Legal Visionary: How Catherine Delcin Built A Hybrid Law Firm Empowering Entrepreneurs
Catherine Delcin, the dynamic Managing Attorney of Delcin Consulting Group, has masterfully bridged the gap between traditional legal services and business consulting, creating a unique hybrid model that serves entrepreneurs across California and Washington DC. With over 15 years of legal expertise and a background that includes consulting for a Fortune 500 biotechnology company, Delcin has built a firm that leverages more than 60 years of combined team experience to deliver innovative legal solutions for businesses and non-profits alike.
In an exclusive interview with Entrepreneur Loop, Delcin shares her journey from corporate consultant to founding managing attorney, revealing how her psychology background and commitment to community service shaped her vision for a different kind of law firm. Her trademark philosophy, “I am Either Winning or I am About to Win™,” perfectly encapsulates the determination that has driven her success in building a multi-state practice that goes beyond traditional legal services.
- Please provide a brief introduction of yourself and your professional background.
As the Managing Attorney of Delcin Consulting Group, I have established a strong record of exceptional project management, presentation, authoring, developing and maintaining work plans and deliverables, and ensuring that budgets and timelines are successfully met. To date, our greatest accomplishments include sustaining long-term client relationships, our litigation success rate, and our team’s diversity and breadth of experience.
After graduating from law school 15 years ago, I was eager to learn and had an unwavering interest in providing legal services to existing businesses and aspiring entrepreneurs. I understood that the best way to serve the business community was to acquire the necessary legal skills.
Thus, I began my legal career working as a consultant for a Fortune 500 biotechnology company. This initial introduction to the legal field set the foundation for my legal career and solidified my plans to launch a consulting firm instead of a traditional law firm. Subsequent work opportunities enabled me to further hone my professional experience in other areas of law, such as business, litigation, and intellectual property.
While building my legal repertoire, my vision and plans involved a commitment to supporting entrepreneurship, communal success, and systemized equities. My commitment to serving the respective needs within those spheres enabled me to use my Psychology and law degree to contribute and serve my community as a Judge for Teen Court and an Arbitrator for FINRA.
- Please tell us a bit more about your startup – what does it offer, what problem does it solve, and who is your target audience?
Delcin Consulting Group provides legal services to both existing and aspiring entrepreneurs [for profit or nonprofit] in business formation, transactions, and litigation. Over the years, our firm has expanded its scope to offer additional services for civil & commercial litigation, intellectual property, and several other general practice areas, such as immigration. Our firm offers a unique value proposition of hybrid services, which includes a component of consulting in addition to legal services across all our practice areas.
Delcin Consulting Group has offices in northern California, Los Angeles, San Diego, and Washington DC.
- What inspired you to start your own business? What was the “aha” moment?
My “aha” moment came from my work experience as a consultant. Through that experience, I learned of the evolving need for consulting services in addition to legal services. My wide exposure to consulting made it easier for me to carve out my own service offerings for the entrepreneurial community. I understood and knew the pain points. That understanding, along with market research and an adept business plan, helped me create unique legal offerings that married legal and business services.
- What were some of the biggest initial challenges you faced in getting your business off the ground? How did you overcome them?
Our core challenge in the beginning was establishing credibility. People typically don’t want to hire a firm that is in its infancy. We overcame that challenge by building a strong team with diverse expertise. Our team leverages 60+ years of experience. With a strong team in our arsenal, we persisted. “Nos” became “Maybes” and “Maybes” became “Yeses.” Ultimately, we gained momentum with our successes, and the floodgates opened with clients seeking us out, choosing us, and partnering with us.
- What do you know now that you wish you knew when you were first starting out?
I wish I had known the ending to the story when I first launched the firm. I would have worried and stressed less. I would have enjoyed the process and the journey more. It is interesting that once everything came together for us, the pace for everything hastened, the days seemed to go by faster, and everything seemed to be running at its own momentum. I am purposeful in my efforts to reflect and appreciate our progress, being fully aware that there is still a lot of work ahead of us.
- What are the most important skills someone needs to be a successful founder, in your opinion?
I believe the most important skill set that an individual needs to be a successful founder is to be a visionary. Being a visionary leader requires insight, imagination, and wisdom. Successful companies are created by those who can envision a future and empower others to carry forth the vision. The plan for success is not only contingent on the vision itself but also on the leadership qualities of the leader and the team. Both are necessary components for a successful endeavour.
- What does a typical day or week look like for you? How do you manage work-life balance?
I am not sure that my days can count as typical, but there are days that sometimes replicate themselves. Such a day begins with a morning working out between 5:30-6:00 AM [Depending on how my 1-year-old slept through the night]. After an hour’s workout, my husband and I get the kids [3 year old & 1 year old] ready for school. After they leave, my workday officially begins. I start with emails, examining workflows, reviewing my calendar summary, and creating my to-do list. I tackle my to-do list [which varies day to day] in coordination with my calendar for consultations and scheduled meetings.
- What advice would you give to aspiring entrepreneurs who want to start their own company?
My advice to entrepreneurs is to stay the course! Be encouraged, Rome was not built in a day. We are not all meant to be overnight success stories, your journey presents a unique opportunity for you to write your own story. Don’t be too enthralled with a planned path, be flexible and allow fate to meet your hard work and perseverance along the way. You will succeed, if you don’t give up. You will win.
