Genie Tyburski posts: “Originally published in The CyberSkeptic's Guide to Internet Research, Finding Copyrights and Trademarks for Free discusses free sources of copyright or trademark information. It also provides tips on how to search these specialized databases and Web sites.”
Source: TVC Alert Research News, 31 October 2005, Ballard Spahr Andrews & Ingersoll, LLP, http://www.virtualchase.com/tvcalert/transfer.asp?xmlFile=oct05/31oct05.xml.
“A recent TechnoLawyer exchange prompted this writing. The exchange started out with a post regarding case management software. It morphed into a diatribe regarding the complexity of CMS and various other kinds of software. Ultimately, one attorney pronounced that in his opinion well written and designed software should be usable without need of any training. Yeah, right. He went on to say he would not buy or keep software which did not meet this benchmark. I sure hope he enjoys using that quill pen.
In 1986 a law firm asked me to figure out why it’s staggering investment in a state-of-the-art word processing system had not resulted in increased productivity or reduced staffing levels. It took me very little time to determine that lack of training was the problem. Staff were using the equipment and software like electronic typewriters. And in many cases, the lack of training actually caused people to produce work slower than they would have on an actual typewriter. The investment was more a liability than asset. In fact, I theorized that the firm’s staggering 67% employee turnover rate was in some part directly attributable to the technology implementation.
The managing partner and executive committee were not convinced. From their perspective, people were busily producing work on the equipment provided. Moreover, they felt that having state-of-the-art technology would draw and keep people at the firm. Nonetheless, I was given a free hand, albeit non-existent budget, to devise and implement a training program.
The training program included specific task-related software training. By that I mean that the people being trained were asked to provide input on what tasks they needed to perform with the software on a regular basis, and the training was specifically designed to address those tasks. Regular feedback and additional discussion with staff revealed a whole host of related areas–procedures and other equipment–which required codification and more training.
The training program expanded over time to include not just the word processing system, but copiers, fax machines, telephone and vmail, cost control equipment, time & billing and accounting procedures, file opening and closing procedures, and so forth.
Current employees began to participate in the training and orientation of new employees. And in doing so, they both improved their skills further, and made additional suggestions on how to improve the program. New employees were surveyed at the end of their 90 day introductory period to determine how effective the training and orientation program was, and how it might be improved. Continual tweaking fine tuned the process.
The impact of the training and orientation program became quickly apparent. Turnover dropped dramatically. In one year it fell from 67% to around 35%. In another year turnover was further reduced to 17%. By the end of the third year turnover was under 5%, which was lower than the average for the geographic region.
As turnover reduced, morale improved for both staff and attorneys. Unexpectedly, the attorney turnover rate started to drop as well. Profitability improved significantly.
During the same time, productivity increased dramatically, and staffing ratios began to morph. The firm was able to migrate from an attorney/secretary ratio of 1:1 to a 1.5:1 ratio by the end of the second year. After almost four years the ratio was mostly 2:1. This further enhanced profitability.
There is no doubt that training and productivity are strongly related concepts. They go hand in hand. But it goes much further than that. Effective training performs a dual function: it educates people and it motivates them to work harder and better. There is a reward that organizations reap when they pay attention to people and show them the organization is concerned about them. In simpler terms, we know that people spend such a large portion of their daily lives at work that they need to have a sense of belonging, of being a vital part of a team. When they do, they produce better. It’s simple motivation: pushing the right buttons to everyone’s benefit; employee and employer.
There have been actual studies regarding the effects of training. Results of one such study on human and social capital was presented at a Joint Conference of the European Commission and European Investment Bank in late 2003. The study measured the rates of return on training capital in terms of value added to the organization, taking into account any reduction in value due to an increase in the separation rate. (I find that one of the chief concerns of investing in training is that employers fear it will make employees more valuable in the marketplace and therefore increase turnover. This study took this factor into account.) The results? In France the ROI was 288%. In Sweden it was a whopping 441%. The conclusion regarding investing in training of employees reached in the study stated “. . .Enterprise training . . .appears to favor innovation, and this should be the source of rises in productivity and competitiveness. Moreover the rates of return are provocatively high.”
A study by an organization called VitalSmart conducted at Sprint, a Fortune 100 company, showed that productivity improved 93% with an investment in employee and management training. As if that wasn’t enough, customer care improved, the external image of the company as an employer improved, turnover reduced, and client satisfaction ratings were significantly higher.
I have been designing and implementing training and orientation programs for law firms for almost 25 years. In every single instance, the return on investment on the part of the firm has been far-reaching and significant, often in surprising ways.
Ok, so here’s the bottom line. I can appreciate the desire of the attorney who posted on TechnoLawyer to purchase only software programs that require no training. I can appreciate that the same way I appreciate my own desire to be a size 6 again. Sigh! Both have about the same likelihood of happening. The simple fact is that today’s more powerful software programs are more complex. And that includes Word and WordPerfect. In order to get the “bang for the buck” out of your investment, you need to train. Then train again. Then do follow-up training. Studies show that people, no matter how smart, and no matter how adept the trainer, will only retain about 40% of what they’ve been trained in. And that 40% is a “use it or lose it” proposition — if you don’t put the new-found knowledge to work immediately, retention starts to drop dramatically and quickly. Hence the need for repeated retraining.
Similarly, our firms have become increasingly complex organizations. It’s no longer realistic to expect people to “just know” what to do. If you want to hold onto people, and if you want to maximize productivity and profitability, you need to invest in people to ensure that they can hit the ground running, and have the stamina to go the distance. Your firm will always reap a greater reward than it’s actual investment.”
Source: Law Practice Management, 29 October 2005
[Note: This article, written in 2000, may have been the first place where I started to set out my notion of "client-driven technology." I recently enjoyed a compliment from an extranet vendor about how he had pointed many people to this article over the years. Extranets may now be the easiest way for law firms to provide clients with something they really want by offering a helpful technology. As recent surveys show, extranets are still not used very often by law firms,]
Extranet Basics: Taking A Step Toward a Client-Focused Practice
Dennis Kennedy posts: “When we think about technology, we usually focus on ways to make our practices more productive and our lives easier. These are important goals, but in this column I want to shift our usual focus away from ourselves to our clients. As the legal profession sees growing competition both internally and externally, retaining existing clients will become increasingly important to many firms’ survival.
An Internet application called an "extranet" may prove to be an excellent way for many law firms to use the Internet to improve the attorney-client dynamic and retain current clients.
Everyone is familiar with the Internet, the giant global network of computer networks. And nearly everyone has used an Internet browser, such as Internet Explorer or Netscape Navigator, to find helpful web sites. Some of you may even be familiar with "intranets," or large internal web sites within a single firm. The former Latin students out there will not be surprised then to find that extranets refer to private web sites that are directed to one or more outside entities.
An extranet is a private, secure web site that, while available over Internet through a browser, can be used only by a limited audience to whom you have given the necessary permissions. Conceptually, there are two types of extranets. The first is a standard web site that has password-protected private areas of content and features. The second is a web site that gives password-protected access to limited portions of a firm's intranet or internal computer network.
The key difference between an extranet and a web site is that an extranet is secure. No one gets access unless permitted.
A law firm can use an extranet to open access to a controlled number of outsiders, typically co-counsel and clients. An extranet also allows you to customize the levels of access and the amount and type of information made available. Since an extranet is programmed like a standard web site, you can have text, graphics, audio, video, message boards, chat sessions and any other Internet feature on your extranet. In other words, you can personalize an extranet specifically for your client, not unlike the My Yahoo web site.
A few examples are in order. On an extranet site, you might make sanitized versions of research memos and updates to articles available to clients only. You might make copies of all a client's documents, including drafts in progress, available only to that client. In litigation, you might give a client access to deposition transcripts or even video of depositions, or share all case information with co-counsel. An extranet might provide a client with instant access to time and billing information, electronic bills, and message boards to leave comments for attorneys. Rather than preparing huge closing binders for real estate deals, a firm could instead give a client an electronic copy on an extranet. An extranet might provide clients with updates of legal developments and summaries of cases of interest.
The beauty of an extranet is that your clients require no technology other than a computer, an Internet connection and a browser. And they can access your extranet from any place they can access the Internet.
Extranets have become popular in the corporate setting and, as a result, law firms are getting pressure to offer extranets. As the Internet increasingly changes our expectations about customer service, lawyers must keep up with developments. For example, many consumer web sites show you how many units are in stock before you order and let you track your shipment with the click of a button. Why shouldn’t a client expect to click on a button and see current billings and work in process?
Extranets can be developed internally or "outsourced" to a company like LegalAnywhere that provides a packaged solution. As an extranet gets more complex, or ties into your computer network, you will need a higher degree of sophistication and programming, but standard approaches can serve you well as you get started.
Extranets require commitment. They must work flawlessly. They require that you pay attention to message boards and update content regularly. As you provide features and your clients use them, your clients will suggest new features and expect you to add them. Adding video, message boards, chat rooms or other features can place demands on your systems and your people.
Costs, not surprisingly, will vary, but your first extranet can serve as a template for many other clients.
While I believe that extranets offer a way for firms to innovate and even transform a practice, let me focus on the practical - cutting costs. There are two sides to this cost-cutting equation. With an extranet, you can readily find savings in paper, printing and copying costs, long distance, overnight shipping and postage costs, and travel costs. Moving to a form of electronic billing may help you be more efficient in billing and collecting from your clients.
More important, however, is to focus on the ways an extranet can save your clients money. Can you save them copying, printing, shipping, long distance and travel costs? What if you offer a discount for moving to electronic billing? What client will not like a lawyer suggesting ways to save money?
Extranets can also help you market to your clients. By keeping them informed and making them aware of all your services, you add value to the relationship. An extranet can tie a client to your firm, not just to the attorney with the personal relationship. If a client gets used to the benefits and conveniences of its customized extranet, the client will find it harder to go with a lawyer who is leaving your firm or to another firm without the same level of service.
Clients do not like it when they feel you are not paying enough attention to them. An extranet that keeps them up-to-date, provides them with news and developments and even allows them to collaborate on projects and documents will show your clients that you are paying attention.
If you get the underlying concept of extranets, you should already be generating some good ideas. Extranets are increasingly common in class action cases, multi-state complex litigation and general corporate representation. Extranets offer a way to move toward a more client-focused practice and should definitely be on your technology agenda.”
Source: DennisKennedy.com, 30 October 2005
Posted by Ed Poll: “Question: How do I create my own blog?
Answer: Hire someone! The expense is far less than the time spent (no matter how easy with TypePad or other tools) which will take you away from other marketing activities.
Delegation is a principle by which I live. I want to do those things that only I can do, like coaching, consulting and marketing for more work. Other things that I need done can be done (and usually better) by someone else.
If you think of the creation of a blog or other web machinations as working in the garden, i.e., your time away from the office, then so be it. Mine is cycling. I get little enough time to do that … but if I did the other things myself, then I would get no cycling and always complaining about being overworked.
The issue of cash flow is important. But, if I can market for new business, I usually can get a client (with their cash flow) before or soon after I have to pay for the service I’ve delegated/ contracted to someone else.
Again, just my $.02 worth ….”
Source: LawBiz Blog, 26 October 2005
Posted by John Jantsch: “Every scrap of paper that leaves your business is performing a marketing function.
Today's idea is not earthshattering, but it is one that many businesses, large and small, overlook.
You send invoices, fax covers, memo, notes, request and all other manner of "non-marketing" related correspondence to - you guessed it, your clients, referral sources and prospects.
It's a pretty simple thing to A) make sure that these documents also conform to the image you project in your marketing materials and B) make them sell a little.
There no harm in introducing a new product in every communication, regardless of how mundane.
· Put your company story on the back of work orders
· List all of your products and services on fax covers
· Insert a coupon for a special offering in your statements
· Put two business cards in your thank you notes
Many small businesses make the mistake of assuming that an existing client knows all about everything your offer. No, they probably know about the one thing they buy from you. Continue to subtly educate at all times.
Heck, resell your internal clients (your staff)by reinforcing marketing messages in your internal documents.
You get the idea. Again, not a big breakthrough here but something you should be doing. It's this type of attention to detail that, over time, adds to the collection marketing momentum your business needs.”
Source: Duct Tape Marketing, 27 October 2005
Posted by Chuck Kallendorf: “The bill seeking to reauthorize the USA Patriot Act has “little-noticed provisions that would dramatically transform the federal death penalty system, allowing smaller juries to decide on executions and giving federal prosecutors the ability to try again if a jury ends in deadlock on sentencing issues,” an article in Wednesday morning’s Washington Post reveals. (bill summary)
As the Supreme Court entered its new session this month, death penalty issues seemed to rank high on its agenda, according to media outlets.
Capital punishment for juveniles was ruled unconstitutional last March in Roper v. Simmons, and a bill seeking to abolish the death penalty altogether for Federal laws, introduced in January, is in the Senate Judiciary Committee. (More).
Addressing the ABA in August, Supreme Court Justice Stevens commented about concerns he had with respect to the death penalty & recent exonerations of death row inmates thru scientific evidence. Pending is House v. Bell, which addresses standards of proof for granting new hearings for capital defendants based on new DNA evidence
In 2002, the Supreme Court held in Ring v. Arizona that a jury, as opposed to a judge, has to make findings of “aggravating factors” where the death or a lesser penalty lies in the balance. Now, in Brown v. Sanders, the issue is revisited, being extended to determine whether a death sentence is improper when a jury had relied on aggravating factors later found invalid.
Two cases, Oregon v. Guzek and Kansas v. Marsh, are considering whether evidence questioning guilt can be presented at sentencing and whether the death sentence should be imposed when jurors find the arguments both for & against have equal weight.
Death row inmates don’t automatically have a right to a jury trial on claims that they’re mentally retarded and therefore can’t be executed. (See Schriro v. Smith)
The Court decided not to hear a case where the issue was whether a second jury should consider whether guilty parties should receive the death penalty or a lesser sentence."
Source: Cincinnati Law Library Blog, 28 October 2005
Posted by Denise Howell: “Tom Peyer has a deliciously funny piece up at Slate, which you can also enjoy as a Slate podcast: Speaking to Me: Terms and Conditions. (From Slate's Low Concept department.)
Source: Between Lawyers, 30 October 2005
Jim posts: “Here's a free site with an interesting service. We know how "reverse" databases operate. In an online reverse phone directory, you type in the number to locate the name of the individual who owns the number. (For e.g. See Anywho.com reverse lookup.) But a reverse lookup dictionary is a more complex concept. Try the One Look Reverse Dictionary, where you type in a series of words or phrases describing a concept and in response you get a list of the words (or sometimes phrases) suggested by your input with the best matches shown first.”
Source: Jim Calloway’s Law Practice Tips Blog, 28 October 2005
Posted by Anthony Cerminaro: "Kiva lets you connect with and loan money to unique small businesses in the developing world.
By choosing a business on our website and then lending money online to that enterprise, you can "sponsor a business" and help the world's working poor make great strides towards economic independence. Throughout the course of the loan (usually 6-12 months), you can receive monthly email updates that let you know about the progress being made by the small business you've sponsored. These updates include reports on loan repayment progress, photos of new capital equipment, narratives on business growth and standard of living improvements, and more. As loans are repaid, you will get your original loan money back.
How does the loan process work?
By partnering with existing microfinance organizations and institutions, Kiva finds outstanding entrepreneurs who need loan funding. Our expert in-country staff works with these partner organizations to conduct due diligence on each business, and once approved, post each business' profile on our website. This is where you come in. You can choose loan money online, using your credit card or Paypal, in increments as low as $25 toward the loan needs of a business. With your participation, Kiva gives entrepreneurs access to the capital they need to lift themselves out of poverty. "
Found via this Seth Godin post."
Source: BizzBangBuzz, 30 October 2005
Posted by Dennis M. Kennedy: “If you are interested in what the practice of law might look like (and what roles might be left for lawyers to play in the practice), take a trip to the Online Cyberweek site (free registration required).
I especially recommend the online discussion on the Internet Bar Association's portion of Cyberweek on the topic: Will Web-enabled Document Automation Disrupt the Legal Profession?
I attended the live session that kicked off this discussion at the ABA Law Practice Management Section's fall meeting in Philadelphia on Saturday. Marc Lauritsen and Richard Granat, both legal tech and elawyering pioneers, led the discussion. Darryl Mountain's presentation was the highlight as he applied Clayton Christiansen's theories of disruptive innovation to the practice of law. His one page handout from that session is something that you will definitely want to get a copy of.
There was a great discussion that followed the presentation, with document assembly expert Tim Allen of Business Integrity and I being especially enthusiastic contributors. This great discussion made me really look forward to the discussions we'll have at BlawgThink and gave me some ideas for topics that I'll try to discuss there.
As part of Cyberweek (and beyond), there will be a continuing discussion of the issues raised during the initial presentation. I think it's a discussion that readers of this blog will find especially compelling.”
Source: Between Lawyers, 25 October 2005
Sabrina posts: “Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, Working Paper 05-27, Mitchell Berlin and Yaron Leitner, Courts and Contractual Innovation: A Preliminary Analysis. [s.f.]”
Source: beSpacific - Accurate, focused law and technology news by Sabrina I. Pacifici. 27 October 2005. Copyright ©2002-2005 BeSpacific LLC. All Rights Reserved. Subscribe
In the news: “Lawyers could lose their licenses for a year for repeatedly filing frivolous suits under a bill headed for passage in the House as part of Republicans' drive to crack down on what they consider abuses of the legal system. Supporters say such suits are a bonanza for lawyers rather than a chance to recoup legitimate damages for their clients. But the American Bar Association says the measure would infringe on states' rights.”
Read full text
Source: Law.Com's Daily Legal Newswire. 28 October 2005. Copyright 2005. ALM Properties, Inc. All rights reserved. Subscribe.
In the news: “A little-discussed loophole in the new federal bankruptcy law could soften some of the controversial law's bite -- depending on how judges interpret it. The wild card is that Chapter 7 filers can sidestep the new means test if they can show that "special circumstances" -- such as the recent hurricanes -- have shrunk their income or increased their debts. But no one is sure how special circumstances will be defined for other debtors forced into court by events beyond their control.”
Read full text
Source: Law.Com's Daily Legal Newswire. 28 October 2005. Copyright 2005. ALM Properties, Inc. All rights reserved. Subscribe.
Posted anonymously: “I noted last time a recent survey that showed corporate legal cost control has stagnated. The majority of all services were still performed at hourly rates (standard or “discounted”)–making budgets unpredictable and potentially rewarding over-lawyering.
Forward-thinking companies are becoming aware of offshore alternatives to gain cost advantages while delivering quality legal services. While still in its infancy, any GC (or client-driven outside counsel) needs to track this developing area.
One helpful new resource to view and bookmark is offshore-legal-services.com. Established by David Galbenski, CEO of Contract Counsel, this site presents a helpful introduction to this area, both with traditional background materials and with a series of short videos as well.
Mr. Galbenski has been an innovator in the use of contract legal services and Contract Counsel has been recognized as an Inc. 500 growth company. He is now extending his search for legal solutions worldwide.
This makes Mr. Galbenski a person to listen to and offshore-legal-services.com a site to watch.”
Source: The Wired GC, 26 October 2005
TALKING POINTS FOR GETTING A RAISE
In the news: “Here are some ideas from human resources experts on strategies for getting a raise.
- Do your homework: Find out what workers who do similar jobs are earning.
- Check the calendar: Many companies plan raises in the eight to 10 weeks before the end of the fiscal year, so get your request in early. . .[Click on link for more]”
http://public.findlaw.com/pnews/news/ap/f/63/10-26-2005/d0ad00065da2c4b5.html
Source: FindLaw’s PUBLIC ADVISOR. 27 October 2005. Copyright © 2005 FindLaw, a Thomson Business. Subscribe.
From the e-newsletter: “When I first heard about Jobster it was through their press release, which included the line, "the first job search engine designed to help jobseekers search millions of jobs across the Web with one click and get referred directly to the hiring teams at leading companies." Um, didn't Flipdog do something similar? It doesn't really matter. Jobster (http://www.jobster.com) is still worth looking at.
There are several search options. Obviously the first one is keyword. Then you can search for area, when it was added, and radius. You can also sort by relevance or recency. An advanced search allows you to add a few more things to the mix including where exactly to search for the keywords.
I did a search for engineer in Los Angeles. I got 95 results. I also got the option to sign up for alerts for jobs that matched my interest. I also got the option to get referrals to jobs in various companies, but that required two things: 1) A Jobster account (free) and 2) Friends who work at the target company.
The more traditional search listings include the title of the job, a snippet (some more useful than others), the origin of the job (CraigsList and Monster.com were two I saw a lot) and how recently it was found. Click on the job title and you'll go straight to its page.”
Source: ResearchBuzz #354. 27 October 2005. Copyright 2005 Tara Calishain. All rights reserved. Reproduced with permission of ResearchBuzz (http:// www.researchbuzz.com). Subscribe.
Bonnie Shucha posts: “How many credit card offers were in your mailbox today? If you are like me, the answer is probably too many. The ones with the magnets are the worst since you have to actually open and pull them out before sending through the shredder.
These credit card offers are not only a pain to dispose, but can put you at risk for identity theft. Luckily for me, I recently learned about Optoutprescreen.com:
Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), the Consumer Credit Reporting Companies, are permitted to include your name on lists used by creditors or insurers to make firm offers of credit or insurance. The FCRA also provides you the right to "Opt-Out", which prevents Consumer Credit Reporting Companies from providing your credit file information for firm offers of credit or insurance that are not initiated by you.
Through this website, or by calling 1-888-5OPT-OUT, you may request to opt-out from receiving firm offers for 5 years or permanently. You will no longer be included in firm offer lists provided by major consumer credit reporting companies (Equifax, Experian, Innovis, & TransUnion).
[Her] Source: Presentation by James P. Nehf, Professor of Law at Indiana University School of Law, "Identify Theft: Risk, Prevention and Theft," at the ORALL/CALL conference earlier this month.”
Source: WisBlawg, 25 October 2005
Ed Poll posts: “The Latino community is growing in the United States and represents significant buying power. This group also has significant legal needs.
Here are some facts from the U.S. Census Bureau that warrant consideration when thinking about expanding your law practice:
By the numbers:
1. 41.3 million people as of July 1, 2004, 14% of the nation’s total population, making this group the nation’s largest ethnic minority.
2. 102.6 million people, the projected Hispanic population in the United States as of July 1, 20050, 24% of our population at that time.
3. 22.4 million people in the 1990 census, just over ½ of the current level only 14 years ago.
4. 49% of Hispanic-origin population that lives in California and Texas.
5. California is home to 12.2 million and Texas is home to 7.6 million people of Hispanic origin.
6. 43% of New Mexico’s population is of Hispanic origin, highest of any State. California and Texas are at 34% each.
7. 4.3 million people of Hispanic origin live in Los Angeles County, the largest concentration of any county in the United States.
8. 1.6 million Hispanic-owned businesses in the United States in 2002, an increase of 31% from 1997, with receipts of $226.5 billion, an increase of 22% from 1997. Companies in this category with paid employees represented $184 billion or more than $900,000 revenue per company.
9. About 40% of the Hispanic-owned companies were service providers with another 13% in construction.
10. 9.1 million Hispanic families live in the United States.
11. 7.6 million people in the Hispanic community registered to vote in 2004, up from 5.9 million 4 years earlier.
12. Real median income was $32,997 in 2004, down 2.6% from the previous year. The poverty rate of 22.5% was unchanged from the earlier year.
13. 58% of Hispanics age 25 and older had at least a high school education in 2004 while 12% of this group had a bachelor’s degree or higher.
14. 714,000 of Hispanics in this same age group had advanced degrees in 2004.
15. 10% of all college students in 2003 were of Hispanic origin, an increase from 4% only 20 years earlier.”
Source: LawBiz Blog, 24 October 2005
In the news: “Doctors and lawyers -- often natural-born enemies in legal battles -- are joining forces in Chattanooga, Tenn. In an experimental program aimed partly at keeping "junk science" out of the courtroom, judges in malpractice cases will select an independent doctor from out of state to evaluate potential expert witnesses' testimony and help decide well before trial whether those witnesses should be allowed to take the stand. Supporters hope that the approach will spread, if the program succeeds locally.”
Read full text
Source: Law.Com's Daily Legal Newswire. 27 October 2005. Copyright 2005. ALM Properties, Inc. All rights reserved. Subscribe.
Ed Poll posts: “This evening, in Philadelphia, I had the pleasure of meeting Fran Musselman, former chair of the ABA's Law Practice Management chair. The occasion was the presentation of the LPM Section's highest honor, the Sam Smith Award.
During his comments, Fran talked about the basic principles that guided him during his long, illustrious career and as chairman of the major New York law firm, Milbank, Tweed law firm.
His principles were:
1. The client comes first
2. The client comes first
3. The client comes first
4. The client comes first
5. The client comes first
He added that the lawyer must be the conscience of the client. The client is not necessarily "right" at all costs; the lawyer cannot allow the client to do anything, if that "anything" is inappropriate.
6. The staff must be considered; they are extremely important to the success of the law firm and are too often under-appreciated.
7. Take care of your staff.
8. Take care of your staff.
9. Take care of your staff.
10. Take care of your partners
11. Last, take care of yourself.
These are the principles which guided him to success. They are words to live by.
Parenthetically, I just learned that the Bar Association of the State Bar of Washington has rejected MCLE credit for a program focusing on "Managing Client Expectations." In their words, the intent of the program is to teach marketing skills to lawyers. This is astounding! ... And pathetic! Helping lawyers to understand the needs of clients and managing clients' expectatins such that the rules of professional conduct are honored is the highest calling! Helping lawyers focus on clients, and concurrently make more money, also helps the clients by protecting lawyers from becoming marginal and likely invade the clients' trust account.
Fran also suggested that the computer should be used as a management tool and lamented that the computer is too often misused with the result that collegiality among lawyers is destroyed.
Wise words! Despite Fran's 80 years, he is still active in the New York bar and very wise in his commentaries.”
Source: LawBiz Blog, 21 October 2005
Posted by Wayne Schiess: “The legal-usage source:
Click here to get A Dictionary Of Modern Legal Usage
If you have a question about a legal word or about legal writing, look it up here. You'll find the answer, and you're also likely to find a lively and intelligent discussion on the point. But the best thing about this book is that it's correct. So use it for back-up when you need to be right. Every lawyer should have it.”
Source: Legalwriting.net, 25 October 2005
Posted by Carolyn Elefant: “In honor of Matt Homann's and Dennis Kennedy's upcoming Blawg Think, I'm reposting a link to the What Blogs Can Do For Solos and Small Firms that I designed and presented along with Jerry Lawson at the Maryland State Bar Association Solo Day Conference back in November 2003. Though the presentation is coming up on two years, which is at least two generations in Internet-time, much of it is still fairly timely. I've written a couple of other pieces on blogging for solos, It's A Blog World After All (law.com, October 2003) and Get Your Blog Rolling (GP Solo June 2005), but the online presentation is one of my favorites. And I've never seen anything quite like it anywhere else.
To navigate the presentation, use the numbered menu items that appear above each post. (Don't use the sidebar which isn't properly ordered).”
Source: MyShingle, 25 October 2005
Jonathan Stein posts: “Kevin O’Keefe wrote a great piece the other day on the banning of the term blawg. Those of us who are new to blogging probably don’t have much impact on what words people use, but you will notice that we use "blog" and not "blawg." Why? It’s our personal preference. Blawg seems, well, kind of snooty.
Since I don’t think anyone will listen to me or stop using the word blawg, why am I telling you about any of this? Because the blog versus blawg debate is a microcosm for a bigger problem: legalese! Lawyers, for some reason, like to make up big words, and lawyers also like to use big words. I have seen lawyers argue to a jury about a "tortuous act" when they are really talking about a plain old auto accident. I admit that this is a personal preference (my wife won’t play scrabble with me because I don’t use big words), but it has an effect on your practice.
If you have a client who lacks formal education, why would you use "res ipsa loquitor" in a sentence? Your client will not have any idea what you are talking about. In insurance coverage cases, attorneys talk about "fortuitous events". Clients most likely do not know what a "fortuitous event" is, but they certainly understand what it means when something burns down in a fire.
Sure, when you are talking to opposing counsel you may want to use legalese (but even then, it’s probably not worth it.) Talk to your clients as if they have not been to law school; unless you are representing an attorney, your clients haven’t actually been to law school. In my experience, my clients like it when I break things down and talk to them in a way that its understandable and relatable, not in a way that requires a dictionary or a Latin translator. People are more comfortable around people they can relate to easily, so one of the best ways to build repore with your clients is to stop using legalese!”
Source: The Practice, 26 October 2005
Posted by Jim Milles: “Print out your own Fitzmas Bingo card!” [Be patient - It's slow loading!]
Source: Out of the Jungle, 25 October 2005
Bob Rankin writes: “What do they have in common? With apologies to Wilford Brimley, each of them is just the right thing to do. Nobody gets excited about backing up their hard drive, but sooner or later, something terrible will happen to your hard drive. That's not a very happy thought, but the good news is you can survive a hard drive failure with only minimal inconvenience -- if you back up your files. Learn how to stop worrying and put your backup on auto-pilot...”
http://www.askbobrankin.com/backing_up_your_files.html
Source: The Internet Tourbus. Volume 11, Number 21. 25 October 2005. Copyright 1995-2005, Rankin & Crispen - All rights reserved. Subscribe <http://www.TOURBUS.com>.
Posted by Carolyn Elefant: “Have you ever left the office feeling exhausted after a hectic day where it seemed as if all you did was talk on the phone and respond to emails? Whenever that happens to me, I'm inclined to blame myself for lacking the focus or discipline to stick to task. But truth is, apparently, the difficulty with staying on task in this sound-bite, fast moving, multi-tasking age isn't a personal deficiency. Rather, it's a logical outgrowth of technology that enables us to do so much that it constantly sends us into overdrive. That's part of the message of this NYT Magazine piece by Clive Thomas, Meet the Life Hackers [Reg. Req.](thanks to GAL for the tip and his post on the piece).
We solos face these issues even more directly because we don't always have the luxury of delegating a return phone call or email to a subordinate. So it's all too easy to get pulled away from what we're working on. And as Thomas' piece points out, the problem with the interruption isn't so much the time consumed by the new task, rather, it's the time that's required to resume the previous one.
I don't know that the article offered many solutions to the problem of interruptions; it's still a topic being studied by scientists. But at least it made me realize that there's not something wrong with me - and that realization will at least improve my mood after one of those harried days when I get nothing done.”
Source: MyShingle, 24 October 2005
Posted by John Jantsch: “About a week ago I wrote a post that explained the renewed marketing power of the hand written note. One of my readers, David Lorenzo, actually thought I was serious and he took my advice and ran with it.
Below is David's post about his very positive experience using this little strategy. I don't always get to draw this kind of straight line to proof that this stuff works, so I thought I would reprint David's post here to help reaffirm this powerful marketing strategy.
From David's Blog:
"Duct Tape Marketing had a post last week that got me thinking. In the post John Jantsch discussed the power of penning a hand written note to friends, clients or prospects. I have used this tactic before – mostly to express thanks or to welcome someone to the team.
I decided to try a little experiment. I went through a couple of weeks of local periodicals and I picked out people that were featured in articles and I send them each a handwritten congratulations note. I said something to the effect – “I saw the article on your business in XYZ Magazine. Congratulations on your success. I’d love to speak with you some time to hear the story of how you got to where you are.” I sent twenty of these notes.
I was astonished to receive seven e-mails, two letters and a phone call in return. Half of the people I sent the note to wanted to take me up on my offer to meet and tell their story!
This is not only going to be a great learning experience for me, but it will also be a networking opportunity. The moral of the story is: If you want to connect with people in your local business community showing a genuine interest in them and their business is the way to do it. A handwritten note is a great way to start."
Here's the link to my original post
And the link to David's post
Source: Duct Tape Marketing, 21 October 2005
Posted by Anthony Cerminaro: “TDIndustries uses Robert Greenleaf’s essay‚ The Servant as Leader‚ as a blueprint for behavior. Every TD employee completes Servant Leadership training and participates in small Servant Leadership dialogue groups. This philosophy has built an environment where employees trust leadership to listen to their thoughts and ideas. And leadership has learned to trust the judgment of the employees. The Servant Leadership philosophy suggests that every person can become a leader by first serving‚ and then through conscious choice‚ leading. Servant Leadership principles are summarized as follows:
"People can and should work together to grow a company. If an organization is to live up to its basic values and vision‚ a key ingredient will be leadership from a very large number of us.
Simply and plainly defined‚ leaders are people who have followers. They have earned recognition and respect.
Leaders are first a servant of those they lead. They are a teacher‚ a source of information and knowledge‚ and a standard setter‚ more than a giver of directions and a disciplinarian.
Leaders see things through the eyes of their followers. They put themselves in others’ shoes and help them make their dreams come true.
Leaders do not say‚ “Get going.” Instead‚ they say‚ “Let’s go!” and lead the way. They do not walk behind with a whip; they are out in front with a banner.
Leaders assume that their followers are working with them. They consider others as partners in the work and see to it that they share in the rewards. They glorify the team spirit.
Leaders are people builders. They help those under them to grow big because the leader realizes that the more big people an organization has‚ the stronger it will be.
Leaders do not hold people down… they lift them up. They reach out their hand to help their followers scale the peaks.
Leaders have faith in people. They believe in them. They have found that others rise to their high expectations.
Leaders use their heart as well as their head. After they have looked at the facts with their head‚ they let their heart take a look‚ too.
Leaders keep their eyes on high goals. They are self-starters. They create plans and set them in motion. They are persons of thought and persons of action — both dreamers and doers.
Leaders are faced with many hard decisions‚ including balancing fairness to an individual with fairness to the group. This sometimes requires ‘weeding out’ those in the group who‚ over a period of time‚ do not measure up to the group needs of dependability‚ productivity and safety.
Leaders have a sense of humor. They are not stuffed shirts. They can laugh at themselves. They have a humble spirit.
Leaders can be led. They are not interested in having their own way‚ but in finding the best way. They have open minds."
Source: BizzBangBuzz, 23 October 2005
In the news: “Altria's William Ohlemeyer has signed more than $1.5 billion in outside counsel invoices since coming to the tobacco and snack-food giant in 1999. Working with 10 deputies, he has cut the company's docket roughly in half. But with appeals pending in three critical cases, Altria still needs all the quality outside legal help it can get. With this in mind, we asked Ohlemeyer, one of the top corporate litigation chiefs in our survey, to tell us five things he insists on from outside counsel.”
Read full text
Source: Law.Com's Daily Legal Newswire. 26 October 2005. Copyright 2005. ALM Properties, Inc. All rights reserved. Subscribe.
Posted by Grant Griffiths: “Here is an interesting article about a firm in Hawaii that is not your typical office. In fact this office doesn't have traditional offices, but rather a suite of conference rooms at Pacific Guardian Center, which all the lawyers share. In fact, when Vantage started, Vantage had no offices: Kim and his partner, Elizabeth Lee, joined the Plaza Club and worked on laptops in its lounge, where there's free WiFi service."
READ MORE --->
Source: Home Office Lawyer, 25 October2005
Posted by Frank Houdek: "A Guide to Journalist Shield Laws" is available from the Poynter Institute. This compendium provides information for each state on the protections it offers to journalists working within its borders through shield laws and other legal protections. Citations and links to shield law statutes are provided, as well as citations to related cases.
[His] SOURCE: BarclayBlog”
Source: Law Dawg Blawg, 25 October 2005
Sabrina posts: “From TheCorporateCounsel.net Blog, this entry includes information about and directions on how to locate SEC staff comment letters on the agency's website.”
Source: beSpacific - Accurate, focused law and technology news by Sabrina I. Pacifici. 25 October 2005. Copyright ©2002-2005 BeSpacific LLC. All Rights Reserved. Subscribe <http://www.bespacific.com/mt/subscribe.html>.
From the blog: "Hurricanes Katrina and Rita have provided real-time stress testing for the disaster planning of many businesses. Not all have fared well; many are now doing things differently.
Amid the stories about a possible worldwide flu pandemic, one planning difference becomes apparent: while hurricanes and other severe natural forces impact people and physical structures, the flu only hits people. And keeps hitting–a flu pandemic comes in waves and can last for months.
A white paper written from the perspective of the banking industry has a pandemic timeline on page 3 that extends for more than a year. (The banking and securities industries tend to lead the pack in disaster planning due to regulatory requirements).
So the first thought for many businesses will be to expand and enhance technology that enables workers to work remotely, either from home or from secondary facilities that may not yet be in the path of the epidemic. Imagine during the onset of the pandemic what will happen in the workplace when people show up coughing and sneezing. Employees may demand that people are checked by medical personnel before they are admitted to buildings.
One complication may be that the flu could have a significant impact on company IT staff, causing a crash in the remote-working scenario.
What really prompted this post was a line from a story in that essential paper for long airline flights, USA Today:
“[an expert] advises companies to consider having employees stay home if they are sick, bringing in food and water so essential workers could be quarantined on the job…”
Quarantine? I think that requires some color of governmental authority. Just how does a business do that? Adding it to the employee manual under “Q”? Placing rent-a-cops at the exits?
What if their family members are sick? What if they stay at work and get sick?
I think many employees will simply refuse to come to work if things get bad. Will businesses order them to show up to work when the flu is in full force? And fire workers who don’t?
In the nearly 90 years since the last major flu pandemic, the world has become much more interconnected. Witness the disruptions to travel and commerce from the SARS scare a few years ago. A flu pandemic will likely make SARS seem like the sniffles.
Each business needs to think through what it would do if major groups of employees are unavailable for significant periods of time on short notice. Most simply don’t have a plan for that right now. There may not be an optimal one.
There’s a good BBC overview if you have the stomach for more flu information.
And please eat well, drink your orange juice and get plenty of rest."
Source: Wired GC, 21 October 2005
Jonathan Stein posts: “When I was at a Phi Alpha Delta meeting giving my talk on career options for law students, I was asked about alternative careers for law school graduates. There are many options.
For example, West and Lexis hire JDs as sales reps. You can sell their products to attorneys. You can also provide training on Westlaw and Lexis to law firms. Terry Berger, mastermind behind the Resident Agent Info website, now is a Lexis rep.
You can also go to work for the court's as a research attorney for a judge. Not only do the appellate courts hire attorneys, but law and motion departments usually have research attorneys.
You can take after my friend Sean Raft and go be a professor at a law school. The state bar hires attorneys to investigate ethics complaints, as well as for administration jobs. Bar review companies also hire attorneys to sell products or, like me, you can be a mentor or teacher for a bar review company.
Of course, you can take your law degree and go work outside of law completely.
The University of Toledo has a great list of websites where you can research alternative careers for law school graduates, as well as look for jobs.”
Source: The Practice, 23 October 2005
Posted by Suzanne Rose: “Based on a survey of 41 randomly selected small firm and solo practitioners in the NYC area, their “ever-present concern” was related to bringing in new clients and producing fees, which according to the professor conducting the survey, has a broad influence on the lawyer’s ethical decision-making process. Most surveyed rarely consult the applicable rules of professional conduct; rather, they rely on their own sense of ethics, the norms of their local bar and the expectations and practices of their supervising lawyers. In another survey, research showed that in cases where large verdicts were awarded against law firms, no one consulted with the firm’s loss-prevention partner or in-house counsel. The conclusion of these two studies was that 1) steps should be taken to alleviate the situations where lawyers are overwhelmed with cash flow concerns and caseload; 2) supervising lawyers must be knowledgeable of and comply with the rules of professional conduct and ensure that their legal and non-legal staff do likewise; 3) lawyers should strive to keep their judgment autonomous from that of their supervising partners and have an understanding of the rules; and 4) firms and local bars should provide on-going CLE ethics programming. (The Professional Lawyer, Volume 16, 2005 – Professor Leslie Levin of Univ Connecticut School of Law and Kimberly Kirkland of the Franklin Pierce Law Center)”
Source: Riskybiz, 15 Octpober 2005
Posted by Ron Friedmann: “A boutique law firm has just formed that will focus on e-discovery.
New Law Firm Targets E-Discovery Angst on law.com (in The Recorder) reports that a new, four lawyer, virtual firm “will offer strategic advice to businesses on improving the management of their digital information and records, how best to respond to electronic discovery requests and the risks involved in the integration of different information systems in the aftermath of a merger or acquisition.” The four lawyers met at as members of the Sedonna Conference.
I have previously suggested that large law firms appoint a senior lawyer as the e-discovery expert or “go to” person for e-discovery. This report just reinforces this idea and growing importance of firms getting a grip on e-discovery, from the legal issues, to the technology, to the management of projects."
Source: Strategic Legal Technology, 20 October 2005
Evan Schaeffer posts: “Whether you represent a party requesting email or producing it, the decisions you make on behalf of your client will depend, first and foremost, on the specific "protocol" used to produce, send, and store the emails at issue.
The four most common email protocols are POP, IMAP, MAPI, and HTTP. Even if you are using a consultant to help with electronic discovery, you should have a general understanding of these protocols. Knowing which protocol was used will help you to figure out where relevant information is most likely to be found.
With POP, emails are generally deleted from the server when they are transferred to a user's machine. With HTTP, emails don't reside on a user's machine at all (except, perhaps, in a cache), but are stored on an offsite server. Examples: Gmail and Hotmail. With IMAP and MAPI, selected emails might reside on users' machines, but all will generally be available on an onsite client-managed server.
Whenever possible, consider onsite servers first. As a sort of corporate nerve center, these servers are likely to contain the highest percentage of relevant information. Another advantage is that the information is contained in one place, rather than on a host of personal hard drives. This means you won't have to engage in the expense of doing forensic analysis to uncover deleted messages. Finally, email stored on a server is less likely to be altered after sending.
Of course, emails stored on a server (or backups of the server) may be too numerous to read one by one and will contain a high percentage of duplicates. A consultant can help you with software solutions to remove duplicates and search what's left by keyword.
Source note: Some of the information in this post was derived from "A practical guide to e-mail discovery," by Craig Ball, Trial, October 2005 (not available online)."
[My] Source: The Illinois Trial Practice Weblog, 24 October 2005
Bonnie Shucha posts: “If you haven't been bitten by the podcasting bug yet and are wondering what it's all about, take a look at the article in today's Wisconsin State Journal, "Podcasting: It's More Than Just Tunes."
The article does a nice job of explaining the technology, why some people are tuning in, and why others (including businesses) are creating their own podcasts.”
Source: WisBlawg, 24 October 2005
Ron Friedmann posts: “Business intelligence continues to be a hot law firm management and legal technology topic. The cover story of the current issue of Law Firm Inc. is on BI. And the October ILTA white paper (PDF) has another outstanding BI article by John Alber of Bryan Cave.
Regular readers may recall that I have cited other BI articles and related comments by John. In Mining for Gold, John explains clearly and persuasively the business benefit and imperative for law firms doing BI. This article, directed at a more technological savvy audience than his prior ones, has an excellent discussion of some of the technology and software architectural considerations of law firm BI. On the business side, it emphasizes data acquisition (assimilation), interpretation, and most importantly, distillation into actionable information. On the technical side, it explains data warehouses and cubes and stresses the importance of data consistency and accuracy. This is an excellent article for any law firm considering its BI options.”
Source: Strategic Legal Technology, 25 October 2005
David Swanner posts: “I have a lot of trial lawyer readers that aren’t as up on weblog technology. Well here’s your chance to catch up. The Hartford Courant has a great Glossary of Weblog Terminology.
Thanks to Kevin O’Keefe at LexBlog for the find on this one. Kevin also adds an additional definition that lawyer related blogs are often called blawgs. Law blogs – blawgs. Get it?”
Source: South Carolina Trial Law Blog, October 2004
Reid Trautz posts: “Now is the time to take a few moments to send a personalized message to your clients to thank them for their confidence in your firm. While many lawyers wait until Christmas to send a holiday message, I prefer to send a Thanksgiving card.
In any business, it’s the little things that count. Those little acts or touches help distinguish your business from your competitors. Sending a personal note of thanks is a great personal touch to help build on-going relationships with present and former clients.
Many lawyers choose to do this at Christmas time, but that tradition is changing. More and more cards reflect the changing religious diversity of this country, so now contain general wishes of peace and prosperity for the new year. Nice, but a weak platform to deliver your message. In addition, the holiday card may get lost in the flurry of cards that arrive the week or so before Christmas. So the card does not give you much of a chance to stand out from the crowd.
A Thanksgiving card is a perfect solution. The message of thanks is really the best message to send to a person who has purchased legal services from you. And it arrives well before the Christmas cards.
I was quoted in Monica Bay ’s article [Free Reg. Req.] on this issue in Law Firm Inc. Of course if everyone starts to send out Thanksgiving cards, you may need to try Halloween cards! So get to work before everyone jumps on this bandwagon!”
Source: Reid My Blog, 23 October 2005
Ellen Freedman posts: “Much has been written about the use of a firm’s compensation system as a strategic tool to support firm goals. Most law firm consultants have written at length about compensation. Take a look, for example, at articles available by Altman Weil; Hildebrandt International; Joel A. Rose & Associates (scroll down to the bottom on the home page); and Edge International for good examples.
In spite of all the information available, and all the “fussing” and “tweaking” law firms do to their comp systems on a continual basis, the majority of law firms still haven’t managed to design compensation systems which support their stated goals and produce desired behaviors. An article entitled Rethinking Reward by Karen MacKay of Edge International (September/October 2005 issue of Legal Management), focused on the results of a survey of associates and partners from over 63 firms worldwide. The survey asked “Do you think your present compensation / bonus system adequately compensates the behaviors the firm claims to value?” Almost 60% of associates and 40% of partners said NO. My only surprise is that the percentages aren’t higher. I see it all the time in my private consulting practice.
Firms reward hours because it is easy. Rewarding the depth of client relationships, innovation, creativity and quality is difficult. Non-monetary rewards are equally important. They are also difficult to deliver because they require behavioral changes. These are tough issues with no easy answers.
Rewarding the behaviors that the firm espouses takes tremendous courage on the part of firm leaders. The complicated challenge of rewarding partners is a topic for another day, but know that no matter how confidential your process, people know, partners know and associates know exactly what gets rewarded. And what gets rewarded determines behavior!
From the most junior graduates to lateral partners, lawyers are attracted to firms for many reasons. These reasons are closely linked to the firms’ strategic decisions. Indeed the lawyers I work with consider about 18 different things when they consider a new opportunity.
Everyone is different. “Fit” has a lot to do with alignment between the individual and the firm. How does your firm address each of these priorities?
* Working in a team
* Contribution to Society
* Pay / Income
* Equity Ownership / Partnership
* Mentoring and Training
* Leadership of the firm
* Future earning potential
* Geographic Location
* Strategic direction of the firm
* Influence and power
* Intrinsic nature of the work
* Time (for family, friends & leisure)
* Prestige and status
* Personal Growth
* Professional Growth
* Security
* Alignment of firm with my practice
* Firm culture
Bottom line? Your firm has to do more than talk the talk. You have to walk the talk. If you really care about client relationship management, make sure your compensation rewards more than billable hours. If you care about cross marketing and nurturing the firm as a whole, then make sure your compensation is not formula-driven and primarily “eat what you kill.” Remember that paying the most doesn’t create any long-term strategic advantage, because normally the loyalty will only last until another firm ups the ante.
What really matters is taking a hard look at the behaviors you wish to instill, and then looking at the above list of motivators and developing each to reward the behaviors. Yes, it’s messy. And it’s not for weak-kneed managers. It will mean that some subjective criteria and opinions will be required to determine overall compensation.
It means putting compensation decisions in the hands of individuals who must do more than just “compute the numbers” to make determinations. This allows firm management to use compensation strategically as a tool to achieve objectives and reinforce appropriate behaviors. Successfully developed compensation systems cannot be so objectively formula-driven that they are “untouched by human hands!” Because at the end of the day, you cannot possibly measure on an objective basis all the appropriate behaviors necessary to create a successful firm.
It also means that partner / management must change habits in order to publicly acknowledge and provide recognition to really reward and encourage the behaviors your firm needs to support its stated goals."
Source: Law Practice Management, 24 October 2005
Posted by Carolyn Elefant: “David Giacalone of f/k/a has this post about a New Jersey Supreme Court ruling reversing a gag rule on those who file ethics complaints against lawyers. (more details from this Star Ledger article (10/20/05) here.) [Free Reg. Req.] Under the old rule, clients who filed grievances couldn't discuss them publicly but now they can even though many of those grievances will not ripen into a formal complaint against the attorney.
Personally, I have no problem with opening up the grievance process, provided that the openess cuts both ways. If clients want to make public that they've filed a grievance against their attorney, then that grievance, along with the lawyer's response should be made public as well. So, for example, the public would have access to a client complaint that a lawyer failed to return phone calls - as well as the lawyer's response, explaining that the client called three times a day and was delinquent in paying the bill besides.
I also believe that opening the grievance process would actually make lawyers look better. I realize that there are many really unethical lawyers but there are also plenty of unscrupulous clients who don't pay bills, who seek free advice or don't provide the paperwork necessary to document their claims. I'm not implying that representing a lousy client justifies unethical conduct. But clients who don't keep up their end of the retainer agreement can't expect the same level of service or the same results as those who do. And many times, the lousy clients who, by their own actions, wind up with the short end of the stick, are the ones who file complaints and try to equate the lower quality service that they received and deserved with ethical violations. I've got no problem with exposing those kinds of claims and clients who file them.”
Source: MyShingle, 20 October 2005
Posted by Evan Schaeffer: “Query: Your opponent has offered to give up the emails you've been requesting in discovery, but insists on giving you printouts as opposed to electronic data. You're tired of fighting. Should you accept your opponent's offer?
Here are a few reasons you should answer "no"—
· Paper printouts won't allow you to determine whether existing emails were altered after your discovery request;
· BCC's might not print out on paper;
· You might not get the attachments if you accept paper printouts;
· The emails may not print out in the same manner in which they appeared electronically; and
· Paper printouts are impossible to search electronically.
Source note: This post contains information from "Reasons why not to accept email printouts" (ExpertLaw.com).
Source: The Illinois Trial Practice Weblog, 21 October 2005
Posted by Diane Murley: “We recently compared KeyCite to Shepard's online as part of a Lawyering Skills exercise. We found that both services listed the same cases and most of the same law review and journal articles as citing references for cases. Although they both list treatises, they only list the treatises owned by their respective companies – Shepard's lists LexisNexis treatises and KeyCite lists West treatises.
KeyCite lists court documents, which Shepard's does not. Although briefs and other court documents may be helpful as examples for writing assignments, and they may cite to primary and secondary authorities relevant to your research, their usefulness is otherwise very limited. Documents filed by parties to litigation are not primary authority (the law itself), and they are rarely persuasive outside the case in which they were filed. Furthermore, unlike treatises, journal articles, ALR annotations and other secondary authorities we covered this semester, court documents have not been subjected to independent editorial review. It is up to the researcher to determine whether the documents are current, accurate and reliable.
Shepard's includes statutes in its Citing References. No, of course, statutes do not cite to cases, so a statute cannot literally be a citing reference. Shepard's lists a LexisNexis annotated statute as a citing reference for cases that have cited the statute and are listed in its annotations. Here's an example. If you Shepardize Totz v. Continental Du Page Acura, 236 Ill. App. 3d 891, 602 N.E.2d 1374 (1992), one of the citing references will be 815 ILCS 505/2, the current version of a section of the Illinois Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act, which Totz cited.
You may be wondering about the value of the inclusion in a Shepard's report of annotated statutes to which a case has cited. Would it not be easier for a researcher to find the statutory citation in the case and go directly to the statute? In most cases, probably yes. However, Totz is a good example of how the Shepard's listing can be helpful. Totz did not cite to 815 ILCS 505/2, but to its predecessor, Ill. Rev. Stat. 1989, ch. 121 1/2, par. 262. Although there are translation tables in print that would allow a researcher to convert Ill. Rev. Stat. citations to ILCS citations, on LexisNexis the Shepard's report appears to be the most direct link from Totz to the statute.
Although KeyCite does not include annotated statutes in its citing reference lists, citations to previous versions of statutes in cases on Westlaw are linked to the current versions of the statutes, even when the statutes have been renumbered.”
Archive of Research Tips
Source: Law Dawg Blawg, 20 October 2005
In the news: “Employers are grappling with an emerging liability issue that combines workplace safety, employee rights, property rights and the Second Amendment: guns in the workplace. A bill recently introduced in Florida would allow employees to bring handguns to work, as long as the firearms stay locked inside their vehicles. That measure is just one of an increasing number of actions around the country aimed at stopping employers from prohibiting guns.”
Read full text
Source: Law.Com's Daily Legal Newswire. 24 October 2005. Copyright 2005. ALM Properties, Inc. All rights reserved. Subscribe http://store.law.com/registration/register.asp?subscribeto=nw.
From Tom Mighell’s e-newsletter: “There's a brand (and I mean brand) new site for doing news research, and it's called Inform.com. It wants to be a one-stop news research site – you can save your searches, create customized "Discovery Paths" for just about any topic imaginable, create your own customized news channels, and more. Two things that I'm not so sure about: 1) you can't create RSS feeds from your searches, and 2) I can't tell what news sources the site is drawing from. No matter; it's still in beta so there's plenty of time to work on these things."
http://www.inform.com
Source: Internet Legal Research Weekly by Tom Mighell. Volume 6, Issue 36. 23 October 2005. Subscribe <http://www.inter-alia.net/subscribe.php>.
There’s more on Inform.com at Cindy L. Chick’s LawLib Tech, 19 October 2005
INTRODUCING THE "COMMON LAW" BLOG
From the e-newsletter: “FindLaw introduces "Common Law", a web log ("blog") that provides useful law-related news and information to the public and small businesses. Recent postings include information and tips on tax reform, car recalls, and recent changes in the bankruptcy laws. Click on the link below to read "Common Law".
http://commonlaw.findlaw.com
Source: FindLaw’s PUBLIC ADVISOR. 20 October 2005. Copyright © 2005 FindLaw, a Thomson Business. Subscribe <http://newsletters.findlaw.com/>.
And...
NATIONAL ORGANIZATION FOR VICTIM ASSISTANCE
http://www.trynova.org/
"Founded in 1975, the National Organization for Victim Assistance (NOVA) is widely considered a leader in the attempt to secure rights for victims across the world and to provide related support services to mental health professionals, criminal justice agencies, and researchers. Starting at their homepage, users can learn about some of the latest situations they are responding to, including such natural disasters as hurricanes and tsunamis. After viewing the materials, users will definitely want to look at the Help For Victims area, as it contains well-thought out information on advocation and assistance for crime victims with disabilities and how to get help after victimization. Additionally, the publications area of the site includes a myriad of booklets and chapters available for download that deal with crisis intervention, supportive counseling, and the psychological trauma of crime. [KMG]"
Source: The Scout Report. Volume 11, Number 42. 21 October 2005. Copyright © 2004 Internet Scout Project. Subscribe <http://scout.wisc.edu/About/subscribe.php>.
Jonathan Stein posts: “There are good clients and there are former clients. Yes, it’s that simple. If you are running your own firm, you cannot afford to keep bad clients.
The Law Practice Management blog just ran an article on Clients you fire and clients you hug. Everyone should be in agreement on this. There are some clients who just should not be clients. In a perfect world, you would just never represent these people in the first place. However, the people who are clients you fire may be clients you fire because they are so good at fooling people.
Some tips on which clients to make former clients:
1. The client who calls you more than once a day. Sure, there are good reasons for you to talk to a client more than one time per day - but those days should be few and far between.
2. The client who is sure he/she knows what he/she is doing and has to tell you how to do your job. I dont tell my mechanic how to fix my car, I dont want my clients telling me how to practice law.
3. The client who demands you meet them after hours or on weekends. Be honest: you will have to work after hours and on weekends as a solo. However, when to do that is your decision - not the clients. If a client demands you meet with them after hours or on weekends, it means they have no respect for you and your time.
4. The client who will "make payments." Sure they will. And the check is in the mail.
5. The client who is a family member or friend. It just doesnt work. Dont try it.
6. The client who has had 2 or 3 other attorneys. There is a reason they have had more than one attorney.
7. The client who only wants to give you part of a case. I had a client call me after being in an accident. He wanted to settle with the other party and wanted me to sue the city for what he thought they did wrong. Dont take only part of a case. You end up with the hard part!
8. The client who realizes that they have a million dollar case. They are out there - but that has to be your decision, not theirs.
9. The client who insists you take the case pro bono. You take pro bono cases that are right for you - not for the client.
10. The client who wants to find a new attorney and then changes his or her mind. Once they want to fire you, let them!
There are more things to look for. Lets hear what you have to say.”
Source: The Practice, 20 October 2005-10-21
In the news: “There's more than one way to build a standout U.S. Supreme Court practice. It can take a village -- or a single superstar. Case in point: the two firms that argued the most cases last term. At Jones Day, five lawyers argued six cases. "We don't have a single sun that everyone revolves around," says Glen Nager, head of the firm's issues and appeals practice. Over at Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr, that sun is former Solicitor General Seth Waxman, who argued all five of the firm's high court cases.”
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Source: Law.Com's Daily Legal Newswire. 21 October 2005. Copyright 2005. ALM Properties, Inc. All rights reserved. Subscribe http://store.law.com/registration/register.asp?subscribeto=nw.
Jim posts: "One Law Office to Go, Please" is the title of my column for the Oklahoma Bar Journal this month. It covers the very basics of how a law office can be made mobile with current technology. I'd like to expand it into something more lengthy sometime, but time marches on and the Oklahoma Bar Association Annual Meeting is on the horizon.
I would note that I firmly believe that many, if not most, lawyers should consider utilizing a laptop rather than a desktop for their primary work computer. This particularly true for true solos with little or no staff support or those brand new lawyers trying to start a practice on a shoestring budget. It just makes too much sense to always have all of your work in progress within handy reach in case you decide to put in another hour after your kids have gone to bed or there is an unexpected situation. (This may not be so true for larger firm lawyers with remote access and a home computer.) Of course, the maximum benefit of this practice does depend on how far down the road you have gone on scanning incoming documents and creating a digital client file.”
Source: Jim Calloway’s Law Practice Tips Blog, 18 October 2005
Posted by Grant Griffiths: “Finally two great post on the question of whether you should print your own or pay the bucks and have a printer do it.
At the Practice today, you will find two posts with differing views. First you should read The Case for Printed. And then read The Other Side.
Where do I fall in this? I am on the other side. I print my own and I have never had any negative comments about it. If a client says anything, I would just remind them that I could charge them more to cover the cost if it really matters that much to them. They usually just look at me and say, "oh, I see what you mean."
As "The Other Side" states, let your work impress them, not your letterhead.”
Source: Home Office Lawyer, 18 October 2005
Jim posts: “It sounds bizarre, but did you know that your color printer has likely been modified to provide information about your use of it to law enforcement? Yes, I know. I couldn't believe it either.
In many color printers, there are tiny almost-invisible hidden yellow dots generated on each page which can be decoded to reveal the serial number of the printer used and the date and time of printing. Apparently this practice was first brought to public attention in this article in PC World about a year ago. Then the Electronic Frontier Foundation started investigating and produced this white paper. This month the EFF announced they have decoded the dots and published this Web feature "Is Your Printer Spying on You?" with links to many resources including a chart of which printers do and which printers don't. The Washington Post ran this story on the topic yesterday. (WashingtonPost.com may require free registration.) The rationale for this practice was the Secret Service could use it to track counterfeiting. One researcher said he found the "feature" in documents produced by ten year old printers. (Thanks to Norman, OK attorney Kevin H. Pate for bringing this to my attention.)"
Source: Jim Calloway’s Law Practice Tips Blog, 20 October 2005
Posted by Tom Mighell: “Chris Pirillo has come up with a terrific little search tool called gada.be. It's a meta-search tool that collects results from 140 sources, and it's a snap to use. In fact, you don't even have to go to the site to start using it. Just take your query (say, Harriet Miers), and make it the URL: http://harriet.miers.gada.be. You'll instantly be taken to your results page.
This tool will be especially useful for those who use mobile search; it's clean, graphics-free, and easy to use.”
Source: Inter Alia, 19 October 2005
Tom Mighell posts: “A bookmarklet is a small application that can be stored as a bookmark in your browser, and perform additional useful functions. Check out this list of Top 10 Must-Have Bookmarklets -- even if you just use one or two of these you'll be glad you did.”
Source: Inter Alia, 20 October 2005
From Mary Ellen Bates' e-newsletter:
(1) "Sometimes, when you're doing research and digging around in a web site, you want to see all the pages that are within the site. While some web sites have a link to a site map or site index -- basically a table of contents of all their publicly-accessible web pages (see Intel's at http://www.intel.com/siteindex.htm for an example) -- many sites don't have a way for you to see all their pages. Yahoo! has a feature called Site Explorer (http://siteexplorer.search.yahoo.com), which lets you see all the pages that Yahoo! has indexed at a particular site or just within a specific subdomain. So, for example, if you type in http://www.boulderhumane.org, you'll see all the web pages that Yahoo! knows about on the Boulder, Colorado Humane Society's web site.
A cool features is that you can also get a list of all the out-going links on the Boulder Humane Society's site -- that is, all the other web sites that the Humane Society is pointing to. This can be a useful way of identifying additional useful resources, and it's a lot quicker to see the list of links by using Site Explorer than it would be to go to every page on the Humane Society's web site, looking for out-going links.
(2) Y!Q is something entirely different. Imagine walking up to a reference librarian (or, if you ARE a reference librarian, just think back to an earlier encounter today...) and saying "Halloween." Would that librarian instantly nod his head, magically intuit what you want, and direct you to the appropriate resources? Probably not.Instead, he'dask you questions to figure out the context in which you're making the query. Are you looking for help in designing a Halloween costume? Are you looking for a history of the origins of Halloween? Are you trying to find local parties on Oct. 31st?
While Y!Q can't actively engage you in a conversation to figure out what's behind your question, you can use it to show the context in which your question arose. You've got a few ways to use Y!Q. The simplest is to go to http://yq.search.yahoo.com/ and paste in the text of whatever you're reading that piqued your curiosity. Were you reading a news article about the problems New Orleans will have in disposing of tons of debris in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina? Highlight the text of the news item, paste it into the Y!Q search box, and Yahoo! will look for other pages that focus on this topic. Even more convenient, you can download a Y!Q toolbar for Internet Explorer (note that it's already built in to the version 6.1 Yahoo! toolbar); you can download a plug-in for the Firefox browser's search bar, or you can searchfrom a hyperlink to any news item in Yahoo! News, if you view the news at (http://yq.search.yahoo.com/publisher/news.html). I found that it takes a little time to learn when Y!Q is most effective; spend a little time playing with it to see how it works best for your research.
Note that both of these tools are still in beta, so they may morph over time. My experience, though, has been that Yahoo! doesn't roll out anything until it's at least at the stage where it's stable, functional and, well, useful. Give these a try and let me know what you think of them.”
Source: Bates, Mary Ellen. “Search Tip of the Month: Two Cool Yahoo! Tools.” 20 October 2005.
From Law Librarian Blog
Posted by Jim Milles: “The Pocket Part is the online companion to The Yale Law Journal. As members of the legal community know, legal publications often contain 'pocket part' supplements with up-to-date information and commentary. The Pocket Part plays an analogous role. It features op-ed length versions of Journal articles and responses from leading practitioners, policymakers, and scholars. The Pocket Part also serves as a forum for our readers and authors to discuss legal scholarship.
While full-length scholarly works remain at the center of legal debate, students, professors, and practicing lawyers are increasingly turning to the Internet to read about, and comment on, developments in the law. With The Pocket Part, the Journal hopes to combine the strengths of both print and online media, broadening the readership and influence of traditional legal scholarship while enriching the dialogue among the academy, bench, and bar.”
Source: Out of the Jungle, 19 October 2005
Posted by: John Jantsch: “Look, this post is hard for me to write. I like to think of myself as an NPR kind of smart guy, but I have to tell you that the one place I turn to keep myself rooted in how the world thinks and buys, you know, marketing research, is PEOPLE magazine.
I know, not exactly what you were thinking I was going to say.
Personally, I don't really care what Mary Kate Olsen's next big move is, but for about 20 years running, more people turn to PEOPLE than any other magazine and that speaks volumes about what the editors at People have got going on. A tough thing for some small business owners to swallow is that it doesn't really matter what you like or dislike, what matters is what your target market likes or dislikes. If your target market is Men and Women, age 25-54, then People magazine is a gold mind of research for your target market. (Think it's a woman's magazine? - 33% of People readers are men.- about 12 million)
So, what we're talking about here is research. Read (or at least scan) People magazine to:
- Get a feel for what the majority of Americans want to fight, find, lose, gain, have, give or embrace.
- See design and copy that is easy to scan, read and digest
- Uncover story angles that could apply to your organization's PR
- Feel better about yourself (okay, that last one was my Public Radio snob coming out, but sometimes watching billionaires suffer is good sport)
If you already read People, maybe you have a sense of what I'm talking about, if not, carve out an hour, go to the library and grab about 10 issues and start looking through the pages with this new view in mind. You might find some real nuggets. Plus, now you can tell your friends that you only read People for research purposes.”
Source: Duct Tape Marketing, 16 October 2005
From the e-newsletter: “It sounds like a slacker's dream come true.
Residents of California and several other states are permitted to become licensed lawyers without entering the classroom. However, becoming an attorney through the combination of independent study and apprenticeship called "reading the law" is far from easy. Joni Gray, 4th District Santa Barbara County supervisor and an attorney at the Kirk & Simas Law Corp. in Santa Maria, passed the bar in 1988 after reading the law.”
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Source: FindLaw’s PRACTICE PAPER. 19 October 2005. Copyright © 2005 FindLaw, a Thomson Business. Subscribe <http://newsletters.findlaw.com/>.
New on LLRX.com for October 15, 2005:
**Reinventing the Empire of Secrecy: An Agenda for the First DNI
“Former intelligence officer, attorney, professor, and information law, technology and management expert Lee S. Strickland's commentary documents the resources and strategies that the new Director of National Intelligence has at his disposal to implement a new paradigm for the intelligence culture to meet the challenges of the 21st century.”
**Researching U.S. Treaties and Agreements - Revised and Updated
“Marci Hoffman's comprehensive and essential guide for researchers includes print, online, free and subscription resources on topics including: international treaties and agreements; U.S. treaties and agreements; ratification and implementation of U.S. treaties and agreements; researching U.S. treaties and agreements; and treaty interpretation and legislative histories.”
**Criminal Justice Ethics Sources on the Internet
“Law librarian, criminal defense attorney, and author Ken Strutin's bibliography focuses on Internet sources of codes, ethical opinions and other materials governing the conduct of legal professionals, and collections with links to codes for other professionals in the criminal justice system.”
**In the Wake of Katrina – Where to Find Answers about Courts, Lawyers
“Robert Ambrogi highlights web resources for legal professionals impacted by Hurricane Katrina, with links to information on federal and state courts, relevant bar associations, law office technology resources, blogs and message boards, law school initiatives, and industry insurance assistance.”
**FOIA Facts: FOIA Appeals, the Unspoken Problem
“Scott A. Hodes discusses the importance of administrative appeals to requesters who have been thwarted by agencies in honoring their FOIA requests.”
**CongressLine by GalleryWatch.com: Its Not Just A Bill, Its An Amendment
“Paul Jenks describes the basics of bill tracking, with a special focus on the challenges to researchers that are posed by amendments.”
**The Authors Guild v. The Google Print Library Project
“Jonathan Band clarifies the copyright and fair use issues at the heart of the escalating controversy between associations representing authors and publishers on one side, and Google on the other, over the program to digitize library collections from around the world, allowing key word searching and retrieval of sentences from books.”
**After Hours: 2005 Holiday Gift Guide: Maximum Wow
“Kathy Biehl shares her recommendations for gifts that include a special sense of delight in the unique experience that accompanies the offerings, including specialty chocolates for grownups, nostalgic candies for children, gifts for the office, food related kits and miniatures, and several special holiday books. Her tips offer an opportunity to jump-start your holiday shopping with guaranteed sweet and satisfying results.”
**Burney's Gadgets for Legal Pros: Good Sounds and Good Scans
“Brett Burney reviews a new generation ultra-compact portable scanner, and a high-end wired headset whose design, reliability, and sound quality make it an excellent choice for professionals who spend alot of time on their mobiles.”
**LLRX Bookstore – “new recommendations on topics including: systems thinking, the U.S. budget, making the perfect pie, surveillance and RFID tags, political commentary, VoIP, and holiday books.”
**”And don't forget LLRX Court Rules, Forms, and Dockets, the unique, free searchable database, maintained and continually updated by Margaret Berkland.”
Source: E-mail news update. “New on LLRX.com for 15 October, 2005.” Copyright © LLRX TM, Law Library Resource Xchange, LLC. 19 October 2005.
Sabrina posts: “Executive Summary from the Guidewire Group Market Cycle Survey, October 2005: Blogging in the Enterprise (8 pages, PDF)
Key findings (140 individual survey respondents):
· "Corporations of all sizes across a wide array of industries are adopting blogging technologies and practices. 89% of respondents are either blogging or are planning to blog."
· "Smaller companies have been quicker to adopt blogging as a part of their communications strategies, followed by mid-sized."
· "Internal blogs are used for communication within a company - knowledge-sharing (63%)"
Source: beSpacific - Accurate, focused law and technology news by Sabrina I. Pacifici. 19 October 2005. Copyright ©2002-2005 BeSpacific LLC. All Rights Reserved. Subscribe <http://www.bespacific.com/mt/subscribe.html>.
Posted by Denise Howell: “ClickZ, McDonald's Dips Toe In Blogging Waters: "McDonald's legal counsel was, of course, uncomfortable with the idea..."
Source: Between Lawyers, 18 October 2005
Sabrina blogs: “From the Wall Street Journal free content today: 'Splogs' Roil Web, and Some Blame Google.
· Definition of splog from Wikipedia.”
Source: beSpacific - Accurate, focused law and technology news by Sabrina I. Pacifici. 19 October 2005. Copyright ©2002-2005 BeSpacific LLC. All Rights Reserved. Subscribe <http://www.bespacific.com/mt/subscribe.html>.
Dennis posts: “There's so much talk these days about Web 2.0 and I'm soaking it all up like a sponge. It can get a little confusing.
However, I found a great primer on AJAX (Asynchronous Javascript and XML) that really helped me understand, at least conceptually, the technological underpinnings of AJAX and why there is so much excitement.
It's Amit Asaravala's AJAX Puts the Browser to Work Web 2.0 and AJAX - A great primer in this week's issue of InfoWorld, to me a model of clarity in writing about technology.
Highly recommended if you want to get some familiarity with this area of technology development and understand the reasons for the excitement it is generating.
The money quote:
"AJAX encourages developers to split Web pages into compartments of data that can be refreshed independently of the entire page, and to write applications that act on data within the browser rather than on the server. After all, why should a browser ask a server to run a simple task when the browser has enough processing power to do the job itself? The result is that considerably less data and display information has to travel over the network."
The article is especially strong on giving examples of how AJAX approaches are being used in business settings and does a nice job of setting out the different tools being used today.
If you read this article, you'll be able to follow some of the Web 2.0 discussions with a much better sense for what is going one.
By the way, it's starting to become a running gag with us, but it seems like Matt Homann and I probably have tried about half or more of the Web 2.0 services out there. We are always trying out new ones. One of the ones I've grown to like is Writely, for quick and easy collaboration on standard documents.”
Source: DennisKennedy.com, 18 October 2005
Posted by Suzanne Rose: “Pushing work down to the lowest level that is competent to do the work is the key to improving law firm productivity – yet, it is one of the hardest concepts for law firms to successfully implement. Why? Intra-firm competition for fee dollars is a significant obstacle to implementing profitable delegation of work. Competition within the law firm is typically the result of the firm’s compensation system. Other typical objections include partners claiming that the client only wants them and a fear of malpractice by junior lawyers. The compensation issue is a legitimate one that must be addressed. In the end, partners must be able to act in the long-term best interest of the firm, regardless of how it may impact their pocket at the moment. If a partner cannot do that, he is probably over-extended and unable to bring to bear good, sound business principles to the management of the firm. This is