Legal Research

National Law Journal takes a look at the effect gossip law blogs and forums have on law firms' PR efforts. An example:

One of the more popular posts* [at blog Above the Law], he said, included that of Nixon Peabody's pep song, "Everyone's a Winner," a funk-inspired tune produced last year and distributed to the firm's partners and employees after it made Fortune magazine's "100 Best Places to Work" list. The song also had a link on YouTube.

The law firm's efforts to bolster teamwork with the song were shredded by blog commenters, one of whom wrote, "This is so embarrassing. Can I rescind my acceptance of NP's offer?"

The article notes:

A law firm can prohibit, as a term of employment, its attorneys from contacting the media about its inner workings, said Sarah Pierce Wimberly, a partner at Ford & Harrison, a labor and employment law firm. Whether the restriction is written or verbal, law firms have the power to fire attorneys if they violate such an agreement, Wimberly said.

But most firms do not have such agreements, she said, partly because their leaders are older and do not realize the impact that leaks to blogs can have.

*The post in question is still available, but I will leave finding it as a research exercise for the reader. :)