Posted by Carolyn Elefant: “Being beautiful can have beautiful benefits, according to this story, The Beauty Premium. Obviously, you'd expect beauty to pay off in industries like entertainment or even news media. But as this story notes, beauty makes a difference even in professions like law. From the article:
Dr Hamermesh, together with Jeff Biddle, found the difference also applied to professions. They examined the wages of lawyers, using data from the same law school for graduating classes of 1971-78 and 1981-88 and found that those rated attractive on the basis of their graduation photographs went on to earn higher salaries than their less well-favoured colleagues, reports The Economist.
But does beauty carry the same benefits in the legal profession with the advent of blogs? As we've heard over and over again, most recently from The New York Times, blogging is a low cost, high return marketing tool. After all, a blog's success is generally judged not by the beauty of its author, but by its content and its character. If blogs can catapult lawyers to success, does beauty matter as much?”
The active links are available at the source site listed below.
Source: Legal Blog Watch, 28 December 2007
From the site: “On this special Holiday edition of Lawyer2Lawyer, Law.com bloggers and co-hosts, J. Craig Williams and Robert Ambrogi, will profile the work of those who help others not only during the holiday season, but year-round. Bob and Craig welcome Nicholas Henry, two-time Operation Iraqi Freedom veteran and co –founder and administrative director from the John Marshall Law School Veterans Legal Support Center and Clinic and Veterans' advocate, Attorney Gordon P. Erspamer, from the law firm of Morrison & Foerster, to talk about their efforts to legally help wounded war veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. Please go to the Veterans Legal Support Center or Swords to Plowshares to donate your time or funds to our Veterans. Happy Holidays!
Click the play button (or choose another way to listen).
>>Play in Windows Media Player
>>Download the MP3”
The active links are available at the source site listed below.
Source: Legal Talk Network, 21 December 2007
In the news: “Many women leave the legal profession after they have children and find 60-hour workweeks unsustainable. Given their training and the fact that they made it through law school and the bar exam, Andrews Kurth partner Kathleen Wu doubts that these lawyers want to stay away forever. Wu offers ways that smart law firms and legal departments can entice women to come back after they've left, from offering low-cost CLE to inactive attorneys to keeping in touch with alumni.”
Read full text
Source: Law.Com's Daily Legal Newswire. 2 January 2008. Copyright 2006. ALM Properties, Inc. All rights reserved. Subscribe <http://store.law.com/registration/register.asp?subscribeto=nw>.
Posted by Sabrina I. Pacifici: “US Courts: "A new fee schedule for certified and professionally qualified interpreters and for language skilled interpreters in federal courts takes effect January 2, 2008. Rates. More about Federal Court Interpreter Program."
The active links are available at the source site listed below.
Source: beSpacific - Accurate, focused law and technology news by Sabrina I. Pacifici. 31 December 2007. Copyright ©2002-2006 BeSpacific LLC. All Rights Reserved. Subscribe <http://www.bespacific.com/mt/subscribe.html>.
Posted by Holden Oliver: “New to us, anyway, and it's thoughtful and interesting: Service Untitled. One category is "angry customers". Lots of practical advice and tips applicable to pure services and product-service mixes. Who are these guys?"
The active links are available at the source site listed below.
Source: What About Clients?, 29 December 2007
Posted by Jim Calloway: “Following up on a prior post, this week I will feature Lawyers with Depression.com as my Website of the Week. Attorney Dan Lukasik had the courage to set up this site to help other lawyers dealing with depression and mental health issues. Some advised him that he would be at career risk if he revealed his struggles in this area. Many lawyers are thankful he ignored that advice and provided this resource.”
The active link is available at the source site listed below.
Source: Jim Calloway’s Law Practice Tips Blog, 21 December 2007
Posted by Chuck Kallendorf: “The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission Wednesday said employers could reduce or eliminate health benefits for retirees, their spouses, or any dependents once the retiree hits 65 and becomes eligible for Medicare.
(See Final Rule)
AARP had filed suit in Eastern Pennsylvania District Court earlier this year trying to block the new rules. Losing both that and the subsequent appeal in June, AARP approached the Supreme Court back in September.
New York Times article”
The active link is available at the source site listed below.
Source: Cincinnati Law Library Blog, 28 December 2007
In the news: “Dictation is an old friend for lawyers and should not be forgotten as manufacturers move from analog to digital dictation systems. Michael Barnas, Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal's director of application services, provides helpful tips and tactics for evaluating specific vendors.”
Read full text
Source: Law.Com's Daily Legal Newswire. 2 January 2008. Copyright 2006. ALM Properties, Inc. All rights reserved. Subscribe <http://store.law.com/registration/register.asp?subscribeto=nw>.
Posted by Evan Schaeffer: “From the American Bar Association: "Law Hacks: 101 tips, tricks and tools to make you a more productive, less stressed-out lawyer." Some examples:
21 Do the thing you dread the most first thing each day.
22 Break big tasks up into small chunks. Writer Gina Trapani of San Diego wrote her book of productivity tips, Lifehacker, in 60-minute chunks. “I’d set a kitchen timer and write like hell till the bell rang, and then I got up and took a break —no matter where I was,” she says. “It’s amazing how a ticking clock can keep you on task and focused.”
23 Calculate filing deadlines and keep track of multiple court schedules with shareware like DateCalc 1.2 or CSC Date Calculator 2.1. The software counts days between dates or measures days from dates. They can save both time and embarrassment.
24 Stop wasting so much time reading blogs and watching YouTube.
I suppose it's okay to violate #24, at least for today. Meanwhile, the ABA has opened up its ABA Journal for free access--be sure to take a look.”
The active links are available at the source site listed below.
Source: The Illinois Trial Practice Weblog, 27 December 2007
Posted by Michelle Golden: “My friend and fellow Fellow of VeraSage, Ed Kless, has a really good reminder post about the differences between goals and objectives, two commonly confused terms.
Commenter Ric Wilmot adds a great .02 cents and expands the subject into consideration of resources.
Check out the post and comment: The Difference Between Goals and Objectives.”
The active links are available at the source site listed below.
Source: Golden Practices, 21 December 2007
In the news: “In the realm of talk versus action, diversity retention within corporate legal departments ranks high in the "talk" area. Despite senior executives' best intentions, writes attorney Daniel A. Panitz, corporate legal departments remain the worst offenders in terms of diversity, compared to other corporate departments nationwide. Panitz discusses five guidelines to help diversity retention make the transition from a well-intentioned discussion to a reality.”
Read full text
Source: Law.Com's Daily Legal Newswire. 28 December 2007 Copyright 2006. ALM Properties, Inc. All rights reserved. Subscribe <http://store.law.com/registration/register.asp?subscribeto=nw>.
Posted by Jim Cotterman: “Tis the season for getting the fiscal house in order. Many firms push on getting bills out in November and then make an even greater push for getting paid in December. Balance sheets tend to be in their best condition by year-end — lines of credit are at $0; accounts payable are probably around 1 month; Unbilled time and accounts receivable each represent about 2.0 to 2.5 months of revenue.
The question I get most when talking about capitalization is how much and in what form? I have two precepts. Owners should contribute meaningfully at buy-in and provide the majority of capital needs to their firms. Clearly law firms should expect meaningful financial investment from each owner. Having a seat at the table is serious business. Taking cash out of your pocket and putting it into the law firm’s is also serious business. Making a financial committment is one of the attributes of fully contributing owners.
Second, the firm should have significant liquidity. My test is probably much more severe than most. For most firms there should be sufficient cash at year end to pay out earnings, fund the retirement obligation and all payables plus two weeks of cash flow. As you might imagine, there is a fair amount of push back on these items. But a look at the profession suggests that law firms are closer than they believe to doing this. The attached chart, Balance Sheet Metrics, provides some key metrics for all firms and for the 25% most profitable firms. There are some clear differences in how the most profitable firms manage their balance sheet.”
The active link is available at the source site listed below.
Source: Cotterman on Compensation, 13 December 2007 [via Tom Mighell’s Inter Alia, 28December 2007]
From the blog: “The Evolution of the Blog
The term “Web log,” which was then shortened to “blog,” was born 10 years ago. Blogs have made their mark on American culture, especially on politics. In this series, NPR looks at the blogosphere’s evolution, as well as who blogs, the language and culture of blogs and how blogs are changing our lives.
+ Blogs Become Serious Business
+ The Big Book of Blogs
+ ‘Web Log’ Celebrates 10th Anniversary
+ Learning to Embrace My Inner Blogger
+ Timeline: The Life of the Blog
[Their] Source: National Public Radio
The active links are available at the source site listed below.
Source: ResourceShelf, 28 December 2007
Posted by Robert Amgrogi: “The New York Times makes it official: Blogging’s a Low-Cost, High Return Marketing Tool for small businesses, including law firms.
All together now: Duh-uh!”
The active link is available at the source site listed below.
Source: Robert Ambrogi’s Law Sites, 27 December 2007
In the news: “There are about 1,000 blind lawyers in the U.S., but only a few at major law firms, despite the assistance that contemporary technology offers. Kirkland & Ellis associate William Grignon stays on top of his practice with some additional software, including a speech synthesizer that reads aloud text displayed on a computer screen.”
Read full text
Source: Law.Com's Daily Legal Newswire. 28 December 2007 Copyright 2006. ALM Properties, Inc. All rights reserved. Subscribe <http://store.law.com/registration/register.asp?subscribeto=nw>.
Making a Budget
From the e-newsletter: “(FindLaw for the Public) As 2008 approaches, many people are making a resolution to save money and avoid debt in the New Year. FindLaw for the Public's "Making a Budget" section has helpful tips on creating a personal financial plan, managing expenses, and avoiding debt. You will also find a sample budget to help you get started on the right financial track in 2008.”
Read more...
Crimes A to Z
From the e-newsletter: “(FindLaw for the Public) What is the difference between burglary and robbery? What does "disorderly conduct" mean? Are "assault" and "battery" really the same thing? The "Crimes A to Z" section in FindLaw's Criminal Law Center offers definitions for over 40 common criminal acts, and links to related criminal laws in your state.”
Read more...
Related Resources
• Crime Prevention Resources
Both items are from:
Source: FindLaw’s PUBLIC ADVISOR. 27 December 2007. Copyright © 2006 FindLaw, a Thomson Business. Subscribe <http://newsletters.findlaw.com/>.
Posted by Anthony Cerminaro: “Ingrid Vanderveldt is an expert in entrepreneurship. Through her Entrepreneurial Blueprint, she's helped many businesspeople network and find their strategy. She's also been the host of CNBC's "American Made," an interview series with business icons. Here Vanderfelt talks [to BNET.com] about the common traits she see in all success stories: passion, commitment, and persistence.”
The active link is available at the source site listed below.
Source: BizzBangBuzz, 26 December 2007
There was a very interesting exchange on the ORALL listserv yesterday. George W. Baker, Director of theTrumbull County Law Library asked where to find the appropriate forms “to appeal the ruling that a sexual offender must now register for life. This is retro-active and will affect thousands of convicts in Ohio.”
Diane Jordan, Public Services Assistant at the Columbus Law Library Association replied that “There are forms located on the Ohio Public Defender website under the information on the Adam Walsh Act.
http://opd.ohio.gov/Adam_Walsh/Adam_Walsh.htm”
[I thought you might find this useful!]
Posted by Tom Collins: “To Law Firm Leaders: Wishing you a Prosperous New Year
As I head into retirement and turn this blog over to those who will carry on in the years ahead, I leave you with two thoughts that, if you take to heart, will mean more partner income for 2008 and the years ahead.
I had to learn them the hard way. They are the core beliefs that have guided me throughout my business career. At least they guided me during the most successful part of that career. It took a while before I came to understand that these two certainties govern the success or failure of businesses—including law firms.
You are always judged by others
Business is a journey that involves constant change.
You are only as good as seen through the eyes of those that judge you. For a law firm, that primarily means your clients, your peers and your employees. But don’t forget all of the others that your success depends on, including vendors and service providers. The only sound business strategy is to pursue excellence. And excellence must be earned through their eyes, not yours. Excellence can only be pursued through change. You either purposely change to improve or the natural forces at work will pull you down to lower and lower performance.
Steering the course for excellence takes measurements. You have to set goals. You have to decide how you are going to achieve those goals. You have to measure your progress, make adjustments and set new goals as you continue to chase the allusive standard of excellence. It is a moving target. It takes constant innovation not to lose the race to others. Rather than stay too long with what has worked in the past, you must diligently simplify, eliminate and reinvent.
PS: Morepartnerincome.com just received Dennis Kennedy’s nod as the Best Overall Law Related Blog and also takes home the Blawggie Award for Best Law Practice Management Blog. Being recognized for your work beats a gold watch every time! Thanks Dennis.”
The active link is available at the source site listed below. You may have to use your browser’s REFRESH option to read this post.
Source: morepartnerincome.com, 27 December 2007
Posted by John Jantsch: "Make marketing your new habit in 2008! Habits are hard to form, habits are hard to break. It pretty much takes daily work to sink in.
I know there’s never enough time to get it all done, certainly no time for marketing, right?
I suggest you dive into 2008 by creating a marketing calendar and committing to live by it. I’m convinced that marketing is the most important activity any business does, so why not act like and schedule a little time every day, week and month to do a bit of marketing.”
Video topic: Marketing is a habit
Here are some other resources to you going on this:
· Duct Tape Marketing paper planning calendar
· Google Calendar - Getting better and free
· Yahoo Calendar - The granddaddy still works well
· Windows Live Calendar - new entry from Microsoft
· 30 boxes - simple online calender tool
· Lifehacker - great tips on hacking life and work
· Getting Things Done - David Allen’s site and book - David will be my guest in April’s Coaching Excellence Series
· 43Folders - great blog about getting more done
The video and active links are available at the source site listed below.
Source: Duct Tape Marketing, 21 December 2007
In the news: “Since corporate counsel across the country ranked only one Atlanta-based law firm in the top 10 in this year's "best there is" list, it could be illuminating to know that firm's secrets for satisfying clients. Humility seems to be a key to Alston & Bird's success with client service, according to managing partner Ben F. Johnson III. Referring to some firms as "temples of testosterone," he says lawyers who pride themselves on "how tough they are" just wind up alienating clients with their arrogant attitude.”
Read full text
Source: Law.Com's Daily Legal Newswire. 27 December 2007. Copyright 2006. ALM Properties, Inc. All rights reserved. Subscribe <http://store.law.com/registration/register.asp?subscribeto=nw>.
In the news: “Lawyers working on international transactions should beware of exports that include services, software and technical data. The U.S. government is stepping up its enforcement of export laws and ratcheting up related penalties. Dilworth Paxson's Margaret Gatti and David Laigaie offer 10 tips to fend off costly fines.”
Read full text
Source: Law.Com's Daily Legal Newswire. 27 December 2007. Copyright 2006. ALM Properties, Inc. All rights reserved. Subscribe <http://store.law.com/registration/register.asp?subscribeto=nw>.
Posted by Darren Rowse: “How do you write an About Me page?
There are four main questions that readers want answered on your About Me page:
who you are…
your expertise and how it addresses…
their problem or goal, and how they can…
contact you
Here is a sample “About Me” page that answers these questions:
Hi, I’m Jane Smith and I write TransitionMomBlog (who Jane is) to help women make the transition from full-time mom to successful entrepreneur (the reader’s problem or goal). I started TransitionMomBlog in 2004 (Jane’s expertise – shows she has been blogging for two years) to help other women deal with the sometimes overwhelming prospect of starting a new business while still running a household (how Jane helps them overcome their problem or achieve their goal). Prior to raising my family, I spent over ten years as a teacher, corporate trainer and workshop leader (Jane’s expertise, both as a mom and a business person). To contact me, please email XXX (how to contact Jane).
Other posts on About Me Pages include:
Adding an About Page to your Site
The problem of Default About Pages
Also check out our popular Blogging Tips for Beginners page.
This reader quick tip was submitted by Barbra Sundquist from Home Business Wiz.
The active links are available at the source site listed below.
Source: ProBlogger, 24 November 2007
P.S. I found this great site while reading Dennis Kennedy’s December 22, 2007 post
"The 2007 Blawggies: Dennis Kennedy's Best Law-related Blogging Awards". And thank you very much Dennis for selecting the Stark County Law Library Blog for a Blawggie Award. It means a lot to be included with some of the bloggers I post about on a regular basis!!!
From the blog: “Archive-It Adds Advanced Search Option
We regularly post about new permanent web archives being added to the Archive-It collection.
Archive-It is a service from the Internet Archive that works with various groups (”partners”) to archive their web site and other important pages, often coming from news events. At the moment, Archive-It has 469 collections, encompassing over 255 million URL’s. Those totals grow almost daily.
Unlike another IA project, The Wayback Machine, Archive-It pages can be keyword searched. The service uses Nutch open source search software.
Now, we can report that Archive-It has recently added an Advanced Search Interface using a common design.
+ Search with all terms (AND), any one of the search terms (OR), none of the terms (NOT)
+ Limit by Host URL
+ Limit by Total Documents per host
+ Limit by file format (9 file formats including MS Word Docs, PDF files, and QuickTime Files)
+ Limit to a Specific Partner and then (if available) a specific collection
Queries can also be turned into RSS feeds with a single click.
See Also: Selected Recent Collections Added to Archive-It
1 ||| 2 ||| 3 ||| 4
The active links are available at the source site listed below.
Source: Resource Shelf, 27 December 2007
From the blog: “Because Ohio foreclosures are up 40% compared to 4 years ago, Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice Thomas Moyer has asked all lawyers in the state of Ohio to provide pro bono legal service to help residents facing foreclosure. According to the Plain Dealer, Moyer's plea came following after meetings he attended with Attorney General Marc Dann, state and county officials, and members of state legal aid organizations. The state hotline for people who believe they have been the victim of foreclosure fraud or predatory lending practices is 877-244-6446.”
The active links are available at the source site listed below.
Source: Cleveland Law Library Weblog, 24 December 2007
Posted by Brian J. Ritchey: “Lawyers appreciate the respect of their peers. The practice of law, like most professions, carries a high responsibility with it. Those who work diligently to represent their clients with the integrity and respect for the rule of law are not always appreciated by those who share the same work space.
Take the managing partner, for example. Like other partners, they ascend to their position through the accumulation of work and clients. They are then challenged with the responsibility to manage the practice and "herd cats", often with no additional pay and sometimes with no less obligation to maintain their revenue.
Ascending to the rank of partner is an expression of faith, respect and honor to a lawyer. It means you are highly valued within the firm. On the other hand, ascending to the rank of managing partner may seem like a prison sentence, pulling you away from what you do well to do what seems impossible (just ask David Maister).
It takes a lot to take on the responsibility of increasing firm profitability while having to mediate the special interests of the other owners. Lawyers should appreciate managing shareholders.
By the same token, all those who support lawyers appreciate fairness and respect as well. Something all lawyers shouldn't overlook.
We all know the difficulty in getting work done quickly. Having competent support staff makes lawyers look better. Without painting too broad a brush, for many attorneys crisis is the norm. Staff are constantly challenged by the needs of attorneys that need something now. No matter what they have piled up on their desk, there will be things that have to take priority and many times take up most of the day.
Having support staff you can trust is golden - whether it be in the back office making the numbers work or just outside your office handling your crises.
Don't forget to thank the people who enable you to focus on the practice of law.”
The active link is available at the source site listed below. You may have to use your browser’s REFRESH option to read this post.
Source: morepartnerincome.com, 26 December 2007
Posted by Carolyn Elefant: “Yes, you read my headline correctly - lawyers appreciate passion. At least, that's my official response to the Second Annual what do lawyers appreciate meme , for which I've been tagged by my friend Sheryl Schelin.
My answer may surprise you. After all, we generally, we don't associate staid lawyers with passion - unless it's kind of carnal passion like this that keeps bar disciplinary committees in business. But lawyers appreciate another kind of passion: the inspired committment that the best lawyers bring to bear in representing clients, running their practices and participating in the blawgosphere. In fact, if you think about it, passion lies at the core of our profession, formally codified in our duty to zealously represent clients. What is zeal, after all, if not passion?
So how do I know that lawyers appreciate passion? Well, first and most obvious, because even though in our profession passion is in short supply, either squeezed dry by the rigorous demands of a job we don't like or the monotony of the same cases over and over again, many of us lawyers yearn to restore passion to our own practices. Second, because passion accounts for the public success and personal satisfaction of those lawyers at biglaw or their own solo practice, who practice law with joy and purpose, and in doing so, evoke our admiration. And finally, because passion drives the success of our beloved blawgosphere, home to memes such as this one. The blawgosphere depends upon the participation of hundreds of lawyers who blog their hearts out for audiences of ten or ten thousand simply out of sheer passion for exchanging and sharing ideas. And silly contests aside, for those laywers who passionately and genuinely captivate and inspire their readers, the blawgosphere bestows a wealth of riches like complimentary comments, mutual respect, intellectual satisfaction and, as Sheryl said, friendship….
The active links are available at the source site listed below.
Source: My Shingle, 24 December 2007
In the news: “ Marketer Stacy West Clark's gift to you is advice from law firm marketing experts as well as from herself. One reminds lawyers to fix up their Web sites -- "Visitors to law firm Web sites view lawyer biographies three to four times more than any other pages," she says -- while another recommends attorneys devote a minimum of 200 hours a year on business development -- an easy target to hit, he claims. Clark herself says to think about marketing every day and with each person you meet.”
Read full text
Source: Law.Com's Daily Legal Newswire. 26 December 2007. Copyright 2006. ALM Properties, Inc. All rights reserved. Subscribe <http://store.law.com/registration/register.asp?subscribeto=nw>.
Posted by Kevin O’Keefe: “And it's not Martindale-Hubbell.
Commenting on last week's court ruling that there was no basis for cracking down on Avvo's lawyer-rating Web site because some lawyers didn't like how they were rating, the Wall Street Journal endorsed the concept of lawyer ratings.
At a time when the judicial system is under increasing scrutiny, the courtroom performances and verdicts of its practitioners would seem a reasonable object of public interest. For those shopping for legal counsel, an online rating service might at least provide some measure of transparency in an otherwise opaque profession.
The site, called Avvo, does for lawyers what any number of magazines and Web sites have been doing for other professions for years. Magazines regularly publish stories that rank an area's doctors and dentists. There are rating sites and blogs for the 'best' hairstylists, manicurists, restaurants and movie theaters. Almost any consumer product or service these days is sorted and ranked.
Professional ego aside, it's hard to see why lawyers or judges should be any different.
Though not mentioning Super Lawyers by name, the WSJ certainly seems to endorse Super Lawyers practice of selecting the best lawyers and publishing the lawyers profiles in magazines and now the Internet.
Like it or not, the Internet may bring transparency to our profession yet.”
The active link is available at the source site listed below.
Source: Real Lawyers Have Blogs, 23 December 2007
Posted by Chuck Kallendorf: “SCOTUS had an interesting post last week about the Justice Department urging Supreme Court justices to allow lower courts continue to explore whether to apply the Sixth Amendment right of confrontation to sentencing hearings—including those involving the death penalty.
Being discussed was Fields v. U.S (07-6395) and a reply brief filed Thursday opposing Fields’ case’s acceptance.
Fields’ appeal does not ask for the right of confrontation to be applied to all criminal sentencing instances, SCOTUS says, only those involving death sentences, seeking to test the scope of two previous Supreme Court rulings – the 1949 decision in Williams v. New York (holding that the confrontation clause does not apply at sentencing), and Crawford v. Washington in 2004, barring the use as evidence of testimonial statements that had not been subject to cross-examination.
The Government, in its brief, did not “forcefully dispute that a conflict existed among courts around the country concerning the applicability of confrontation rights at capital sentencing,” but opposed review by the Court because that conflict is not “sufficiently well developed to warrant intervention.” Reasoning here “for leaving the issue percolate in lower courts was that the Supreme Court’s 2002 ruling in Ring v. Arizona was said to be reshaping the issue of applying Sixth Amendment rights to death sentencing… requiring jurors to apply a reasonable doubt standard when it decides on the existence of a fact that would be necessary to make a murder defendant eligible for the death penalty.
Fields’ petition for certiorari (Sept. 4) and the brief in opposition (Dec. 13) are here.”
The active link is available at the source site listed below.
Source: Cincinnati Law Library Blog, 24 December 2007
Posted by Brooke Powell: “At the International Dispute Negotiation series of The International Institute for Conflict Prevention & Resolution (CPR), hear the latest interview, No. 7: "Mediating Using International Arbitration Institutions: The ICDR and the ICC." Hosted by Michael McIlwrath, Senior Litigation Counsel with General Electric based in Florence, Italy.”
The active links are available at the source site listed below.
Source: What About Clients?, 22 December 2007
In the news: “Getting noticed on the Internet takes more than just putting up a Web site. With that in mind, attorney Robert Ambrogi reviews some interactive sites that allow attorneys to post favorable decisions and profiles. He also recommends sites worthy of bookmarking to help keep you informed and on top of your contracts.”
Read full text
Source: Law.Com's Daily Legal Newswire. 26 December 2007. Copyright 2006. ALM Properties, Inc. All rights reserved. Subscribe <http://store.law.com/registration/register.asp?subscribeto=nw>.
Posted by Ed Poll: “According to a recent study by Altman Weil, Inc., the closer to retirement a lawyer gets, the more likely he/she is to oppose mandatory retirement ages. Interviews with a number of aging lawyers suggests that they don’t want to retire, but they do want to work only part-time and they no longer (if they ever did) want to be responsible for rainmaking…”
Continue reading this interesting post at the source site listed below.
Source: Law Biz Blog, 19 December 2007
From the e-newsletter: “(Ronda Muir, Esq.) - Hiring has always been a game of odds; particularly in the law profession. We see a candidate's resume, check references and do a face-to-face. Then most of us reach a decision based on a slightly educated hunch. The data on lawyer retention makes it clear how much of a crapshoot hiring really is.”
Read more...
Related Resources
• Learn More About HR Issues
Source: FindLaw’s Practice Paper. 21 December 2007. Copyright © 2006 FindLaw, a Thomson Business. Subscribe <http://newsletters.findlaw.com/>.
Posted by Sabrina I. Pacifici: “US Courts: "This is the latest working draft of the Rules Governing Judicial Conduct and Disability Proceedings Undertaken Pursuant To 28 U.S.C. §§ 351-364 (50 pages, PDF), adopted by the Committee on Judicial Conduct and Disability. The draft is a substantial revision of the Rules sent out for Public Comment on July 16, 2007. It is the result of the Committee's efforts to respond to the comments received during the public comment period, including testimony and other submissions at the Public Hearing held on September 27, 2007."
The active link is available at the source site listed below.
Source: beSpacific - Accurate, focused law and technology news by Sabrina I. Pacifici. 23 December 2007. Copyright ©2002-2006 BeSpacific LLC. All Rights Reserved. Subscribe <http://www.bespacific.com/mt/subscribe.html>.
Posted by Larry Bodine: “Check out the new collection of podcasts by Sharon D. Nelson and Jim Calloway, which includes Electronic Marketing: Harnessing the Web's Whizbang. It includes the following points about how lawyers can use the internet to market their law practice:
1. Put your marketing plan in writing.
2. On your intake form, ask if the new client visited your website.
3. The old ways of marketing, including newspaper ads and yellow pages ads, are not working as well any more. Everything is online nowadays.
4. Content is still king on websites -- not Flash, graphics and style.
5. Reserve the .com, .net and .org versions of your domain names.
6. A Flash introduction takes up a lot of bandwidth and blocks search engines from indexing your site.
7. 2/3 to 3/4 of clients use Google to find their lawyer.
The Digital Edge is produced by the American Bar Association's Law Practice Management Section, and lists useful resources (including the blog you are reading now), blog hosting resources, blog content management and podcast resources.
Jim Calloway 's Oklahoma accent is wonderful to listen to. He is the Director of the Oklahoma Bar Association Management Assistance Program. Sharon Nelson is the President of Sensei Enterprises, Inc., a computer forensics and legal technology corporation based in Fairfax, VA. She was chair of ABA Techshow in 2006, a year after Jim.”
The active links are available at the source site listed below.
Source: Law Marketing Blog, 21 October 2007
From the e-newsletter: “(Symantec) - Symantec Corp. (Nasdaq: SYMC) today announced the worldwide availability of Symantec Log Management Service, a new offering from its Managed Security Services group that extends real-time security monitoring to server and application log files.”
Read more...
Related Resources
• FindLaw's Electronic Discovery Index
Source: FindLaw’s Modern Practice. 21 December 2007. Copyright © 2006 FindLaw, a Thomson Business. Subscribe <http://newsletters.findlaw.com/>.
Posted by Sabrina I. Pacifici: “Official Google Blog: "Here's a suggestion for everyone to save energy over the holidays (and at other times!): turn off your computer and monitor or put them into "sleep" mode when you're not using them. Why? The typical desktop PC uses 100-200 watts even when it's idle. That's the equivalent of 1-2 bright incandescent (read: inefficient) light bulbs. (Note: new PCs that comply with the latest Energy Star specifications consume less than 50-60 watts when idle.) You wouldn't leave your car running for hours when it's just sitting there. Most of us wouldn't leave a bright light bulb burning for hours when no one is nearby to need the light. So why leave your computer on? If you're leaving your office for the holidays, turn off your PC. If it consumes 100 watts, that will save 2.4 kWh/day, or over 25 kWh for the next 11 days through January 1st. In California, that will stop about 40 kg of CO2 from being put into the air, and save about $2.50. For every 1 million people who do this, that will stop 40,000 tonnes (metric tons) of CO2 from being emitted, and save $2.5 million. In many areas, it will reduce emissions even further, and save even more money. The same issue applies at home: turn off your computer or put it to sleep when you're not using it. The automatic power management settings on most computers will put them to sleep automatically after a specified idle period."
· Related postings on e-waste and recycling
The active links are available at the source site listed below.
Source: beSpacific - Accurate, focused law and technology news by Sabrina I. Pacifici. 22 December 2007. Copyright ©2002-2006 BeSpacific LLC. All Rights Reserved. Subscribe <http://www.bespacific.com/mt/subscribe.html>.
From the e-newsletter: “(PRN) - With Congress still contemplating a full slate of proposed tax changes -- most notably a temporary fix to the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) -- it becomes critical for individuals to stay informed of any forthcoming legislation before filing their 2007 tax returns. As we get ready to ring in 2008, now is the time to plan and take advantage of tax law changes for the 2007-filing year.”
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• More Tax Law Resources
Source: FindLaw’s Practice Paper. 21 December 2007. Copyright © 2006 FindLaw, a Thomson Business. Subscribe <http://newsletters.findlaw.com/>.
Posted by the Freedman Consulting Group: “If you’re looking for a simple checklist with easy to follow instructions, this link is a real plus. My partner in The Managing Partner Development Institute, Dan Siegel, came across it by accident. Microsoft has a little gem on their site. Actually they have lots of them, but their site is just so big, it’s easier to find things by accident than by design. Their Small Business Computer Security Checklist has just 7 items, with full details linked behind each item. It’s worth a look.”
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Source: Law Practice Management, 20 December 2007
In the news: “Considering the amount of time and resources that law firms spend on attracting, recruiting and developing their lawyers, it makes sense that they also invest in creating an associate evaluation process that provides associates and partners with an opportunity for open dialogue about management's performance expectations, the associate's progress in meeting them and objectives for professional-development initiatives. White & Case partner Karen Asner describes the best practices her firm has adopted.”
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Source: Law.Com's Daily Legal Newswire. 21 December 2007. Copyright 2007. ALM Properties, Inc. All rights reserved. Subscribe <http://store.law.com/registration/register.asp?subscribeto=nw>.
Posted by Raymond Ward: “Joanne Young has posted her 10 commandments of writing, all of which are worthwhile and most of which will benefit legal writers. Check them out.
Number 5 on her list is, “Do use short sentences.” If you keep this commandment, you’ll avoid writing things like this 306-word monstrosity I came across today (citation withheld to avoid embarrassing the author):
In view of the fact that the insured gave notice of the claimed windstorm damage to his home as soon as he discovered it, which was over 5 months after the windstorm, the insurance companies, in the absence of fraud or collusion, could not successfully deny liability on the ground that the insured failed to give notice promptly within the time provided by the policies, the court decided in Hayward v Carolina Ins. Co. (1951, La App) 51 So 2d 405, reh den 52 So 2d 468, upholding, except as to the amount of the award and the allowance of attorney fees and penalties, a judgment for the insured, where it appeared or was shown that after the windstorm in September, 1947, the insured collected $27.50 from the two insurance companies for damage to his roof; that after the storm there was hardly any rain until the latter part of February or first part of March, 1948; that during the latter part of February, the insured went on a trip to another state and did not return for about 2 weeks, or until March 5, 1948; that upon his return home he discovered that water was pouring down the walls in front of the house and that the inner front wall was wet, the floor covered with water, and the interior covered with mold and mildew, and he then notified the agent of the insurance companies of the damage; and that at the trial the insured produced competent witnesses who testified that the damage was caused by the windstorm of September, 1947, and the trial court so found, their theory being that the storm caused the flashing of the front wall to be pulled away from the roof and the wall either weakened or separated from the main roof, permitting water to seep inside the house.
Whew! A few more clauses and the author would have had one word for every day of the year. As it is, we have one word for every day from January 1 through November 2.”
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Source: the (new) legal writer, 10 December 2007
Posted by Jim Calloway: “The Wall Street Journal ran a feature today titled Even Lawyers Get the Blues: Opening Up About Depression. One quote from the article might be surprising to law students or those outside of the legal profession. "That lawyers are among the most miserable of men -- and women -- is well-known. Some 19% of lawyers suffer depression at any given time, compared with 6.7% of the population as a whole, says the University of Arizona's Connie Beck, a leading researcher on the subject." Oklahoma City attorney Jim Webb and some other Oklahomans are featured in the video clip.
The online version of the ABA Journal also discussed this today in an article titled Lawyer Depression Comes Out of the Closet. This article makes note of the "fact" that "[p]essimists excel at law, but they are at risk for depression." I found that interesting and dug a little deeper. It was based on a study indicating that pessimistic law students got better grades, were more likely to make law review and get "better" job offers. It is probably equally true that those who had no social or personal life outside of law school did better in those three categories as well. Would they have better lives or enjoy more success? As noted in the comments to a prior ABA article, I'm not sure that one can make that leap of logic. Thanks to Carly for giving us the link to the original article, outlining the positive contributions of being optimistic.
At one time we were experiencing at least one lawyer suicide per month in Oklahoma. The Oklahoma Bar responded with an improved crisis hotline and initial free mental health counseling for lawyers. They have fielded a lot of calls. We work in a stressful profession. People bring us their problems and expect us to fix them. We search for the truth in adversarial courtroom settings. We often deal with important and significant high-stakes situations. Your law practice tip today is to be alert for your own mood changes and to take care of yourself this holiday season.”
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Source: Jim Calloway’s Law Practice Tips Blog, 13 December 2007
Posted by Tom Kane: "Stacy West Clark wrote an article entitled “My 2007 Holiday Gift: Advice From Top Marketing Consultants” that appeared in The Legal Intelligencer on December 18. What she did was ask 10 marketing consultants for a marketing or business development idea she could provide to her readers.
The topics submitted by each include:
• Give so you can receive (Sally Schmidt)
• Visit Clients (yours truly)
• Fix up your web site (Deborah McMurray)
• Don’t waste marketing dollars (Andy Havens)
• Focus on your own market (Susan Saltonstall Duncan)
• Spend 200 hours on marketing (Larry Bodine)
• Have a plan (John Remsen)
• Happy Birthday, client (Elizabeth Lampert)
• Meet face to face (Sylvia Coulter)
• Keep what works secret (Micah Buchdahl)
Some good advice there. Well, except for one maybe. To read what each of the above had to say, download the article here.”
The active links are available at the source site listed below.
Source: The Legal Marketing Blog.com, 20 December 2007
From the blog: “Webliography: Social Networking Sites
Cliff Landis, a reference librarian at Valdosta State University, has put together an excellent compilation that not only lists social networking sites but also includes places to learn about social networking and keep updated with social net news.
[Their] Source: ACRL News
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Source: Resource Shelf, 21 December 2007
Posted by Ben Stevens: “Two articles were published last week that discuss how the iPhone is gaining marketshare with businesses. These articles acknowledge that the iPhone is a viable (some would say superior) option to the Blackberry, Palm, etc., which have been popular for many years. If you have not already gotten an iPhone for yourself, you may want to check out these articles:
• "Think Business Doesn't Care About the iPhone? Think Again." by Seth Weintraub, published at Computerworld
• "Apple iPhone Winning Corporate Fans Despite Flaws" by Jim Finkle and Scott Hillis, published at Yahoo!Finance”
The active links are available at the source site listed below.
Source: The Mac Lawyer, 10 December 2007
Posted by John Jantsch: “As part of a recent overhaul of my site I added a search function.
Not every site in the world needs this, but once you get over a couple dozen pages it can be very useful. I chose Google’s Custom Search tool and I am very pleased with how robust this search tool is, but then again, Google does search pretty well.
If you have a blog as part of your site (and you should) then pages can add up pretty quickly and a search function makes your site much easier to navigate when someone is looking for something very specific.
The thing I like about it is that it is extremely flexible from a design standpoint and allow you to create your own results page, keeping the entire search experience on your site. Since I have about 10 sites as part of the Duct Tape Marketing family, it’s nice that I can add those sites into the mix that gets searched.
Another benefit is that you get statistics and start to see patterns of what people are searching for on your site either because they want more information or they can’t find what they want - good stuff to know.
There’s also a side of me that wonders this: If you build a new site, and add it to a custom site search set-up, wouldn’t Google need to spider and index that site pronto to give you results. Just a thought!
Test it out with the search box at the top of the page here.
There is a free version and a $100 year professional version for large volume sites.”
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Source: Duct Tape Marketing, 15 December 2007
From the e-newsletter: “(FindLaw for the Public) The "Retirement Plans, Pensions, and Social Security" topic in FindLaw for the Public's Employees' Rights Center can help you find information and resources on 401k plans, pensions, the Social Security system, and more.”
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• More Information on Retirement and Social Security
Source: FindLaw’s Public Advisor. 20 December 2007. Copyright © 2007 FindLaw, a Thomson Business. Subscribe <http://newsletters.findlaw.com/>.
In the news: “Most attorneys are familiar with this scenario: You're at a social event and someone asks you what he should do in a certain legal situation. Do you answer? And if you do, how can you protect yourself from legal fallout? That conundrum has now moved online, as more attorneys participate in social networking sites.”
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Source: Law.Com's Daily Legal Newswire. 20 December 2007. Copyright 2007. ALM Properties, Inc. All rights reserved. Subscribe <http://store.law.com/registration/register.asp?subscribeto=nw>.
In the news: “Big-firm holiday parties present a plethora of social dilemmas for associates, from what outfit is appropriate to how many cocktails are too many. Lawyers must carefully navigate the pitfalls to avoid making a complete heel out of themselves. So humor columnist The Snark offers a guide to spare them from being the star of a post-party gossip rundown. For one thing, choosing the right date can help avoid a full-out fight at the bar. And if you have to use the restroom, you've been at the party too long.”
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Source: Law.Com's Daily Legal Newswire. 20 December 2007. Copyright 2007. ALM Properties, Inc. All rights reserved. Subscribe <http://store.law.com/registration/register.asp?subscribeto=nw>.
In the news: “Private communications at work may be a thing of the past, even if the communications are personal matters conveyed via a personal e-mail account. Kelly Talcott examines recent court decisions that weighed whether an employee has a reasonable expectation of privacy regarding electronic communications.”
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Source: Law.Com's Daily Legal Newswire. 19 December 2007. Copyright 2007. ALM Properties, Inc. All rights reserved. Subscribe <http://store.law.com/registration/register.asp?subscribeto=nw>.