I had the chance to talk with Patrick Patino recently — founder of Patino Law Office, a small business law firm serving Minnesota and Nebraska. Patrick started the firm in 2020 with a clear goal: run a fully virtual practice and make the legal experience feel easy. He's also the host of The Newfangled Lawyer podcast, now 70 episodes in.
I asked Patrick what led him to start his own firm.
"I wanted to deploy technology and make the legal experience feel easy. The law is the law, but what clients remember most is how they felt while they went through the process. It's not outcome driven — it's experience driven."
He's tried just about every structure along the way — full-time paralegal, contract attorneys, distributed teams across multiple states, support staff overseas. Seven iterations in six years. Right now it's Patrick and a part-time law clerk.
"For any of these ways, there's not necessarily a better or a worse. It's kind of what works for you and the lifestyle you want to have outside of practicing law."
We talked about what shapes how he leads.
"My leadership style is very trusting and allowing people to come up with ideas and make mistakes and not micromanage that."
He sees the practice of law as a living, breathing thing.
"The needs of clients shift and change over time, the needs of your team shift and change over time, the technology shifts and changes. If you get too locked into 'we've always done it that way,' you might miss some really key opportunities that can push you forward."
We also talked about how he shows up.
Patrick's brand is him — backwards hat, hoodie, approachable. He brought that into his law practice about two years ago and something unexpected happened. His Google reviews started mentioning how professional he was.
"People like trust and communication and relationship building. If you can break down any preconceived barrier to legal services, it really starts with showing up as yourself."
I asked for his advice for lawyers who want to start their own firm.
"You're closer than you think. You don't have to have everything figured out at all, actually. Do what resonates with you. Do the thing that brings you joy, maybe the thing that comes easy to you. Being a lawyer is hard enough, and we kind of avoid things that come naturally. And it's okay to do the thing that comes naturally."
Are you a small business owner in Minnesota or Nebraska looking for approachable, no-nonsense legal help? Connect with Patrick Patino, check out Patino Law Office LLC and his podcast The Newfangled Lawyer.