DIVERSE LAWYERS NETWORK ASSOCIATION FOCUS
BY BRIAN DABBS
AS U.S. VIRTUAL LAW FIRMS CONTINUED TO GROW IN NUMBER AND STRENGTHEN IN STATURE OVER THE PAST FEW YEARS, Dalhi Myers saw the advantages of an untraditional law practice. But it was not until a few months ago that Myers, a seasoned and accomplished law professional, offi cially decided to jump into the fray. In July, she launched a virtual law fi rm out of a modest 1,300 sq. ft. offi ce in Columbia, S.C.—roughly the size of a two-bed, two-bath townhouse. And through the fi rm, she is pushing law fi eld boundaries past the standard virtual framework. Dubbed the Diverse Lawyers Network (DLN), the project
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addresses some of the most pressing issues of a law fi eld in sociological and technological fl ux. On top of its virtual operations, the fi rm embraces diversity and inclusion as elemental to its character. DLN is the fi rst to forge the union of diversity and virtual law practice under one banner. T e fi rm off ers an alternative to traditional law fi rms
that continue to struggle in hiring, retaining, and promoting diverse attorneys. It also aims to provide com- petitive client fees, made possible through a reduction in overhead. Myers, a for- mer partner at Haynsworth Sinkler Boyd, P.A., and the three other equity partners are setting ambitious goals. DLN targets the acquisi- tion of, at minimum, fi ve Fortune companies annu- ally over the fi rst three years of operation. T ey are recruiting only BigLaw and Ivy League talent with experience and success. “We are not a training
enterprise. This is not for lawyers right out of law school. This is designed to serve the clients we, as lawyers, have always served ,
just more economically and advanced technologically,” said Myers, noting DLN recruits all have experience work- ing with Fortune® 1000 Companies, the globe’s largest, highest revenue-generating corporations. “My entire legal career has been spent representing companies that are part of the, let’s say, Fortune 50. T at’s what we are good at. We do complex work.” Myers, who also runs her own Myers LLC fi rm out of
Columbia, touts DLN as a “one-stop shop” for all corporate legal services. T e fi rm will place attorneys in-house at client destinations for a specifi ed, short-term stint. DLN will also off er outsourcing opportunities for commercial contracts, derivatives agreements, multi-jurisdictional real estate matters, employment law, and other work. And the fi rm will take on the same variety of t raditional projects that standard bricks-and-mortar law fi rms do. DLN will function largely through its website and online
“ THE BILLABLE HOURS MODEL IS ON ITS LAST LEGS, AS EVERYONE KNOWS. IT’S ON LIFE SUPPORT.” —DALHI MYERS
correspondence among attorneys and clients. Aside from the four shareholders, a secretary and an IT team, the fi rm will operate through indepen- dently contracted attorneys. At its inception, fi fteen independent attorneys were working in conjunction with DLN, while balancing roles elsewhere in the law fi eld. DLN hopes to have 50 independent contractors on the roster by its third year. Myers brings unique
Dalhi Myers and Kandance Weems Norris are hoping the DLN takes off.
DIVERSITY & THE BAR® SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2013
insight into both the in-house and law practice angles of the profession. Prior to joining Haynsworth Sinkler Boyd, the South Carolina native under- took a Hong Kong-based, seven-year stint with MCI WorldCom Asia Pacifi c that she concluded in 2002 as Regional Director of Legal and Regulatory Aff airs.
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