression on me was my guest , Jim Durham.

I recently reconnected with Jim and spoke to him about my work with senior lawyers who are trying to figure out their next stage. Jim is someone who has reinvented himself numerous times in his career. As I learned more about his back story, I realized that Jim was a story waiting to be told.

Jim has been a partner at a major law firm, a sports agent, a Chief Marketing Officer for several major law firms, an outside marketing consultant and inspirational speaker, and an internal marketing executive for MLB.Com , the online arm of major league baseball. Today, Jim Durham is the Chief Operating Officer at Verrill, a large regional firm that has its roots in Portland, Maine.

But his origins would not suggest that he would be where he is today. Listen to his story and hear his inspiring life lessons and valuable advice for being successful in your legal career, whatever path you choose.