The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2012 annual report for this blog.
Here’s an excerpt:
4,329 films were submitted to the 2012 Cannes Film Festival. This blog had 48,000 views in 2012. If each view were a film, this blog would power 11 Film Festivals
Thank you for your readership and your engagement. Enjoy the holidays and stay safe!
Until we meet again in 2013,
Beverly
Thank you readers! I hope this has been a fruitful year for you. Just in case you missed a tip or two, here is a list of 2012 blog posts for your perusal:
All Rights Reserved 2012 Beverly Michaelis
The July issue of Law Practice TODAY is out. This month’s theme is ”Phones, Tablets & Mobile Computing: Oh My!”
Articles in this issue include:
Law Practice TODAY is a free monthly Webzine published by the ABA Law Practice Management Section.
If you follow this blog, then you know I’m a fan of Twitter – in part because it is a great source for law practice and technology tips. Consider these 25 recent tweets in the areas of organization, financial management, marketing, security, and iPhone/iPad tips:
Organization
Financial Management
Marketing
Security
iPad and iPhone Tips
Social media offers a virtual means to share, exchange, engage, and learn. Consider getting involved today!
The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2011 annual report for this blog.
Here’s an excerpt:
The concert hall at the Syndey Opera House holds 2,700 people. This blog was viewed about 34,000 times in 2011. If it were a concert at Sydney Opera House, it would take about 13 sold-out performances for that many people to see it.
Here are some excellent ideas for the lawyers on your gift list from fellow law practice management advisor Diane Ebersole of the State Bar of Michigan:
Jim Calloway and Sharon Nelson have created the 49th edition of the Digital Edge podcast in the gift giving spirit of December. The lively banter discusses a wide variety of tech items and gadgets both useful and fun in a wide price range that may help you with your December purchases. In addition to their podcast, the list of show notes provides a links of all the items discussed.
Reid Trautz, Chair of ABA Techshow 2012, has also issued his annual Holiday Gift Guide for Lawyers. This list also provides some product comparisons and purchase advice. If you are looking for gifts in the productivity, food or just plain fun categories, check out Reid’s list for some great ideas.
One more excellent list which provides a compilation of shopping ideas is Attention, Shoppers: A Lawyer’s Gift Guide from the folks at Attorney At Work. In addition to looking at the list, take a minute to read some of the posts on this site whose motto is ‘one really good idea every day.’
Thank you Diane!
When was the last time you personally contacted a former client to see how she or he was doing?
This year? Last year? Never?
As the kids head back to school, perhaps we should take a cue and revisit “Client Development 101.”
Here are the undisputed facts in evidence:
Make a concerted effort to reach out and contact former clients. Pick up the phone or visit with the former client in person. This can be a no-charge “I was thinking of you” check-in or a free legal check-up if the type of work you did for the client lends itself to periodic review. The goal is to rebuild and refresh client relationships.
Texting or e-mailing is not my first choice for this type of follow-up, but you know your clients and I don’t. Use the communication tool you know your client would prefer. The whole idea here is to personalize the contact. Therefore, do not fall into the trap of believing that mass e-mail marketing, e-zines, or holiday cards constitute keeping in touch with former clients.
Why make the effort? Because no happy client is insignificant.
When I was in private practice, one of the best referral sources our firm ever had was a client with a modest slip-and-fall case. Liability was clear, but damages were nominal – soft tissue injuries, only a few days missed from work, no significant medical specials. We negotiated a decent settlement and the client was happy.
Ironically, I’m not sure we would have taken this client’s case a few years later. The damages weren’t that great and we didn’t generate much in the way of fees. Thankfully, we represented the right person at the right time. Our client with the modest slip-and-fall case turned out to be one of our biggest cheerleaders. He referred many clients to us over the years.
The moral of the story is pretty clear: keep in touch, keep it personal, keep clients happy.
Copyright 2011 Beverly Michaelis
Last week I blogged about four of the common mistakes lawyers make with staff. This week I finish my countdown with two of the most regrettable decisions any lawyer has ever made: representing an employee and playing the role of lender.
Be Your Paralegal’s Boss, Not Her Lawyer
For some of you, there is little or no temptation to represent your secretary or paralegal. You may be in-house counsel, employed in the public defender or DA’s office, or working in a highly specialized area. But for those of you in private civil practice, be forewarned! Loyal staff naturally gravitate to lawyers in their own firm. (“You are the only person I can trust.” “This is too embarrassing.” “I don’t know anyone else who can help me.”)
Before you tempt fate, take a deep breath. Do you really believe you can objectively manage the lawyer-client/boss-employee relationship without a conflict? The money alone is a huge issue! How will you be paid? By withholding fees and costs from your employee’s paycheck? Maybe you’re really a glutton for punishment. You decide to represent your employee in her divorce, incur legal fees, then take on her personal injury case. When the recovery comes in on the PI claim, you take all of it – your employee’s share and your share because she still owes you legal fees from the work you did on her divorce. (Preposterous? Absolutely not. It happened. The resulting bar complaint wasn’t pretty.)
Maybe you’re convinced money won’t be an issue since you’ve agreed to represent your employee at no charge. This might work provided the legal matter you’ve been engaged to handle is short and sweet. What? You don’t have a written engagement letter? And the case is actually a huge mess? You didn’t know what you were getting into and now you want to withdraw from representation?
I’m only touching on a few of the issues here. I apologize for the sarcasm, but this is an incredibly bad idea. The lawyer-client/boss-employee relationship is fraught with potential conflicts. Just say no. If you really want to help your employee, provide her with a list of several lawyers she might contact.
Neither a Borrower Nor a Lender Be
This seems obvious: don’t lend money to your employees! I’ve witnessed it many times over the years and it never goes well. A nice lawyer becomes overly involved in his employee’s personal life and loans the employee money. The loan isn’t repaid and the employee either quits without notice or is terminated for cause.
If you can see why the lawyer-client/boss-employee relationship is a formula for disaster, then you’ll understand why creditor-debtor/boss-employee is no better. At the risk of repeating myself: just say no. If an employee approaches you about needing funds, tactfully but firmly explain that you are unable to advance the employee’s salary. No explanation is necessary, but if you feel you must provide one, your budget will likely give you ample reason. If you decide to disregard my advice, then please read this.
Final Thoughts
Being a boss isn’t easy, but it will be far less complicated if you stick to wearing one hat.
Copyright 2011 Beverly Michaelis
In my career as a legal recruiter and law practice management advisor, I have witnessed some regrettable decisions involving staff. I’m not referring to hiring, evaluating, or terminating employees. I’m talking about day-to-day choices made by lawyers – those decisions that seem reasonable at the time, but have a way of coming back to bite you. Here are four of the top six:
Lawyer as Controller
The lawyer who hires staff, but refuses to delegate any real responsibility always mystifies me. You and your staff are a team. Clients expect you to spend their money well. This includes proper utilization of legal staff. If you’re not sure where to start, please visit the blog of Vicki Voisin, The Paralegal Mentor, where you will find marvelous posts, including:
Vicki is one of my favorite paralegal bloggers. You can follow her on Twitter @VickiVoisin.
Another source of spot-on advice is Lynne DeVenny who blogs at Practical Paralegalism. Check out these posts:
Lynne’s blog is worth viewing for her excellent content, terrific sense of humor, and helpful links. You can follow Lynne on Twitter @ExpertParalegal.
“I Don’t Have Time to Train”
Is it me, or is it just a bit ironic that busy lawyers who need help are “too busy” to train? Training is time consuming – at first. The payoff comes after the training when your secretary or paralegal takes over a task and runs with it.
You can make the process of training much easier by creating and maintaining an office procedures manual. Sound daunting? It would be if you attempted to write the manual from beginning to end in one sitting. Use the “step at a time” approach instead. If you anticipate hiring staff soon, start your manual now. Include copies of your client intake form, file closing checklist, fee agreements, and other common office forms. Document procedures as you perform them. If you learn how to restore a file from backup or change the ink in the postage meter, write down the steps. (Even if you never hire staff, having an office manual will help you remember how to do tasks that you don’t perform often.) If you already have staff, ask them to gather office forms and take a stab at documenting procedures. Review their submissions and make any necessary corrections. (Be sure to explain why you corrected the procedure – this is another opportunity to train!) A sample Procedure Manual is available at no charge on the PLF Web site. Select Practice Aids and Forms, then Office Manuals.
Staff Don’t Need CLEs (Do They?)
Absolutely! Many a legal secretary or paralegal has trained a law firm associate. If you truly want to build a crack legal team, support continuing legal education for staff. CLEs are just one of the ways staff can improve their knowledge and help you get the job done. In many cases, bar associations and legal organizations allow staff to attend CLEs at a reduced cost.
Networking Isn’t Just for Lawyers
Encourage staff to belong to professional organizations like NALS: The Association for Legal Professionals, the National Association of Legal Assistants, and the National Federation of Paralegal Associations. These organizations and their chapters offer annual conferences, monthly CLEs, webinars, legal publications, professional certifications, vendor directories, membership discounts, and networking opportunities galore. NALS: The Association for Legal Professionals is particularly active on social networking sites. The official NALS group on LinkedIn has over 1,900 members.
Professional organizations and CLE boost your staff’s competence, expertise, and effectiveness. When you support professional certification, membership in a professional organization, or CLE, you enhance your staff member’s curriculum vitae. Enhanced credentials greatly improve the client’s odds of recovering paralegal fees in actions where attorney fee awards are available. It’s a winning proposition for everyone.
Copyright 2011 Beverly Michaelis
