Corporate Governance

Dear Samsung: So far, you owe me $1200, and the computer person isn't even here yet.

Posted on January 30, 2011
I bought a Samsung CLP-310w this week because my last attempt at a wireless printer resulted in paper jams whenever more than 2 sheets were loaded (the HP LaserJet Pro P1102w).Samsung reps--yes, that would be over 2 hours of conversations with Samsung reps to date--agree that there's a problem with the Samsung software and Mac OS 10...

My life this week.

Posted on January 28, 2011
See here and here.  And, mind you, I like my dentist a lot.  He and his staff are all wonderful:  friendly, talented, and professional.  I just wish I had perfect teeth and that I was not a wuss about dentistry.Best line my dentist used this week:Me:  "I'm going to need Mr...

A tale of two customer service approaches, part 2.

Posted on January 28, 2011
So I'm picking up friends at the airport, and I must have written the time of arrival down incorrectly.  The airline had a flight coming in from the appropriate place at the time I'd written down, but my friends weren't on that flight.  The flight number I'd written down was coming from a place nowhere near my friends' location, and it showed an arrival time of about 90 minutes later...

A tale of two customer service approaches, part 1.

Posted on January 28, 2011
So earlier this week, I needed two large FedEx boxes to ship some dresses to a reseller (Artrhythms.com).  I went to FedEx store #A--no large boxes, although the counter serviceperson offered to sell me two boxes to ship the dresses.  I suggested that, perhaps, because his FedEx store was out of boxes, he might want to find some for me rather than charge me for other materials...

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More insight into the mortgage mess, and a story about a lawyer who helped pro bono.

Posted on January 22, 2011
See Joe Nocera's column today (here).  And I love his turn of phrase:  the "Heisenberg Journalism Principle" strikes just the right tone for folks who know the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle.

Another voice talking about the Las Vegas mortgage mess.

Posted on January 21, 2011
At breakfast this morning, I read Scott Dickensheets's column (here), and I really liked his take on the moral issues inherent in considering whether to walk away on an underwater mortgage.  His points add to the reasons why I like the Van Niel mortgage proposal (see here)...

Jon Macey had a great op-ed in the Wall Street Journal yesterday.

Posted on January 21, 2011
See here.  I've been a Jon Macey fan for years, so when he writes about the SEC's bloopers, I read what he has to say.

David Skeel is right--Congress should give states the ability to file for bankruptcy.

Posted on January 18, 2011
See David's editorial here.  I just ordered his latest book (here); should be good reading.

Bravo to John Jay Douglass!

Posted on January 17, 2011
My former colleague, John Jay Douglass (here), passed along the news that he's retiring from law teaching.  I have mixed feelings--happy that he and his wife, Papoose, can spend more time together, and sad that his career in academia's ending.  As you can tell from even the brief description on the University of Houston Law Center's page above, he's educated not only law students but also district attorneys and other already-graduated professionals...

A salute to Deana, the Yosemite Ranger.

Posted on January 17, 2011
Jeff and I went to Yosemite recently, and we went up to Badger Pass to go cross-country skiing.  On the first day that we were up at Badger Pass, we were lucky enough to get a lesson with Deana, a Yosemite Park Ranger.  Not only did Deana give us an incredibly fun lesson, she taught us a variety of moves, many of which came in quite handy on our second trip to Badger Pass...

On today's holiday, an inspirational story about a lawyer who worked with Dr. King.

Posted on January 17, 2011
Thanks to NPR for the story (here).

A shout-out thank you to Joseph McDaniel!

Posted on January 16, 2011
Thanks for saying such nice things about me (here) on your blog (here)!  And Jeff (my hubby) and I are doing a second book in the Survival Manual series:  Law Firm Survival Guide.  Would love people's suggestions--and be on the lookout this spring for a survey from us...

A reminder about the requirement that fees must be reasonable before a bankruptcy court will authorize their payment.

Posted on January 14, 2011
Blaire Cahn has done a lovely write-up at Weil's Bankruptcy Blog (here) of the Ninth Circuit's recent opinion in Montana Department of Revenue  v. Duncan, No. 09-36062, 2010 WL 4903952 (9th Cir. Dec. 2, 2010).Having done my fair share of fee reviews--and I enjoy fee examining work!--I think that the main issue for attorneys seeking payment from estate funds is a question of judgment...

Best speech using behavioral economics that you've never heard.

Posted on January 12, 2011
My buddy Steve Sather, the author of A Texas Bankruptcy Lawyer's Blog, sent me this link to a speech at the Ass'n of American Law Schools that Annelise Riles was going to give, had she been able to make it to the meeting.  Her speech is posted on the Credit Slips blog (here)...

A hat-tip to Lowering the Bar for this classic Canadian legal opinion.

Posted on January 09, 2011
I love reading Lowering the Bar (here), and this article (here) -- about the divorce of a couple from hell -- is a good example of why this blog is a must-read for me.  Two other good examples are here and here.

Details on how the Van Niel mortgage proposal would work.

Posted on January 07, 2011
Here's how the Van Niel mortgage proposal would work.Banks with borrowers who are underwater but current on their loans should offer the following deal to those borrowers:(1)  The bank reduces the interest rate on the mortgage to a lower rate (at a rate at least equal to what the folks who have defaulted are being offered, thanks to the bailout)...

Two great mortgage op-eds in today's New York Times

Posted on January 06, 2011
Read Bethany McLean's perspective on 30-year mortgages here, and Alex Perriello's solution to our current crisis in underwater mortgage's here.  Alex's solution is eerily similar to the Van Niel mortgage solution (here), which I've been touting for over a year now, and not just because I'm married to the Van Niel in question.

Here's some nice news on 1/1/11....

Posted on January 01, 2011
Thanks, Dr. Management, Ph.D. blog, for listing me as a top business blog (here)!

From my buddy Marc Stern, a link to a great lawyer-y holiday card.

Posted on January 01, 2011
See here.  Bravo to Manatt, and thanks, Marc!

Yep. I was a chump.

Posted on December 30, 2010
See here.  This TaxProf Blog post points out how much creative accounting folderol goes into reporting employment stats of law schools to U.S. News.  As I've said before (see here), lying on these questionnaires isn't much different from the "earnings management" that went on at Enron and the other like-minded companies...

Yet another good bankruptcy blog.

Posted on December 29, 2010
See here.  It's going on my Google home page, along with those other bankruptcy blogs (here).Update:  Two more interesting bankruptcy law blogs:  the Charleston Bankruptcy Blog (here) and the Bankruptcy Law Network (here).  

A tale of two customer service approaches.

Posted on December 28, 2010
In today's Business Day section of the New York Times, there's one story about how Disney is able to reduce the frustration level of people who are waiting in lines at the parks (here) and another story about how difficult it is for the airlines to cope with all of the headaches about having to cancel flights during bad weather (here)...

Shame on you, Pat Buchanan.

Posted on December 23, 2010
I always hesitate to read Pat Buchanan's columns, because I know that I'll end up with a eye-twitch from his invective.  On the other hand, I skim them because I want to know what people whose views differ from mine are thinking.  (Sometimes, their points can change my mind; sometimes, they can't...

Beware the unintended consequences of bad incentives.

Posted on December 23, 2010
What do these stories have in common?  From the Wall Street Journal (written by Liz Rappaport and Michael Rapoport--distant relations at best), "Ernst Accused of Lehman Whitewash" (here); from the New York Times and David Streitfeld, "Homes at Risk, and No Help From Lawyers" (here); and from John Stossel, "Uncle Sam Will Help You Buy an Alpaca" (here)...

And, for you computer geeks out there, something my cousin Nathaniel found:

Posted on December 22, 2010
Here.

OK, I might be biased, but...

Posted on December 22, 2010
Here's my vote for the best university holiday card ever:  here.  Happy holidays to all, and GO, OWLS!

New bankruptcy blog in Nevada.

Posted on December 20, 2010
See here.  I know Brian, and I'm really impressed with his work.  This blog should be great.And if you want some other good bankruptcy and bankruptcy related blogs, to round out your collection, see:WSJ:  Bankruptcy Beat (here).Credit Slips (here)...

Best lesson taken from Madoff fiasco.

Posted on December 12, 2010
See Michael Kubin's opinion piece in the New York Times (here).

Shout-out to Greg Duhl for some of his latest articles.

Posted on December 09, 2010
Greg Duhl gave me a heads-up about two of his latest articles, Divided Loyalties: The Attorney's Role in Bankruptcy Reaffirmations (available here) and Social Networking and Workers' Compensation: Law at the Crossroads (co-authored with Jaclyn Millner) (available here)...

Customer service warning for ballroom dancers: AVOID "www.dancerschoiceonline.com"

Posted on December 04, 2010
I ordered three pairs of shoes in mid-November.  On 11/18, the company informed me that one of the three pairs was out of stock, and that my refund would be "coming."  It's 12/4.  No refund yet.One pair of shoes didn't fit.  It took six emails -- SIX -- to find out that returns went to the shoe manufacturer, not to Dancers' Choice...

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