Criminal law is an ever-changing creature based on the notion of precedent. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: when the law is working as it should, it is a living breathing organism; just as any organism must grow and adapt to its surrounding environment, so must the law. Consequently, the law has [...]
LegalTech West kicked off its second day this morning in Los Angeles and, among the key trends, is getting good reviews from attendees. “I was particularly impressed by the quality of the educational offerings this year,” said Perry L. Segal, Esq., President of Charon Solutions. “The final session I attended, Judges’ Panel: The Current State [...]
Let’s face it, attorneys are notorious for being aloof and stodgy. Walls lined with mahogany bookshelves and lawyers wearing starched shirts and designer suits while sitting at oak desks only fuel that image. But even the most traditional law firms are recognizing the value of the newest media trends—thanks to client expectations and increased competition [...]
Back in January, I discussed a few cases currently on the docket for the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) that could greatly impact the ever-changing landscape of criminal law. Well, many of those cases have been decided over the past few months, and I wanted to lend a little update regarding the new [...]
It was tweener energy at work February 27, when LexisNexis® in Cary hosted a dozen students from Centennial Campus Magnet Middle School in Raleigh. The group was here as part of the Students@Work program, and the goal was to focus that tweener energy on a series of fun, interactive activities designed to not only give [...]
A Journey of the Future of a Two-Attorney Personal Injury Firm: From Free Rent to a Strong Support Network We were discussing the future of his two-attorney personal injury firm when my new client, Dirk, rather hesitantly showed me a real estate listing for a commercial building downtown in his suburban community. I noticed the [...]
Richard Susskind’s 1996 book The End of Lawyers predicts that without radical adaptation, lawyers as we know them will become extinct. Since the technological revolution that prompted his thinking is more mature than it was when Susskind first wrote on the subject, it is time to follow-up on his predictions and reassess whether lawyers are [...]
The last two week’s articles were tips for law firm management based on a book Run Less Run Faster. The first article, Can Lawyer’s Learn from Runners focused on developing a detailed action plan, similar to what a runner would use as a training program for a marathon, complete with dates, pace and distance of [...]
Last Friday, LexisNexis hosted an event with the North Carolina Bar Association that featured Dan Heath, the New York Times bestselling co-author of Made to Stick and Switch. Dan provided an entertaining and educational view on making decisions based on Dan and his brother Chip, have a new book coming out, Decisive, due out in [...]
What does an ex-law firm manager from Lackawanna County Pennsylvania have in common with an Aide to the rock band U2’s bassist? They are serving time for embezzlement! Unfortunately, too many times, law firms don’t press charges when they find out they’ve been embezzled for fear that their clients will wonder how they can handle [...]
Every lawyer knows they spend time every day on non-billable activities, but just how many hours and what kinds of activities have always been a bit of a mystery. Until now. Just this past spring, LexisNexis® decided to try and crack the code between hours worked vs. hours billed. The goal was to get input [...]
The One Man Band, once a fascinating and sometimes comedic vignette, is a concept that seems to have faded with technological advances music production. Most will remember Dick Van Dyke’s depiction of such a character in the Walt Disney’s Mary Poppins. Bert the Pavement Artist had a harmonica, a trumpet, an accordion, a snare, a [...]
There are a couple of hidden black holes on your balance sheet and income statement that can be the difference between a comfortable cash flow and a challenge with cash flow. Client advances and reimbursed client expenses are two areas that often get overlooked as a threat against cash flow as they are eventually going [...]
The other day I was assisting in an upgrade of accounting software at a client’s office. The managing partner came in and was clearly agitated. “Can you tell me,” he asked, “what an income statement is supposed to do? My accountant says it looks great. So how come I don’t have any money?” In order [...]
It is far too easy to click “Accept” when downloading apps and software programs. And for some, perhaps, it’s not as invasive as others. But as attorneys you cannot claim neglect for doing so. With a broader acceptance of online file sharing and web-based solutions it is becoming even more critical that you pay attention! [...]
The combination of the economy, technology and overabundance of lawyers has changed the legal sector. Years ago, “hanging your shingle” and becoming a sole practitioner or a partner in a small firm lawyer was a fall back for many if other, more lucrative options didn’t pan out. Today, out of necessity, many lawyers are becoming [...]
The goal of every attorney is to serve their clients needs and give them the best possible legal representation—and service—that they can. But all too often, the day ends with unfinished tasks, unreturned phone calls, hours of work left, and a question: Where did the time go? If you’ve ever wished you could start the [...]
Law firm growth has many faces. For some law firms it means diversifying to provide more full service to through organic growth or through merging with a specialty law firm. The advantage of this type of growth is the ability to offer existing legal clients additional services and more opportunity to obtain new clients with [...]
When I first started to practice law the internet was still ruled by home users dialing up AOL to hear “You’ve Got Mail.” In that environment, when I needed the expertise of another lawyer, I had to walk down the hall and talk to a colleague, or turn to my phone list (I kept mine [...]
It’s beyond me why attorneys are so fond of discounting their rates. I don’t get a discount for quick payment from my doctor or my hairdresser and I pay on the spot. My veterinarian just got $660 out of me at time of service, and I still don’t know what’s wrong with my cat. Arguably, [...]
My client used to stare out her kitchen window for long periods of time while enjoying her morning coffee. Then, she would go to the office and read the local newspaper online for 30-35 minutes. At $350 an hour, this habit cost her nearly $200 a day. She now reads the paper at home and [...]
Despite all of the diet and exercise fads, there’s really only one way to lose weight and stay healthy: eat less food than you burn. In other words, exercise regularly and eat more fruits and vegetables and less meat and processed foods. To have a successful law firm, there is a similar formula: take in [...]
I’m not usually a late adopter, but in the case of tablet computing, I was two years behind the curve. My first glimpse of a tablet led me to believe it was just a big smart phone–without the phone–and bigger wasn’t necessarily better. Over time, my view of tablets evolved. I saw so many of [...]
If your laptop or mobile device is stolen or your janitorial service personnel or some other unauthorized person decides to take a look at the data, is it protected with a password or encryption? What is Encryption? Encryption is not a new concept with email or online applications; it has been around for years. Encryption [...]
Your local Firestone dealer knows exactly how many tires must be sold each day to cover expenses and turn a profit. Based on the average customer’s shopping habits, your grocer knows how many customers must come through the front door each day to hit the store’s financial goals. Your gardener knows how many lawns must [...]
Hurricane Sandy has left homes and businesses destroyed in its path. While I was lucky to suffer a few minor power outages, many of my neighbors and clients were not so fortunate. Over the last week, I have been helping clients get back to business. For the luckier ones, we were able to reinstall software [...]
To some attorneys, nothing could be scarier than talk of “the Cloud” in their law practice. These attorneys use their well-honed issue spotting skills to list every possible doomsday scenario applicable to remote computing and data storage (the Cloud), and they convince themselves that it is better to do things the old-fashioned way. But the [...]
The joy of the holiday season sometimes takes a backseat to the stresses of finishing up work by year’s end, while trying to balance out personal time for family and friends. To take care of business — and get you back to the joy — here are five tips to help you get the most [...]
Mr. Banner comes to Matters of Practice from the great state of Oklahoma, where he practices criminal defense at The Law Offices of Adam R. Banner, P.C. We had the chance to sit down and ask him a few questions on criminal law, representation, and what he hopes to bring to Matters of Practice readers. [...]
At my local gym (and no doubt yours), January always brings an influx of well-meaning folks looking to start the year off right. They make it harder to get through workouts at my normal pace, but they also serve as a role model for lawyers. Why? Because now’s the perfect time to take a look [...]
In today’s legal economy, it’s not enough to be a good lawyer and practice law. Whereas in the past a law firm evaluated performance of junior and senior associates and acted accordingly, these days even partners are being targeted. But this is not totally new news. In a recent Wall Street Journal article, cuts to [...]
If one of your New Year’s resolutions was to become more educated on technology trends and law firm management, you should attend one of the nation’s largest technology shows specific to the legal industry. “But wait,” you say. “My firm’s not very tech [savvy] [focused] [inclined] [oriented]. And besides, that wasn’t one of my resolutions.” [...]
As the main-stream media currently focuses on stories of Manti Te’o’s fake dead-girlfriend and Lance Armstrong’s failed dope tests, a subtle aspect of the interplay between our government and our personal freedoms steadily shifts in the balance. The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is in session, and the ultimate law of the land [...]
The first few months of a new year are a great time to take an inventory of how the last year worked out for your law practice. If your year was a blazing success from start to finish, what can you do to make this year even better? If last year was disappointing in some [...]
It’s a question every criminal defense attorney gets asked sooner or later: “How can you defend those kinds of people?” And if it’s not in the form of a question, it’s usually some unrequested advice: “You should practice something respectable, like corporate law…or family law.” So, what’s my usual response? I’ll save you the generic [...]
In my last post, I showed you how to evaluate your practice’s performance in 2012; now, it’s time to make sure you’re on track in 2013 – and that requires a plan. As Ben Franklin so aptly put it, “A failure to plan is a plan to fail.” Since you don’t want to fail, it’s [...]
As consumers, we all prefer to pay a fixed price. While some legal practice areas are billed as flat fees, the majority of legal work is still billed hourly. When the economy was better, the sting of legal fees was less. In today’s environment, clients are negotiating to get the best hourly rates or flat [...]
LexisNexis Firm Manager® and HowToManageaSmallLawFirm.com have announced their co-sponsorship of the “How to Make More Money With Your Small Law Firm Tour” in three U.S. cities, beginning with Philadelphia, PA on April 12th-13th. “Whether by choice or by circumstance, many attorneys are hanging shingles and practicing law on their own for the first time,” said [...]
