Personal Thoughts - LawBizBlog

Your Brain Is Next

Ed — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 23:09:44 -0500

A lawsuit was filed against the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs and Immigration authorities for searching and even confiscating electronic devices such as laptops, cameras, media storage devices and related items. The suit, according to an LA Times article this week, was filed by the ACLU, New York Civil Liberties Union and the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers on behalf of the National Press Photographers Association, criminal defense lawyers and a student.

According to the article, the lawsuit “... says policies adopted by U.S. government agencies permit the search of all electronic devices that ‘contain information,’ including laptops, cameras, mobile phones and data storage devices.”

How is it that American citizens, despite the tragedy of 9/11, are willing to sacrifice their civil liberties so hard won over the last centuries? How is it that the government has the right to peek into our thoughts, contrasted to our actions? Thinking of yelling “fire” in a crowded theater is not illegal, only doing it is.

Seen Matrix? When will the first brain dump be required by the government? If they can see and review our personal thoughts contained in our electronic journal (our laptop, etc.), how much further before they decipher the brain inside our head? What's the difference? And if we have been thinking naughty thoughts, having fantasies or otherwise thinking outside the norm, will we be “confiscated?” That’s what the government is doing now.

Lest you think this is happening to foreigners traveling on our soil, the article points out that more than 6,500 people have had their electronic devices searched since October 2008 as they cross the Canadian-U.S. border, nearly half of them are American citizens!

Where are you, Tom Paine, when we need you?

Conference You Must Attend - Or Fall Behind

Ed — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 11:27:09 -0500

The Business of Lawâ is continuously changing— from fee structures, to marketing strategies, to client preferences. In today’s economic climate, law firms have no way to catch up once they fall behind.

The good news is that the success or failure of your firm is completely in your hands. If you learn the newest practices, develop your business plan, and understand the economic situation you’re operating in, you can achieve financial performances you’ve only dreamed of.

So what’s the fastest, easiest and most innovative way to update traditional methods and boost business to the next level?

Introducing the 2^nd Annual Midwestern Law Firm Management Conference- The New Norm: Understanding How To Thrive in the New Economy.

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The conference provides the most current actionable strategies law firms need to thrive. As chair for the conference, I’m extremely happy to be part of an event that offers a line up of world-class industry leaders and will deliver the latest knowledge on strategic factors vital for success. The event will cover topics such as:

The Outlook for Mid-Sized Firms

Trends and Practices in the Future of the Legal Profession

Alternative Fees

Succession Planning and Business Survival

Marketing in the New Ocean – Putting it all Together

And much more…

There will be a buffet style lunch and a post-event reception, allowing the chance to network with other leaders in the legal profession. Also included in your registration will be 4 webcasts and membership in the LawBizÒ Forum, a community for lawyers with on-going networking and dialogue on challenges we all face in the management of law practice.

Don’t miss this opportunity! The event takes place in Chicago on September 21^st, 2010 from 8:30 am to 5:15 pm. Mark it on your calendar. For additional details or to register for the event, please visit the Midwestern Law Firm Management Conference website. Even better, give me a call directly at 800-837-5880 and I will offer you a substantial discount off the listed price. If necessary, you can register the morning of the event but my advice is not to wait until the last minute. Seating is limited.

Isn’t it time you took The Business of LawÒ into your own hands? Register for the 2^nd Annual Midwestern Law Firm Management Conference today!

Can’t wait to see you there!

Charity program on television

Ed — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 15:31:17 -0500

Lance Armstrong, and many other celebrities, will appear on television for a national telethon, Stand Up To Cancer (no commercials). The program is scheduled for September 10 ... Check you local listings.

To Thrive Takes Planning, Courage & Luck

Ed — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 09:46:04 -0500

Law practices sometime serve up challenges. With forethought (plan) and some courage (and, yes, good fortune), we can meet and overcome the challenges we face … and thrive. Here, at the Golden Gate Bridge, we had some challenges, from heavy fog on the Bridge to narrow passages to navigate on the Vista, returning to the highway under the Bridge. While the fit was snug, we did just fine. In this case, there was no plan, some courage and, yes, good fortune.

As in many instances, including the operation of your law firm, thriving is the intersection of preparation (hard work) and good fortune. We had that on this day. What are you doing in your practice to prepare for your future?

Seven Feathers

Ed — Sun, 04 Jul 2010 22:16:48 -0500

We're in Canyonville, OR, at the Seven Feathers RV Park. This is the best RV park I've ever seen ... and they claim to be among the top 4 in the country. What a way to end the day.

We were staying in Yreka, CA, using that as a base to commute to Ashland, OR for the annual Oregon Shakespeare Festival. Got to see two great plays, She Loves Me and Twelfth Night. Then, today, my wife said her patience will permit us to stay in one spot only for 3 days. So, we got up and left Yreka.

En route, we developed a flat tire in the trailer. Had to call Good Sam to bail us out. They were great, get us help within the hour. The RV park my wife selected not only is one of the best, but also has a truck and tire facility adjacent to it ... the only one open today, July 4th! What a coincidence. They looked at our tire; they believe it was the stem, not the tire ... and took care of it. They will even come to the RV Park tomorrow to check it again, making sure the tire pressure holds, before we embark on our next phase of the trip.

That is service! That is caring for the customer ... What have you done with your clients lately to compel them to say such things about you? His name and number will go in my book ... and should I ever need someone of his skill set anywhere in the State of Oregon, he's the first one I'll call. Will your clients and former clients call you before they call anyone else? Will they call you on behalf of their friends and colleagues before they call anyone else? If not, why not? Look inward to address your operations and client management challenges before you look outward ... Why waste your money on marketing if you can't satisfy your clients once they arrive?

Balance of Life

Ed — Sat, 26 Jun 2010 17:22:50 -0500

Today is the first full day of a journey/vacation. We may be gone for 3 weeks+, depending on how we feel as we travel through Central and Northern California on to Northern Oregon, and then returning by way of the Pacific Coast ... My wife is a bit anxious and I'm a bit eager. For cross country purposes, this trip will be our "dry run." If we do well, next year we'll go across the country from L.A. to N.Y.

If you want to follow our trail, tune in to Facebook.

I've always believed that over a life time, there is a balance of life. But, at any one time, there is a focus on that which you're doing, not a balance. Today, and for the next few weeks, I'm going to test out whether I can focus on relaxing, "smelling the roses," and appreciating the beauty of our surroundings. Being me, of course, it's not likely that I will do no work. In fact, I've brought material with me. But I hope to do a fair amount of reading and learning en route. To me, that's balance. In fact, that's the basis of our trailer license, STESPOT.

Las Vegas rocks

Ed — Sat, 12 Jun 2010 01:14:10 -0500

I'm in Las Vegas on assignment. The heat index is down, making it more comfortable to walk ... The last time I was here, the city felt depressed, I think reflecting the economy. Today, the spirits of the people seem to be "up," the money flowing more loosely and the people again seeking a good time. This, too, seems to be reflecting the spirit of the country. While the feeling seems to be more subdued than before, I sense a degree of optimism not present during my last assignment here.

Since the economics of law firms follows the economics of clients, I suspect that our legal community will reflect more positive results this year, though not yet a break-through. The question becomes whether it will take another decade for the Great Recession to be only a bad memory or whether we will see a real sea change.

Life is not a circle

Ed — Sun, 06 Jun 2010 20:35:19 -0500

The "circle of life" is a concept I've heard a lot about throughout my life. To me, that means that you start in the world as a baby with dependency on others ... and you end your life with dependency on others. But, there is a difference. When you enter the world, you have a certain DNA pattern that will enable you to grow, learn, develop and contribute to others. By the time you are on the other side of the spectrum, you have contributed mightily to the betterment of others in many ways.

Note that I used the word, "spectrum." This infers a straight line, or at least the absence of a circle. John Wooden, dead just a scant 4 months before reaching 100 years of age, is a classic example of having contributed to the well-being of so many people.

Life is not circular. We need not whimper out; we need not abandon ourselves as we age. We can age gracefully and courageously. That is my hope for all of us.

Role model dies

Ed — Sat, 05 Jun 2010 07:53:51 -0500

Just shy of reaching 100 years of age, we have lost a great inspiration and role model in the death of John Wooden.

Edwards Air Force Base - What a place!

Ed — Mon, 17 May 2010 22:22:08 -0500

The last few days were spent in the peaceful environs of Tehachapi, CA with a group of Airstream trailer folks. While there, we visited Edwards Air Force Base. After seeing the new F-35, F-22 and old F-16, among other weapons of mass destruction, I walked away marveling at our ingenuity and our capacity for bending the laws of nature (to an extent) to our will. While there, we heard the breaking of the sound barrier from one of their tests. Ah, if we could only be so ingenious in finding ways for peace. One would think that we would get it right after more than 2000 years of trying.

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Winners from our April contest!

Ed — Wed, 05 May 2010 10:55:48 -0500

Thank you to everyone who participated in our April contest! I hope that you all have enjoyed my new book, Growing Your Law Practice in Tough Times. If you haven’t read it already – don’t worry! There’s still time to enjoy it and share your feedback here on the blog, on our Facebook page (www.facebook.com/LawBizManagement), on Twitter (www.twitter.com/LawBiz), and on the book’s page here.

I am pleased to announce the winners of last month’s contest.

First Place – Stephen Fairley of The Rainmaker Blog will win a Fujitsu ScanSnap S1300 Instant PDF Sheet-Fed Scanner, plus ½ hour coaching session with me.

Second Place – Daniela Romero of the Law Office of Daniela P. Romero in Pasadena, CA will receive ½ hour coaching session with me.

Third Place – Dan X. Nguyen of the Law Office of Dan X. Nguyen in Fountain Valley, CA will receive my set of 4 Special Reports (electronic versions).

Congratulations to all!

Growing Your Law Practice in Tough Times is available for sale at West’s webpage here. Keep reading LawBizBlog for more contests and opportunities to win LawBiz® prizes.

Airstream - Old and New

Ed — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 11:07:53 -0500

And here I thought we were a bit off the beaten path! We've taken the Vintage approach to our Airstream trailer and will begin longer trips Legal Pad On the Road in our 1968 trailer. But, even the Hollywood types are catching up with us.

Malpractice Insurance Report

Ed — Sun, 04 Apr 2010 11:50:23 -0500

In the recent California Lawyer’s Annual Professional Liability Insurance Report, the writer quotes the ABA. Their study shows that 44,000 claims were lodged against insured lawyers nationally within the study’s three year period. Of this group, “...(s)olos and smaller firms were sued the most: 70 percent of all insurance claims were brought against lawyers in firms with one to five attorneys.”

I suppose this was the basis for arguing that lawyers either need malpractice insurance or should disclose to their clients that they don’t have such insurance. Yet, if 70% of the legal community works in the small firm environment, wouldn’t it make sense that 70% of the claims would be filed against this goup?

Despite these statistics, there is no study ever cited that shows how many claims, IF ANY, were filed against the approximately 30,000 (20%) attorneys in California who do not carry malpractice insurance. There is no study to conclude they have claims filed against them; there is no study to conclude they have been unable to negotiate settlements with their aggrieved clients, if any; there is no study to conclude these are “bad” or negligent attorneys from whom the public needs protection.

Despite this, the Bar (now about 23 states) has moved forward in lock-step to punish this group of attorneys by increasing their already marginal cost of operation and forcing them to become adversarial with their prospective clients by having this discussion.

Clever lawyers who may seek to avoid the negative consequences of this new rule can take a number of alternative paths to side-step the issue. They can obtain the most minimal policy, the true net effect of which will leave nothing for the client at the end of any malpractice litigation. They can bury the required disclosure language in a long written engagement agreement, seldom read by clients, thus avoiding the necessity of raising the issue with the client. Among other tactics.

As in other instances, the Bar fails to protect its members who pay their salaries and fails to protect the public by availing attorneys with affordable negligence insurance.

Spaghetti film - April Fool's

Ed — Thu, 01 Apr 2010 23:50:52 -0500

See my earlier post and then check out the original BBC piece.

New Book, New Contest

Ed — Thu, 01 Apr 2010 13:30:47 -0500

Welcome to LawBizBlog’s new contest in celebration of my new book Growing Your Law Practice in Tough Times. With the book hot-off-the-press, I thought we should have some fun this month and give away some exciting prizes.

What is the contest?

The contest will run for the entire month of April. At the end of the month, participants’ names will be drawn out of a hat raffle style to determine the first, second, and third place winners – and announced here on the blog.

How do you get your name in the hat?

To get your name in the hat ONE TIME:

become a fan of LawBiz Management on Facebook (www.facebook.com/LawBizManagement)
follow LawBiz Management on Twitter (www.twitter.com/LawBiz)
be sure to leave a message on the Facebook wall or send an @ message to LawBiz announcing that you’re LawBiz’s newest fan!

To get your name in the hat THREE TIMES:

take a fun picture of you with the book and post it on Facebook or Twitter (be sure to @LawBiz Management so we know you posted)
post the picture on your own blog or website (be sure to post link on our Facebook wall!)

To get your name in the hat FIVE TIMES:

read the book and write a review. Post it on our publisher’s website. Follow this link: http://west.thomson.com/productdetail/163575/40930118/productdetail.aspx
post the link to your review on our Facebook.

What can you win?

FIRST PRIZE: Fujitsu ScanSnap S1300 Instant PDF Sheet-Fed Scanner, plus ½ hour coaching session with Ed

SECOND PRIZE: ½ hour coaching session with Ed

THIRD PRIZE: Set of 4 Special Reports, written by Ed (find all 4 at store.lawbiz.com/books.php)

Remember, you have all month to enter (but that doesn't mean you should wait)!

April Fool's

Ed — Thu, 01 Apr 2010 11:04:04 -0500

I actually saw it! It was shown on NBC television. I was young (not THAT young) and actually believed it for several years.

The BBC reported on April 1, 1957 that Swiss farmers were harvesting a huge spaghetti crop due to the near-elimination of the spaghetti weevil. Coverage showed peasants picking spaghetti from trees!

This was confirmed by USA Today on April 1, 1995.

Chicago invitation - April 9

Ed — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 23:29:34 -0500

I'll be in Chicago and would like to get together with my clients and colleagues for breakfast on Friday, April 9th, from 7:30 to 9:15 a.m. If you're near the downtown/Loop area, let me know.

Breakfast will be on me! And we can chit chat about the challenges your practice faces in today's environment. Send me an e-mail r.s.v.p. (edpoll@lawbiz.com) and I'll designate the location by return email. I look forward to seeing y'all.

Enjoy life while you can

Ed — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 13:32:51 -0500

Ed Flitton, 67, formerly the managing partner of Holland & Hart in Colorado and the Finance chair of the ABA's Law Practice Management Section, died suddenly while at the ABA's LegalTech Show. I was there and just saw Ed on Friday, the day before he died. While I remember thinking he looked a bit more tired and a bit older than his usual self, there was no indication of illness. Wow! What a shocker!

This gives more meaning to two guiding principles that I do my best to live by, sometimes more successfully than others: i) Do what you enjoy doing; life is not split into work and personal lives. Life is one and enjoy what you do or go do something else. ii) Take care of yourself, no one else will. Eat well (healthy), exercise and get up every morning with a smile.

No one knows what tomorrow (heck, the balance of today) will bring. If you're doing what you enjoy, then when the time comes, you'll at least be in a good place. My condolences go out to the Flitton family.

Third Photo Caption Contest!

Ed — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 08:48:09 -0500

Welcome to the third LawBiz® photo caption contest! In honor of Legal Assistant’s Day this Friday, March 26, I thought I’d host another contest. The first two contests were such successes, so this time use your creativity to show appreciation to your hard-working legal teams.

Of course, the ever-popular Bandit is once again the subject of the photo. I know Bandit will be celebrating Legal Assistant’s Day this Friday, will you? Be creative, be serious, be funny – post whatever you think the caption for this photo should be!

At the end of the contest period, we’ll choose a winner who will receive a FREE copy of my new book just released by West last week Growing Your Law Practice in Tough Times, as well as a FREE ½ hour consultation with me.

There are a few rules to this contest, so please take note:

No more than five (5) entries may be submitted per person. Limit of one (1) per day.
Entries should be submitted as comments and must include e-mail addresses.
Entries must be received by 5pm PST on Friday, March 26, 2010 to be considered.
No lewd language or vulgarities. Such language will disqualify entry and will be removed by the administrator.
Have fun!

A winner will be picked by Monday, March 29, 2010 and announced here on the blog. Good luck!

Boring to the depths of your soul

Ed — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 01:04:50 -0500

Yesterday, I had a colonoscopy procedure. All's well that ends well.