Just for fun, I Googled “law firm embezzlement” the other day (this is how I spend my weekends).

What came up?

Last week, a Virginia attorney was convicted of embezzling at least $450,000 from the law firm where she was employed. She was grabbing the social security disability checks before the firm could deposit them in the bank.

A few months ago, a California firm manager took $500,000 by writing checks to herself. She was sentenced to four years in prison.

A paralegal in Florida was arrested (that’s her in the photo), not convicted, of embezzling hundreds of thousands of dollars from her firm.

That’s what I found in like 10 seconds.

Appalling?

Yep.

Were these law firms victimized by their team’s incompetent slackers?

No, they’re likely good firms led by busy lawyers focusing on other things—like practicing law.

I’m a big advocate of running your practice like a business because, yep, it’s a business.

If you need a reason for systems, procedures, safeguards, management, etc., then here you go.

How can you prevent this?

First off, conduct background checks before you hire (I learned that one the hard way).

Second, institute surprise audits. Have a qualified person periodically check everything for you.

Third, stay educated on how to run a business. Don’t think of reading and learning about management as less important than reading and learning about the law. They’re both important (like maybe $500,000 important).

Finally, keep an eye out for these red flags of embezzlement and take these embezzlement prevention steps. Don’t let it happen to you.