Practice Management

Top 10 Law School Websites

Posted on July 07, 2010
Finally, a school ranking system that probably means something in this high tech, information society of ours. Roger Skalbeck, the associate law librarian at Georgetown University Law Center did a detail analysis of each of the home pages of America's law schools and ranked the law school according to who has the best website...

Nonexistent Or Terrible And Schlocky Web Presence

Posted on July 05, 2010
Attorneys and related professions often worry about competition on the web. I am here to tell you there is none. Well, I will backtrack a little and say there are a lot of websites and non-updated blogs, but that there is very little competent web competition...

Lincoln Memorial University Duncan School Of Law

Posted on July 04, 2010
I do not believe you should shy away from new, even if the law school is unproven. But, there are risks. One risk is ABA accreditation. You hope the law school is provisionally approved by the ABA before you graduate. The law school is also unproven as to bar passage...

Cabin Fever

Posted on July 02, 2010
I have communicated with attorneys in more rural settings or outlying areas who have concern about office space. They primarily wok out of their homes, but do not want client's in their homes. They just need a place to meet. I have often suggested looking at prefab work sheds...

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Schmooze-You-Loser

Posted on June 28, 2010
I do not know what it is with lawyers starting their practices. They always seem more concerned for their work environment, and the internal image they have of being a lawyer, than considering how to properly and effectively solicit clients. They equate building an office with building a practice...

Raising Money To Start A Practice? Forgetaboutit!

Posted on June 17, 2010
I communicate with lawyers starting out all of the time, and most often they ask how to get law firm start up money. They are, in terms of law firms, talking about borrowing money. But, there are two main problems with borrowing money. First, the reality is that raising money to start any business, including a law firm, is excruciatingly hard unless you have a track record...

This Is What It Is Like To Get Through Security At The Houston, Texas Federal Courthouse

Posted on June 17, 2010
 

4 Steps To Snowball Your Law Firm Profits

Posted on June 03, 2010
I think the problem is that most lawyers look too often for what they call in Texas "the big lick". It is a case or line of business that gushes money to the extent that it can cure all of the law firm's misjudgments. Oh, the big lick happens once in a while to a few, but increasing profits for a law firm is usually accomplished on the margins...

Sweat Equity Is B.S.

Posted on June 02, 2010
How can I put this? I have learned it the hard way myself. The notion of sweat equity is unreasonable, it represents folly, it is a farce, it is a crazy concept, and it is just plain crap. Law firms, by and large, do not have equity in any sense that a lawyer can realize...

What Is The Basis Of Good Referral-Based Services?

Posted on May 25, 2010
Do you want to slowly but consistently grow your client referrals base? It goes beyond just good client services or asking those that refer for business for ore of it. Just because people, groups and organizations know who you are does not mean they will send you any business...

Another Example Of Using Shipping Containers To Create An Office

Posted on May 24, 2010
I am a big fan of using shipping containers to build a modest law office in a way that is cheap, innovative, green, quick and useful. People what to work at or near their home. Lawyers want some personal or dedicated space to do this. Although the studio of an artist and DJ, such things can also represent law office space...

(Video) Carolyn Elefant On Outsourcing

Posted on May 23, 2010
What Carolyn Elefant does in this video is outline the combination of core competencies that will make a solo or small law firm great -- maybe not immediately, but eventually. The presentation is short, but it is really to the point. It is worth your attention...

Maybe It Is Time To Strive Like Mad For Me

Posted on May 13, 2010
I am coming to the conclusion that most self-employed lawyers should do so, especially those in collaborative relationships with other attorneys. I know. I know. Salaries and overhead are what I do not like about traditional law practices. But, what happens too often with us self-employed types is that we cover what we have to and then live off the rest...

Sincere Or Desperate?

Posted on May 13, 2010
I know it is hard to believe, but I have made mistakes over my long career in law concerning how to obtain clients. But, I have also learned a few lessons even if those lessons came the hard way. One I would like to share with you is that, from the perception of the potential client, there is a big difference between sincere and desperate...

Buzz Worthy Web Presence

Posted on May 11, 2010
There was a time when we talked about blogging as a better alternative than a static websites, but with the advent of social media sites, apps, smart phones and more advanced search engines we moved on to other topics. I am thinking we need to revisit the issue of blogging for a moment or two because it is not irrelevant but, in fact, a good blog is more relevant than ever for lawyers and law firms...

Stuff

Posted on May 06, 2010
I know of what I speak. I have been fighting against my tendency to clutter all of my life. I think it might be in our DNA. It certainly represents our mind's eye. My mind is still a very cluttered place. I have come to accept my cluttered mind, but I have reached the point where I seek to avoid the chains of the cluttered World...

Appholes - Jon Stewart Goes Off On Apple's iThug Tactics

Posted on April 29, 2010
The Daily Show With Jon StewartMon - Thurs 11p / 10cAppholeswww.thedailyshow.com Daily Show Full EpisodesPolitical HumorTea Party

EXTRA! EXTRA! READ ALL ABOUT IT! Now Your Twitter Feed Can Be A Newspaper.

Posted on April 29, 2010
I am on such a tech kick of late in my blogging. That is so unlike me. I like tech, but I trend toward the more mundane practices of law. I was looking at Robert Ambrogi's new blog site, LawSitesBlog.Com, and found this interesting post on Paper.Ii creating the Daily On Twitter site in which you can turn your Twitter stream into an online newspaper...

Android Surpasses iPhone In One Respect

Posted on April 28, 2010
I like Google. I like their open source cell phone software, Android. I carry a Droid with me. I am a connected, carpet commuting, third waving kind of lawyer, and I am serious about my phone. I guess Apple should be given credit for increasing the smart phone market...

The Studio Shed

Posted on April 26, 2010
Need a separate home office or some extra room so you can establish an office at home. It can be a problem, but if you have even a small yard, there are increasingly more options for building so-called "sheds". A new start up company based out of Boulder named Studio Sheds has designed a flat pack that can be used as an office shed...

Judicial Diversity

Posted on April 26, 2010
Scott Simon's essays on NPR's Weekend Edition Saturday, took on judicial diversity in a way I thought to be rational. He is right that there is nothing wrong with Ivy League justices, if we're going to argue that the pursuit of education is a good thing...

The Streak

Posted on April 26, 2010
Okay, I show my age when I tell you that when I hear the name of the Dell slates I think of the 1974 hit by Ray Stevens, The Streak. This was number one on Billboard's Hot 100 at the time. It is still one of the top novelty songs and it is popular as a ringtone these days...

Let's Get Visible

Posted on April 23, 2010
I use to say that new lawyers do not succeed because they are lazy. Of course I have learned over the years that is not true, and that that comment is quite rude. They are simply apprehensive, self-conscious, reticent, shy really, possibly introverted, reluctant, modest, disconcerted, doubtful, tentative, unwilling, indecisive, hesitant, inexperienced, unenlightened, or any other of things that prevents them from getting themselves out and getting known...

Have You Considered An Office, Work Space Or Meeting Space Made From Plastic Bottles

Posted on April 20, 2010
It is obviously not an impossible task thanks to the Polli-Brick. It is a recycled polymer architecture brick that offers a minimal carbon footprint through the use of a mature PET bottle recycling and manufacturing process. A Taiwan company has built a three-level exhibition hall called the " EcoARK" using about 1...

Mississippi College School Of Law

Posted on April 19, 2010
Mississippi College School of Law claims to be a law school rich in technology. I only wish they would better demonstrate that ability online. The library has the obligatory Facebook page, the school has a cheap blog and a stale, if information rich, website...

NTR

Posted on April 19, 2010
Maybe we call it collaboration in the law biz, but in the real world they call it "nontraditional revenue" or "NTR". It is the process of adding bottom-line income to your existing law revenue stream either directly or indirectly such as supplementing promotion costs...

Law Schools Continue To Drop The LSAT

Posted on April 18, 2010
The LSAT is simply offensive. First, it is just a barrier to get into law school. It is not an accurate predictor of how a student will perform in law school. Second, it is costly in terms of both time and money if you want to do well on the exam. That is a further barrier for many students...

Deep Dark Dirty Secret About My Business Card

Posted on April 17, 2010
Here it is -- I DO NOT HAVE ONE! You read this correctly. I do not have a business card. Am I crazy? I do not think so. I just think that business cards have been held in such high esteem for so long from a marketing standpoint, people do not understand how this is possible...

Ave Maria School of Law Scores Big Where It Really Matters Most

Posted on April 17, 2010
Should you review the blogosphere the last couple or so days concerning law schools, you will notice a giant preoccupation with the recent U. S. News Rankings. Schools bragging about their increased rankings, other being attacked for their ranking tactics or in their lack of ranking success...

Does Your Brand Confuse Your Clients And Potential Clients?

Posted on April 17, 2010
Sometimes lawyers succeed despite themselves. However, it does leave one to speculate how much more successful lawyers might be if they tended better to their brand. Just because a lawyers get a few clients through the door does not mean what they are doing brand wise is the most successful...

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