Send us Fan Mail

Private equity isn't just knocking on your law firm's door anymore. It's already inside the building. In this episode, Sasha Berson welcomes back Tom Lenfestey, attorney, CPA, and founder of The Law Practice Exchange, for his second appearance on the show. Tom just published The Exit Blueprint, and he breaks down how new ownership rules in Arizona and Puerto Rico cracked the door open for outside capital, and what it actually takes for your firm to hit the numbers buyers want. They also swap real valuation stories, including Sasha's own business, which grew 16 times in value in just eight and a half years. Tune in today.

📰 About Tom Lenfestey:
Tom Lenfestey is an attorney, CPA, and the founder and CEO of The Law Practice Exchange (LPE), the marketplace and advisory firm built specifically for law firm sales, acquisitions, and succession planning. He launched LPE in 2013 after watching other professionals, like dentists and CPAs, plan structured exits that lawyers simply weren't given the tools to plan for themselves. Tom has guided attorneys through more than $350 million in law firm transactions, and his new book, The Exit Blueprint, lays out a stage-by-stage framework for planning, preparing, and executing a successful law firm transition.

👉 Sasha and Tom explore:
— The two states that changed who's allowed to own a law firm, and how this affects you
— The exact EBITDA number private capital wants to see before they'll even take your call
— Why some of the biggest platform plays are now chasing 20 million in EBITDA
— Why your marketing spend is really an investment in exit value, not just lead generation
— How a rushed exit can shrink a $2 million pipeline down to a $400,000 payout
— Which practice areas (after personal injury) are next in line for private capital

👉 Main Takeaways from the Episode:
— Audit your firm's EBITDA against Tom's benchmark: $5 to $10 million is the current minimum for the personal injury buyers active in the market today
— Redirect one marketing dollar this quarter toward brand-building instead of pure lead generation. Buyers pay multiples on the difference
— Schedule a professional valuation this year, even if you're not planning to sell for a decade

📞 Connect with Tom Lenfestey:
• Website: https://thelawpracticeexchange.com
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tomlenfestey

📞Connect with Sasha Berson:
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/grow-law/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/grow_law/
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@growlaw
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/growlaw
• Email: info@growlaw.co
• Phone: (954) 620-5521

#LawyerWebsite #LawyerSEO #LawFirmMarketing

If you enjoyed today’s show, please leave a review and subscribe so you never miss an episode. For more information and links to all of the resources mentioned in today’s episode, visit https://growlaw.co/

Send us Fan Mail

Most law firms grow 3 to 5% a year. This one grew 100% in 2024. In this episode, Sasha Berson sits down with A.J. Bruning, co-founder of The Bruning Law Firm, who started his firm in 2016 with four people and has since built it into a nearly 100-employee operation closing in on $50 million. A.J. breaks down why his first big decision was getting himself out of practicing law entirely, how one unusual hire gave them a *huge* edge in Google Ads (you have to hear this), and how he cut average case time from 18 to 10 months. They also dig into the private equity wave now hitting the legal industry. Is your firm on PE's radar? It might be! Tune in now.

📰 About A.J. Bruning:
A.J. Bruning is the co-founder of The Bruning Law Firm, the personal injury practice he launched in St. Louis in 2016 alongside his father and brother, starting with just one paralegal and a handful of cases. A former prosecuting attorney who tried 30 jury trials in four years, A.J. shifted out of the courtroom to focus on the firm's marketing, technology, and operations. Under his leadership, the firm adopted the Entrepreneurial Operating System, built its own case management system on Salesforce, and has landed on the Inc. 5000 list of fastest-growing companies. Today he's focused on turning the firm's data into what he calls a "layer of intelligence" powered by AI.

👉 Sasha and A.J. explore:
— How A.J. stepped away from practicing law to do *this* — and how it set them on track to hit $50M.
— How adopting the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS) made every department rigorously consistent
— Why buying leads across the entire state of Missouri (not just St. Louis) led to cheaper cases in less competitive markets
— How A.J. made an unusual hire to run Google Ads, and why it became one of their smartest recruits
— Why A.J. is building a "layer of intelligence" powered by AI on top of his firm's data

👉 Main Takeaways from the Episode:
— Audit your case data by stage. A.J. cut average case age from 18 months to 10 just by tracking it consistently.
— Map your BHAG backward. Write down where you want to be in five years, then work backward to today's systems, headcount, and marketing spend.
— Build a "layer of intelligence" on your data this quarter. Clean, organize, and centralize your data before layering AI on top of it.

📞 Connect with A.J. Bruning:
• Website: https://www.bruninglegal.com/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ajbruning/

📞Connect with Sasha Berson:
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/grow-law/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/grow_law/
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@growlaw
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/growlaw
• Email: info@growlaw.co
• Phone: (954) 620-5521

#LawyerWebsite #LawyerSEO #LawFirmMarketing

If you enjoyed today’s show, please leave a review and subscribe so you never miss an episode. For more information and links to all of the resources mentioned in today’s episode, visit https://growlaw.co/

Send us Fan Mail

Lawyers bill an average of just 1.8 hours a day. Where do the other 6 hours go? In this episode, Sasha Berson sits down with David Freeman, J.D., who has coached 10,000+ lawyers. David explains the *single-most important skill* you were never taught: how to turn relationships into revenue. He breaks down the "memory matrix" system to *never* lose a referral source, the "bio problem" costing lawyers new business, and the ChatGPT prompt to turn 2 referral sources into 10. BONUS: Hear the $100 bill trick that stopped millionaire partners from showing up late to meetings. Tune in today.

📰 About David H. Freeman:
David H. Freeman, J.D., is the founder of David Freeman Consulting Group and the creator of Lawyer BookBuilder®, an online training and accountability system built to turn lawyers into rainmakers. Over more than 30 years, he has trained and coached over 10,000 lawyers and worked with more than half of the Am Law 200. A member of the National Law Journal Hall of Fame, David has been voted the #1 business development coach and consultant in the U.S. for multiple consecutive years and has authored or co-authored 14 books on law firm growth and leadership. He's also the creator of BD Buddy, a gamified platform that sends lawyers weekly business development check-ins.

👉 Sasha and David explore:
— Why you must forget "success measures" (revenue) and focus on "progress measures" (the actions that drive it)
— David's "memory matrix" system to never lose track of a referral source
— The #1 thing your law firm bio is missing (it’s costing you new business)
— Why a quick video is far better than an email to build client relationships
— The $100 bill trick that stopped millionaire partners from showing up late to meetings

👉 Main Takeaways from the Episode:
— Audit your referral sources this month. If you have two or three, David's benchmark is to build toward ten over the next few years.
— Schedule one recurring block each week for a single business development habit, and track it with a simple yes/no check-in.
— Identify one relationship you've been managing entirely over email, and send a short video message instead this week.

📞 Connect with David H. Freeman:
• Website: https://davidfreemanconsulting.com
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidfreemanconsulting

📞Connect with Sasha Berson:
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/grow-law/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/grow_law/
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@growlaw
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/growlaw
• Email: info@growlaw.co
• Phone: (954) 620-5521

#LawyerWebsite #LawyerSEO #LawFirmMarketing

If you enjoyed today’s show, please leave a review and subscribe so you never miss an episode. For more information and links to all of the resources mentioned in today’s episode, visit https://growlaw.co/