Jurisdiction isn’t only a authorized idea. It’s a vacation spot that exists within the type of an eponymous curated boutique, Jurisdiction Clothes in Potomac, Maryland, owned by household legislation legal professional Jessica Markham, founding father of the Markham Regulation Agency. In case you’re fascinated by studying what motivates a profitable legal professional to launch a second enterprise enterprise exterior the jurisdiction of her authorized apply, or how legal professionals with entrepreneurial aspect passions can do the identical, learn on.
Markham’s foray into possession started when she based her household legislation agency in 2015 which has since grown to 10 attorneys supported by a strong skilled group. The agency handles the complete spectrum of household legislation, together with many issues different corporations decline: worldwide parental kidnapping, interstate custody disputes, appellate work, adoption and guardianship, home violence issues, and certified home relations orders (QDROs). Not like many legislation agency house owners, Markham continues to actively apply legislation, attempting instances, mentoring associates, educating CLEs, and serving as a strategic useful resource inside the agency. However Markham stays agency about boundaries, limiting herself and her group to 9-5 workweeks to keep away from burnout.
As it will prove, these boundaries weren’t limits however as an alternative, the key to extra alternative. After the agency employed a director of operations, Markham discovered herself working fewer hours with out shedding momentum. However she nonetheless had artistic power. And so she requested herself, “What already exists in my life that I like, perceive, and do instinctively?”
The reply was vogue. For years, Markham had adopted runway exhibits, learn vogue publications, suggested buddies on purchases, and thought deeply about high quality, longevity, and private fashion. Style was not a distraction from her work; it was how she recharged.
As soon as Markham selected a retailer as an outlet for her ardour, the enterprise got here collectively at a exceptional tempo. First, Markham spoke with three boutique house owners and an online-store proprietor to collect intelligence on the expertise of beginning and operating a retailer. By February 2023, a month later, Markham had an internet store up and operating however rapidly realized that it didn’t present the expertise she wished to create. So, in June, Markham pivoted to a brick-and-mortar boutique providing a personalised, relationship-based purchasing expertise that merely didn’t exist within the D.C. space. Jurisdiction Clothes opened in October 2023, simply 5 months later — so rapidly that Markham had to make use of her legislation agency as a staging space for garments till the shop may get hold of needed permits to open.
To run the shop’s day-to-day operations, Markham employed a retailer supervisor who was launched by a good friend. The shop can also be staffed by part-time employees and faculty college students in the course of the holidays. Turnover is minimal since workers are paid above market, supplied advantages, and given stability uncommon in retail.
Legal professionals in the local people are a supply of enterprise, as is foot site visitors within the busy purchasing heart the place the shop is situated. Jurisdiction additionally hosts after-hours gatherings that mix purchasing with group and philanthropy. Clients choose charities to obtain a proportion of proceeds. As a substitute of conventional Black Friday reductions, the shop directs funds to native nonprofits, reinforcing values over quantity.
I interviewed Markham at Jurisdiction, which gave me a firsthand take a look at the boutique’s jam-packed assortment of distinctive clothes — objects hardly ever present in chain shops — and the surprisingly big range for such a small store. The house can also be full of equipment bought from women-owned manufacturers and different distinctive reward objects. The shop had a number of prospects whereas I used to be there and I watched as Andi, the shop supervisor, skillfully supplied personalised suggestions and strategies to them. The shop contains a neon signal, “We’re all lovely,” which Markham mentioned displays the shop’s philosophy.
Regulation agency house owners like Markham have distinctive benefits in different entrepreneurial areas. In Markham’s view, operating a legislation agency is, in some ways, extra complicated than operating a retailer, with extra shifting components, increased stakes, and fixed moral and operational calls for. However that complexity additionally builds transferable expertise. Success in each environments is determined by understanding folks, utilizing information, leveraging know-how, and – critically — figuring out when and the right way to delegate.
Markham’s story underscores a broader level: legislation agency possession could be a basis, not a constraint. The identical expertise that permit legal professionals to construct sustainable practices — judgment, self-discipline, delegation, and an understanding of individuals — may also help ardour tasks past the legislation. For legal professionals who’ve imagined a life exterior the jurisdiction of the legislation, Markham’s expertise is a reminder that it’s attainable.
Carolyn Elefant is likely one of the nation’s most acknowledged advocates for solo and small agency legal professionals. She based MyShingle.com in 2002, the longest-running weblog for solo practitioners, the place she has printed hundreds of articles, assets, and guides on beginning, operating, and rising impartial legislation practices. She is the creator of Solo by Alternative, extensively thought to be the definitive handbook for launching and sustaining a legislation apply, and has spoken at numerous bar occasions and authorized conferences on know-how, innovation, and regulatory reform that impacts solos and smalls. Elefant additionally develops sensible instruments just like the AI Train-In to assist small corporations undertake AI and he or she constantly champions reforms to degree the enjoying discipline for impartial legal professionals. Alongside this work, she runs the Regulation Workplaces of Carolyn Elefant, a nationwide power and regulatory apply that handles selective complicated, high-stakes issues.
