Law Firm Partners & Leaders
Private Advisory & Coaching Services for Lawyers
With Lauren Paxton | Professional Coach for Lawyers
Former Law Firm Partner | Former Federal Prosecutor
Private Coaching is confidential and customized to each client’s personal and professional goals, not the priorities and expectations of others.
Coaching is a place where lawyers can “zoom out” from daily demands and think strategically about how use their time, influence, and energy. Coaching sessions deliver perspective, heightened self-awareness, and improved presence.
Common Topics for Coaching
Leading People: Building trust, inspiring performance, and leading with clarity across different work styles, generations, and personalities.
Communication & Influence: Communicating effectively and with authority, giving feedback and handling difficult conversations timely and with confidence.
Delegation & Trust: Building strong, independent teams, letting go of micromanagement, and focusing on your highest-value work.
Process Improvement: Streamlining daily operations including entering time, invoicing clients, assigning work, maintaining to-do lists, leading meetings, handling feedback and revisions, and managing workload.
Decision-Making: Cutting through complexity and leading with sound judgment, even when the stakes are high or the issues are novel.
Presence & Gravitas: Cultivating a presence of credibility and calm, both within and outside your firm.
Resilience & Wellness: Leading sustainably by being mindful of the impact of your energy and health on your work.
Navigating Change: Thriving despite uncertainty, whether in adopting new technology, shifting team structures, or responding to changes in the market.
The Coaching Experience
Coaching gives lawyers a confidential space to reflect and strategize. A coach acts as a lawyer’s:
Sounding Board: A confidant with supportive yet honest and direct perspective.
Personal Advisor: A trusted advisor who understands the client’s unique challenges and opportunities, and who is invested in the client’s success.
Thought Partner: A personal strategist, who holds the client’s agenda and helps the client align his or her time with what matters most to them.
Working with Lauren
Lauren Paxton is a practicing lawyer, former law firm partner, and former federal prosecutor who understands the high-pressure, high-performance culture of the legal profession. Lauren’s coaching draws on her advanced coaching training, as well as her vast experience as a Chambers & Partners-ranked employment lawyer, advising executives, management teams, and lawyers on workplace culture and leadership challenges. Lauren has held a number of leadership positions within and beyond the legal profession, including heading up the Employment Practice at a top firm, serving as a Bar Association Section Chair, serving on the Board of Advisors for an HR-industry company, leading Business Development Training in private practice, and Leading a Task Force of federal agents during her time as an AUSA.
Coaching in Action
A few examples from Lauren’s Coaching…
Colleagues With Different Standards
A law firm partner is frustrated working with a colleague who has different standards for work product. In coaching, the partner identifies his values at issue and explores several approaches to set boundaries, put accountability checks in place, and ensure that the work product meets his standards while preserving the relationship with his colleague.Managing a Team Through Personnel Change
A law firm leader facing the departure of a group of lawyers from her practice group has to emotionally detach from her remaining colleagues to keep her focus and navigate the big change. Coaching sessions focus on striking a balance between her needs and the responsibility of supporting her group and handling ongoing matters.Difficult Conversations with a Colleague
An leader has been avoiding a difficult conversation with a colleague. Coaching supports the client in approaching the conversation in his own style, while also conveying the message effectively.Dynamics with Non-Lawyer Colleagues
A leader experiences frustration and feels insulted when his non-lawyer counterparts are slow to respond to his outreach and do not communicate as effectively as he expects. Coaching helps the leader consider different strategies for communication and collaboration, while also getting clear on, and depersonalizing, their limitations.Building a More Effective Leadership Presence
A lawyer transitioning to a leadership role struggles with “trying” to be confident and maintaining authority. Coaching helps the client develop a more confident yet authentic presence and communication style.
Interested in Coaching for yourself or your team?
Try a One-Time Drop-In Coaching Session, or Contact us to learn more about our programs.