Eric Williams on Wayne Alumni Law Group
By Steve Thorpe
sthorpe@legalnews.com
Wayne State University Law School has created the nonprofit firm Wayne Alumni Law Group to help new attorneys gain experience and also assist Detroit entrepreneurs. Wayne Law Assistant (Clinical) Professor Eric Williams is firm director of the new venture. He also directs the Program for Entrepreneurship and Business Law and previously worked in New York in private practice. Williams also has worked in the nonprofit sector as director of development at the Health and Welfare Council of Long Island and as senior program developer at Focus: HOPE in Detroit.
Thorpe: When and how did the idea for the firm get started?
Williams: The idea of an incubator arose from the faculty’s recognition that legal education had to address changes in the economy and legal market, in fact in the very nature of legal practice. So, in addition to increasing experiential learning opportunities in law school, we decided to go a step further and recreate the apprentice model of post-graduate legal education. The focus on entrepreneurship evolved naturally from Wayne’s commitment to Detroit. The city has embraced the potential of entrepreneurship to foster economic development, and we saw an opportunity to expand that potential by making legal services more affordable. Just as important, the firm will serve as a hub to connect clients with a variety of support services, helping them assemble a team that can build a solid business from a great idea. Big picture, our goal is to make Detroit the place to start a business, whether it’s a café or a tech company, because we have the technical expertise to make it happen.
Thorpe: What are the goals of the program?
Williams: The program serves and engages several distinct constituents and has distinct goals for each. We want to enrich the legal experience of the associates; we want them to walk out able to successfully run a modern law practice. We also want to make sure that people with great ideas don’t fail because they can’t afford a good business lawyer or business consultant.
Thorpe: Tell us a bit about the first four associates.
Williams: Rula Aoun (Wayne Law class of 2014) was awarded the Collins Family Fellowship, which provides a $20,000 stipend to a Wayne alum with a demonstrated interest in business law and entrepreneurship. She was one of my students last year in the Business and Community Law Clinic and showed early on that she not only liked business but just “got it” — that was impressive.
Chris Banerian (2014) was also one of my clinic students. He was not only a great student but also always really engaged in business law activities outside the classroom.
Bonnie Smith (2013), a patent lawyer, was a standout in the first Patent Procurement Clinic.
Henry Ibe (2014) came to the business side in an unusual way. He started out focusing on immigration but developed a love and feel for business law. His immigration experience will add a lot to our practice.
Thorpe: How will your billing differ from other area law firms?
Williams: We are going to lean heavily on flat fees and subscription services. Many startups avoid using a lawyer until it’s too late because they don’t feel they have control over the cost in an hourly fee model. Where we do use hourly fees, we will be billing between $75 and $125 an hour, which is about half the going rate for what we do.
Thorpe: How can alums and local attorneys support the program?
Williams: The firm relies heavily on the legal and professional expertise of local practitioners as professional mentors and volunteer consultants. And, of course, as a startup ourselves, we’re always in need of financial support. For more information about how you can help, contact me at eric.williams@waynealumnilawgroup.org.
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