Latest / Wealthy Woman Lawyer Podcast, Helping you create a profitable, sustainable law firm you love / 182: Laurore Jean Pierre | Educating Your Clients on Generational Wealth
Transcript
- InterviewLauroreAud === Davina: [00:00:00] Hi everyone, it's Dina Frederick. Welcome back to the Wealthy Woman Lawyer Podcast. I am super excited to have my guest here today, Laro Jean Pierre, and she is the founder of JP Law and Wealth. I invited her on today's podcast because I think she is a unicorn. Indeed, she is. Not only an attorney, but she is also a, a licensed wealth advisor, financial advisor. Davina: So I'm really excited to talk with her about her journey to this career that she's created for herself, how she got here, and how she made it through law school by working full-time as an financial advisor and all the questions. So welcome, Aurora. I'm so glad that you're here. Jean: Thank you so much for having me. Jean: I'm glad to be here with you. Davina: Wonderful. Um, so why don't you start out by telling us a little bit about your law firm and the type of services you provide and who your ideal client is. Jean: Definitely. So our firm is [00:01:00] a combined firm, so we're both a law firm and a registered financial advisory firm in the state of Florida. Jean: So we mainly focus on estate planning because it goes well with our financial planning side. So we do will trust, we do a little bit of probate because it comes with the territory, um, and financial planning side. We really do financial planning. A little bit of wealth management for, um, elite clients and also investment consulting. Jean: So for the people that don't really know how to invest, but want some personalized license guidance. Um, so we kind of the ideal combination of law and finance, right? To make sure that clients are not only make, you know, following their goals as far as their finances, but protecting those assets with estate planning. Jean: So that's kind of like our s spill there. Um, and making sure, you know, we actually provide generational wealth. Davina: Right, right. I want to get into kind of your. Thought process in that decision. But before we do, let's go back in time to what embarked you on this career. You worked as a financial planner, a financial advisor before going to law [00:02:00] school. Davina: So give me the journey, like you, did you go to undergrad with the idea I'm gonna be a financial advisor, or what, what, what was your dream? Jean: Definitely, I mean, I always knew I wanted to be an attorney, as, you know, typical. That sounds right. Um, and then I like numbers, right? Compared to most attorneys who hate numbers. Jean: Um, after undergrad I found a job at, um, Wells Fargo and I was a personal banker and I realized my love for finance. And throughout my career I was able to kind of get more into the financial field, but I was still dedicated to go to law school. So in law school I was able to see, okay, estate planning makes sense. Jean: And while I was a financial advisor, I'm like. This is the perfect marriage, right? Because financial planners, not attorneys, they have to go ahead and find a financial advisor to refer their clients to. And I'm like, well, I'm in law school. This is estate planning. I could do both. Um, of course, you know, the main. Jean: Factor behind it. I had my license to financial planning side and I didn't wanna lose them. So I was like, there's no way that [00:03:00] I'm losing years of studying and, you know, kinda like the mini bar for the financial side. Um, so I had to find a way to combine them both and that was the way to set the firm up and be able to do both under one umbrella. Davina: So what made you decide instead of going straight to law school for out of your undergrad to become a financial advisor? I know that you said, uh, you say that you have. You went through law school without loans, without scholarships, you paid your way. So was that sort of the, did you set this up in intentionally this way to begin with? Davina: Or did you say, I think I wanna be a financial advisor, I need a job, I need to make money and so I'm gonna do that. And then you said, you know, I could, this will fund my dream of going to law school. I was like, what was, how did that all come about for you? Jean: Still did not wanna have any loans. I have other friends that went to law school and I've heard the stories of, you know, a quarter million and, um, student loans. Jean: So I knew from the get go I did not wanna take out any loans, so I took about two years break. Um, and just working at the time, I was working at Enterprise, [00:04:00] just saving and making sure, okay, this is what law school was going to. Cost and realistically to have at least two semesters ahead. Um, I didn't have the full bulletproof plan I was making as I go, but I knew for sure I was not going to take out any loans unless I absolutely had to. Jean: Um, so I worked full time. I would get out of. School, I mean, out of work at five 30 or so, class starts at six till about 10 and just study till about two and do it all over again. But I knew I did not want to have any student loans because I wanted to have the option when I graduate law school to choose my path, right? Jean: And not feel like because I have the student loans, I have to take a position as associate attorney that I hate or really have no passion for, just because I have the student loans that I have to go ahead and pay off. So that was really the determinative factor between, okay. Yes, it's hard, but we're gonna make it work and not, um, take out any loans as as much as we can. Jean: That's Davina: wonderful. That's wonderful. And that's so inspirational, um, that story because I think that there are a lot of, it [00:05:00] shows that there, that you can do, that you can find a way to pay your way without taking out loans. 'cause I think a lot of people now are being discouraged from going to school because there's this thought of loans. Davina: But you really thought through a path that said, okay, what can I do to make. Good money while, you know, while I'm going through law school and make it a a feasible career. Do you, um, do you do much financial ad advising now within your role as a, as a lawyer? How do you, how do you sort of, and is and is there any requirement for sort of differentiating that with clients so they really understand? Davina: This is me with my financial advisor hat with these set of rules and this is me with my lawyer hat with these set of rules. Jean: So a lot of disclosures, um, that goes into that, making sure the client understands, just because we are a financial advisory firm, we have a attorney and client privilege, and I have that in my contracts as well to make sure, okay, I'm helping with your estate planning. Jean: Um, sometimes it digs into the finances, but we're not really, we don't have that [00:06:00] relationship unless we sign a contract for that. Um, with the financial side, we do financial planning. Um, we do provide for our client. The last one, testament. But they still have to go ahead, assign an estate planning engagement letter to make sure we kind of make that line clear that, you know, when we're in our attorney hat, we're your attorney and vice versa. Jean: Um, a lot of time those clients, um, can understand that. They can see, okay, I'm your attorney, I'm not your financial advisor, and vice versa. So it just really a lot of disclaimers to be in compliance. Um, but most clients, they really love it. They see the vision and they appreciate it. To say, okay, I can come to you and do everything all at once. Davina: Did you decide to go, go, uh, to start your firm out of law school or did you think that you were gonna graduate from get a job someplace, or was this kind of the plan all along? Jean: So a little bit of both, right? So a part, um, a good friend of mine, we were supposed to start the firm together and that didn't work out. Jean: But, um, I wanted to get the experience. Um, but I graduated in the middle of the pandemic, 2020. [00:07:00] Um, the bar had been delayed. I almost went crazy. Um, so it was at that time was kind of like, okay, what is the plan? What is it gonna look like? Instead of waiting to, you know, work with somebody else to get the experience, maybe we, you know, lunch now. Jean: So that was, that was where we were at. 2020 was not the. Best year to trying to find unemployment, you know, um, within that field. Davina: Right, right. So you, so you decided as a result of that, I'm still gonna go do the thing I wanna do, and it sounds like you kind of set yourself up so that you could do this, you could start your own firm if you wanted to because you knew that that might be, you know, a challenge in getting a job that really fit what you wanted to do. Davina: Right. Jean: Yeah, definitely. And because of my financial licenses, if I didn't set up the, um, which we like an IRA firm, which is what we are, I would not, I would lose them. So I had to find a way to keep my licenses, either by working for a brokerage firm or by establishing my own firm where I can go [00:08:00] ahead and keep my licenses. Davina: Yeah. So you also say that you, you did this because there's a certain population that you wanted to serve that you felt. Called to serve. So tell me about that. Jean: Yeah, definitely. So within our community, um, the black community, um, there's not a lot of estate planning that goes on as far as education wise. Jean: Um, we either don't know about it or we don't trust the people that are saying it to us. So I find that even working as a personal banker, that was kind of the big missing gap. Um, you'd have clients come in and they don't have anything, you know, set up or the beneficiaries of account, and you hear horror stories of people that did not put beneficiaries on accounts or something, something else, having a will. Jean: They had to go through this entire process because no one was able to educate them properly or tell them, okay, this is what you should be doing or should not be doing. Um, so really that was kind of like a would impact there as well to say, okay, I want to be that person to be able to say, okay, you can trust me. Jean: I look like you. And not only that, I wanna educate you to [00:09:00] see how can we make this better. So even, you know. Not everyone gonna be able to grasp the idea, but able to have some kind of little bit of knowledge and pass it on to the next generation. So we're not all completely lost when it comes to estate planning and not such a foreign kind of concept to us. Davina: Right, right. Your, you talk about general generational wealth and some of your, you know, content that you put out. And I'd love if you could sort of share I, I, I think there's a misconception among people that. I'm gonna start a business and that's gonna be something that will automatically create generational wealth. Davina: So can you kind of give us like what you share with your clients in terms of, because I know that's a mission for you is to sort of help people build generational wealth. So can you sort of share with us what you think some of the elements are of building generational wealth? Jean: Definitely, and I always tell people generational wealth is more than just [00:10:00] a trend. Jean: You know, it's kinda like this thing right now. Everyone's jumping on it, but it requires two parts, right? You build a wealth, then you protect it. Yes, you have a business. Yes, you have this wealth that you're building and you're working, but if you don't protect it. You've done nothing as far as, you know, generational wealth goes, you know, so that second part is passing it down to your loved ones and that is making sure you have beneficiaries in account. Jean: You know, something as simple as that. It's free. You don't even need to have an attorney to go ahead and do that. Um, something as simple as, you know. Having a joint account holder, um, owner in the account so that you avoid probate or having a will or for people that have a more complex, you know, doing a trust. Jean: So really generational wealth, um, is not just establishing a wealth and, you know, having a business and making all this money because if you have nothing set up to pass it down, you just create a wealth. It's not generational wealth. It requires those two parts. And I think that's what I try to hone into my clients and my followers that. Jean: It has, you have to look the entire process to actually truly have generational wealth. And you know, as you think [00:11:00] about your generation to come, you want to make it as simple as possible for them to inherit that wealth. You don't want to go ahead and have them go through probate, which is gonna take a lot of that wealth and that time and that stress just by, you know, if you set up things properly in place, you could avoid that. Davina: Right, right. Great, great advice. I was seeing something the other, uh, just, just this last week that I thought was really great and discussing generational wealth and that, is that in addition to the, you know, what, what is it? Like the LLCs and key and the keys and, you know, all these things, right? Um, they're passing down that it's so important to pass down to teach your children about how to manage money as they're growing up and to pass down knowledge, because if you're passing them wealth and you haven't educated them. Davina: On how to manage that Well, I know it's something with my nephews, I'm always discussing. Then they're, they're bored with me. They roll their eyes, but I'm always talking about money to them to get them to understand that. Because, you know, one day [00:12:00] they're it for, for us, for our family, I don't have any children, so. Davina: Um, I, I think there's so many. There's, it's a fascinating topic, creating generational wealth and really thinking, and I know in the black community it's particularly important, this concept of passing down generational wealth, a family. I often find a lot of, uh, black women attorneys talking about the importance of that to them. Davina: Um, um, why, can you tell me why you think that is? Jean: I think, like you said as well, like passing down that knowledge as well. Right. Because, because we can set it up and we have the knowledge, but if we don't sit down with our, um, kids and say, okay, this is what you set up as, as a budget. Right. Believe it or not, there's a lot of people that don't even know how to budget. Jean: Right? Yeah. If we have that conversation and say, okay, this is how you budget, this is how you save, this is what a credit card interest means, so when they do inherit that wall, they can go ahead and pass it down properly. So, you know, going back to what you said, the knowledge is also very important part of generational wealth. Jean: To make sure that we're not only creating the wealth, protecting the wealth, but also teaching our [00:13:00] children, teaching our counterparts to see, okay, this is how you make sure it continues on. Davina: Right. So tell us, tell me, uh, uh, a little bit about. Yourself outside. I don't know. There's not much time outside of being a financial advisor and going to law school and then starting your own firm, you're probably spending a lot of time doing that. Davina: But tell me a little bit about yourself otherwise, like what you know about your family and the things that you like to do when you do have that minute for yourself. Jean: That whole minute. Um, I, I think the thing that I have a good. Life work balance, if that even such a thing. Um, I like to travel, so that's kind of like my number one passion. Jean: Um, last year I actually hit 30 countries. Um, it was before 30, but not quite before. 30 was at 30, but it's okay. Davina: That's Jean: so impressive. So that was a milestone and I love that. Um, I like to travel, I like to, you know, experience different cultures. Um, I work out a lot. Um, so I am the last of, you know, three. [00:14:00] Um, so I am the only attorney in the family, so. Jean: I kind of practice all kind of laws, unfortunately, because they call you for everything. And I'm like, please, yeah, that's familiar. It's like, I don't do real estate law. Like what? Like sure, I'll go ahead and take it. Um, but I don't love my family. I'm very family oriented. Um, I'm very close to my parents and my siblings. Jean: They're like my world. Um, so, you know, just really outside of, you know, work and running the firm, I'm just living life really. I try to. Live, work at work and not be the person that goes on vacation with their laptop or their phone. Um, right. You know, every now and then, you know, you check an email, especially with the financial side, you just can't completely turn off, um, when you're managing people's money. Jean: But I try my best to make sure that when I am offline, I'm truly offline for the most part, and really just enjoy the moment. Davina: I'm really impressed with the 30 countries by 30. Um, Jean: yeah, Davina: and I think so I, I know that our listeners are probably gonna wanna hear some. [00:15:00] Advice around how to manage money in a way to be able to, to do the things. Davina: You were able to work and go to law school. You were able to travel to 30 countries by the age of 30. What would you say is, would be good advice for somebody who wants to, uh, be able to pay off their student loans and travel more and just have more resources and more money for themselves? What, what do they need to know? Jean: I think budgeting is a big part of it because I, I was like the budget queen when I was trying to be for law school, right? So a lot of times people think budget is a way of restricting them, but it's not, it's just for you to kind of plan ahead. So when you are spending, you're not feeling guilty and feeling like, oh my gosh, you know, um, now I have this regret. Jean: Right? I think budgeting is the number one thing, but also reasoning resources. Part of me paying for law school was me asking my firm at the time, which was Charles Schwab. If they had tuition reimbursement, right. We have this misconception that if you're in a [00:16:00] field that if you're going to school, unless it is closely related, they won't approve it, and that is not true. Jean: Right? You can only ask and they could say no. Then you go to plan B. And that was part of the way that I paid for law school because they were able to go ahead and provide it for me. Um, we know trains attached, so the minute that I got it, I didn't have to stay for amount of years until I had to, you know, quit or pay it back. Jean: A lot of companies have that, they have those options, but we don't know, we don't ask because we're afraid or we just kind of have this misconceptions just ask, you know, just ask. Yeah. Davina: That's great. That's a great idea. I had that as well for my under for my undergrad. I was able to, yeah. Graduate without loans from undergrad because I had an employer that, and it completely, it was like a hard, it was a hardware company. Davina: It no longer exists now, but Jean: yeah, Davina: they had tuition reimbursement and it was a wonderful, wonderful thing. What other kinds of things would you say would be, would be good for people to, if they're wanting to sort of get better at their finances? [00:17:00] Jean: Yeah, so also just knowing where, I mean it goes back to budgeting, but knowing where your money's going. Jean: So knowing, okay, my monthly expenses, are these my monthly, you know, income is this. So actually have, knowing your numbers the same thing. We know, I think a lot of people talk about when we are in law firms, like, know your numbers, what does it look like on a monthly basis? 'cause if you don't, you're gonna be feeling like you're overwhelming, not knowing where things are going, but knowing your numbers and just doing research and resources. Jean: Again, even with, um, credit card companies. That's a way that I was able to travel outta countries because I use my credit cards for points. Um, granted some people don't have the discipline to use credit cards because, you know, they just get into trouble. But if you have that discipline, instead of using card, um, a debit card or cash, where if you use a credit card that gives you points and I give you travel points. Jean: Why not? Right? It's just, you know, trying to find different ways to kind of make things work, but knowing yourself, knowing that if I am using this credit card, am my discipline enough to pay it back? Am I disciplined enough to not get into trouble? And if you are, then look [00:18:00] for that as an alternative to go ahead and spend, to get some points and be able to do the things that you want to do, like travel, or just have extra cash. Jean: Cash back. Davina: Right, right, right. Uh, it you, you said that you, uh, never, you're kind of unusual in the attorney world because you're the person who doesn't raise their hand when people say if you're an attorney because you hate math. Right. You're the exception to that, to that rule. Um, but I have found that. Davina: So I was, I was a really great math student, like top math student by, at the age of 10. But then they started throwing numbers into my math, and that's where I started getting, uh, so that was the part I didn't like. I mean, it started throwing words, uh, letters into my math, not numbers, letters, and So Ys Jean: and, Davina: yeah, yeah, yeah. Davina: All that, exactly. All of the trigonometry and geometry and all of the geometries. So. But one of the things that I've learned about starting and running a business is that business [00:19:00] math is not as complicated as people make it out to be. Running your business, managing your personal finance a little knowledge can go a long way. Davina: And, and it can be, and, and a business, it's a, it's a roadmap. I mean, it's your GPS for running your business. You have to understand financial statements and things like that. Have you, um, found that to be the case as well? Jean: Yeah, I think it's very simple because I think also because you're a business, you want to kind of, you know, you care about it. Jean: It's not just, you know, a math homework. It's like this is my livelihood. Um, and I think for most attorneys that you know, hate numbers is because they trying to. Leave it for, keep pushing it and you know, do it all at the end. But I tell people all the time, if you break it down, it becomes less overwhelming. Jean: So instead of waiting till quarterly to look over your numbers, do it monthly or semi-monthly. So where you know it's not all at once and you're still knowing your numbers and not feeling so overwhelmed where it's like, oh my gosh, I have to figure out all. And I mean, and we're [00:20:00] in a world that you have excels, you have so many things that are, that makes life so much easier, right? Jean: Instead of you doing, you know, actual math by yourself. So it's doable. It's definitely doable. Davina: Yeah. And I, I, I, I, to your point, automation I think really helps us a lot more than. What it used to be 10 years ago, 20 years ago, to to manage something. And you know, also there are tremendous resources. You can use bookkeepers to help you line up your numbers, like soldiers, and then you just have to understand how to, you know, interpret the information from for individuals. Davina: Budgeting is sort of the same type of thing. It's about having the data there so that you then you can make informed, educated decisions about what you do with your money instead of just, it comes in and automatically goes through your fingers. Have you always been a disciplined sort of person that way? Davina: Self disciplined? Jean: I think so. Um, I think even early on I just, that was kind like my. My mom always says, you know, that you're just that person. [00:21:00] And it, it has helped a lot because especially in the, you know, running your on-prem as you know, it takes that discipline, um, because some days you don't feel like doing it. Jean: Some days it is just not the day. Yeah. But you know, it has to get done and you just kind of push through and you do it. Um, and once you have things kind of set up and you becomes a habit, it's not as bad because then it's kind of become part of your everyday life and, you know. Kind of the flow. Um, some things I'm still trying to find the perfect flow for, but everything is a work in process and I think that's what I'm learning as a firm owner. Jean: You'll never get to the point where you've mastered it all. There's always something to that's changing or that you have to learn. So I'm trying to give myself grace when it comes to that part. And it's like, you know, it's okay that I am master this in two weeks, like allow myself to grow and allow myself some grace. Davina: Yeah, for sure. For sure. You're business is pretty young, right? It's only a couple years old, right? Yeah. Yeah. So you probably, do you have very many people working with you at all right now? Or is it a, is it solo situation? I have virtual Jean: assistant, um, um, virtual [00:22:00] assistant. I was thinking of, again, an intern, but it's just because of the way that the work is and as far as compliance wise, um, trying to slowly hire and not, um. Jean: Really trying to see things that I could do myself. I know I need to delegate things. That's probably one of the areas that I need to figure out. Um, but it is just, I'm very slow to hire because of compliance as well. Um, I'm trying to make sure because of the way the firm is set up with the financial side and having access to clients accounts, um, just to kind of make sure that I hire right. Davina: Yeah, you have to be really careful with that because there's a lot of con on both sides. There's a lot of confident, confidential information and I'm sure. A lot of rules, especially on the financial side. I know you're governed by the SEC, right? So there's rules. So yeah, Jean: it's a bunch of rules. It's like endless rules both from the Florida bar, from them. Jean: It's, it's a lot. Davina: Yeah. You just need somebody to hire somebody just to help keep up with the rules for you. Um, [00:23:00] uh, so what is kind of, where, where, what are, what's on the horizon for you? For your law firm, where do you think you're headed at? Like what ultimately is your sort of vision for this law firm? Jean: Yeah, so I. I never want to have the biggest firm. I want to be an exclusive firm. I want to keep it that small field, that boutique firm. But essentially in five years, I wanna be able to just take 10 clients a year and be fine to where it is not, you know, a monthly of five 20 clients, but really just 10 clients per the year and be that exclusive law firm. Jean: But. Still very well known. Um, I don't have the goal to be, you know, everywhere and just have our firm just, you know, brick and mortar, just every corner. Um, I like the idea of a boutique firm, but an exclusive firm that only takes 10 clients a year, and that we are the known, you know, the go-to person when it comes to generational wealth. Davina: Right, right, right. I love that. That's a wonderful vision, and I'm excited to follow your journey. Continue to follow [00:24:00] your journey. Can you tell us where we can contact you if we want to follow you? Um, uh, I, I love your Instagram, so that's one place I follow you. But tell us where else we, we can find you. Jean: Yeah, so Instagram is at the finance attorney. Um, so finance attorney, um, you could go ahead and reach out, um, to our email at info@jplawtonwealth.com. Our website is ww.jp law in wealth.com. The words are spelled out, and our phone number is (407) 990-9468. We, our office is in Orlando, but we have a virtual office space also in Phil Lauderdale. Davina: Yeah, that was what I was about to ask you next. I thought you were here in Orlando where I am. But So you have her also, you know Orlando though? Yes. I'm in, I'm in Central Florida, so I'm in uh, Seminole County, which is, you know. Okay. I thought you Jean: were in Tampa for some reason. I didn't know why. I assumed they was Tampa. Davina: Yeah, I know a lot of people. I'll get that a lot. I get Tampa or Jacksonville. Those are the two that people say, God. I'm like, no, here I am in Sanford. [00:25:00] Like Mary. Jean: Oh, nice. Davina: Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. So we'll have to meet up someday. Um, yeah. But I'm really glad you were here today. I've enjoyed our conversation a lot and. Davina: I'm glad that you're out there doing this, uh, providing this service and combining these services. 'cause I think that's gonna be so helpful to your clients to have that in one place. And I know it's a huge accomplishment for you. I take my hat off to you. I know law school was so much work and I can't imagine working full-time as a financial advisor while going through law school. Davina: So what a, what a wonderful achievement and, and then starting your law own law firm. So. My hat's off to you. I thank you so much for being here and sharing your wisdom today with us, and that'll be wrapped. Jean: Pleasure. Davina: Thank you.