Should You Join or Start an Attorney Networking Group?

Most attorneys, especially solos, eventually want a group of peers, a set of colleagues to exchange referrals with, talk through problems, and provide mutual support and accountability. The question is how to get one: join a group that already exists, or start your own. Each path has real advantages and drawbacks, and choosing the wrong one can mean either forcing yourself into a group that does not fit or taking on the substantial work of building one you did not need to.

The right answer depends on what is available and what you want. This article covers why attorneys want a peer group, the benefits and downsides of joining an existing one versus starting your own, and how to decide between them, so you end up with the peer community you are looking for through the path that fits your situation.

Should You Join or Start an Attorney Networking Group?

Join an existing group if a good one fits your needs, since it takes far less effort; start your own if no suitable group exists or you want control over who is in it and how it runs. The decision hinges on whether a good group is available to you and how much you value control versus convenience.

Joining is the easier path when a well-run group with the right people already exists, because you get the benefits without the work of building. Starting your own makes sense when nothing available fits, when you want a group tailored to your specific needs and composed of people you choose, or when you value being central to the group. Both can deliver the peer community you want; they simply differ in effort and control. The first question is always whether a good existing group is available, since if one is, joining is usually the more efficient route to what you want.

Why Do Attorneys Want a Peer Group?

For referrals, support, learning, and accountability. A group of trusted peers provides several things attorneys, particularly solos, otherwise lack, which is why so many seek one out. The group becomes a source of mutual benefit across multiple dimensions.

Peer groups generate referrals, since members send each other work and know each other well enough to refer confidently. They offer support and camaraderie, a set of colleagues who understand the challenges of practice and can be a sounding board. They facilitate learning, as members share knowledge and experience. And they can provide accountability, helping members follow through on goals. For a solo without the built-in community of a firm, a peer group supplies much of what a firm's colleagues would, which is a significant benefit. Understanding what you want from a group, referrals, support, learning, accountability, or all of these, helps you evaluate whether an existing group fits or whether you should build one that provides it.

What Are the Benefits and Downsides of Joining?

Joining gives you a ready-made group with far less effort, but you may not control the fit. The great advantage of joining an existing group is that the hard work of building it is already done: the group exists, has members, and has its structure and rhythms established, so you simply become part of it and start benefiting. For most attorneys, this efficiency is compelling.

The downsides are about fit and control. An existing group may not perfectly match your needs, its members may not be the ideal peers or referral sources for you, and it comes with established dynamics and norms you join rather than shape. You are also dependent on the group being well run by others. If a good group exists that fits your needs reasonably well, these downsides are minor next to the benefit of a ready-made community. But if no available group fits, or the ones you find are poorly run or full of the wrong people, joining may not give you what you want, which is when starting your own becomes worth considering.

What Are the Benefits and Downsides of Starting Your Own?

Starting gives you control over the people and structure but requires real work to build and sustain. When you start a group, you decide who is in it, choosing peers and potential referral sources who are the right fit for you, and you shape its structure, focus, and norms to serve your goals. You also become central to the group, which carries reputational and relationship benefits.

The cost is effort. Starting a group means recruiting members, organizing it, and doing the ongoing work of sustaining it, which is substantial and continuous. Groups also require momentum to stay alive, so as founder you carry much of the responsibility for keeping it going. This work is worthwhile when it produces a group tailored to your needs that no existing option provides, and when you value the control and central role. But it is not trivial, so starting your own makes sense mainly when the benefits of a custom group and your central place in it outweigh the significant work of building and maintaining it. If a good group already exists, that work is usually unnecessary.

How Do You Decide?

Ask whether a good existing group is available that fits your needs; if so, join it, and if not, consider starting one. The decision reduces to a practical assessment of your options. Look for existing attorney groups, through your bar, your community, and your network, and evaluate whether any are well run, composed of suitable peers, and aligned with what you want.

If you find a good group that fits reasonably well, joining is almost always the better choice, since it delivers the benefits without the burden of building. If nothing available fits, whether because no relevant group exists, the ones you find are poorly run, or none has the right people, then starting your own becomes worth the effort. Also weigh how much you value control and a central role, which favor starting, against your available time and appetite for the work, which favor joining. For most attorneys, checking for a good existing group first, and only starting one if none fits, is the sensible order. The goal is the peer community, not the founding of a group, so take the easier path to it when you can.

How Do You Make Either One Work?

Commit to it, ensure the right people are involved, and give it enough structure to sustain itself. Whether you join or start a group, its value depends on the same things: genuine participation, good members, and enough structure to keep it alive. A group you join but never engage with, or start but let fizzle, provides little.

Commit to showing up and contributing, since a peer group rewards active participation and withers with passive membership. Ensure the group has the right people, trustworthy, engaged peers who make it worthwhile, whether you are joining an existing set or recruiting your own. And give it enough structure, a regular meeting rhythm and some shared purpose, to sustain momentum, since unstructured groups tend to drift and fade. These factors determine whether a group actually delivers referrals, support, and community, regardless of how it started. A well-run group of committed peers is a genuine asset, and a broader network complements it. On Overture, you connect with vetted attorneys and build referral relationships that function like an ongoing, always-available peer group. Create your free account to build the peer connections that support your practice.