Tag: lawfirmmanagement

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Law Firm Management

Running and Throwing

Quarterback running with the football.
Photo by Yura Forrat at Pexels

I have been reading about Deshaun Watson’s return to the NFL after serving a suspension as a result of allegations of sexual harassment and assault. Normally I do not like to rush to judgment when a person has been accused but not convicted of a criminal offence, since I believe in the presumption of innocence and all of that. But however you may feel about the allegations against Mr. Watson, he definitely has some ‘splaining to do.

What struck me in the account that I was reading was a statement from one of his alleged victims who said, “he can run and throw and that’s enough.” In other words, when someone has the ability to generate serious money, our culture will forgive pretty much anything.

read more about the free pass for productive lawyers “Running and Throwing”
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Legal Tech

The Devil is in the Details

A woman in a devil costume with horns against a fiery red background.
Photo by Kyle Miller at Pexels.

I spent some time speaking to one of the founders of Appara to better understand how using their software would have made my life easier back in the day.

You can read my thoughts on their site by clicking the link below.

The Devil is in the Details
Categories
Legal Tech

Field of Dreams

Baseball stadium at night.
Photo by Timo Volz at Pexels.

Bob was a brilliant lawyer. He loved technology and was a wizard at math.

Back in the day when we used fax machines and they stood alone somewhere near the photocopier, Bob became enamoured with the idea of software that would allow the assistants to send faxes from their desktop. Bob ran various scenarios to demonstrate how much money we would save if we purchased this product. He calculated the salary and benefits earned by each assistant per minute and multiplied it by the number of minutes each assistant spent walking to and from the fax machine every day. We were going to save a fortune.

read more about questions to ask before buying legal technology “Field of Dreams”
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Law Firm Management

The Worst People to Run Law Firms are Lawyers

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I was the managing partner of a law firm once. I came to the job with little aptitude for management and even less experience and training. Of course, I was qualified to be the managing partner because I had high personal billings and a whole whack of originating credits. 

read more about why lawyers should not run law firms “The Worst People to Run Law Firms are Lawyers”
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Law Firm Management

The Evolution of a Question

Rocket with space shuttle blasting off.
Photo by Pixabay at Pexels.

When I first attended partners meetings, “what are other law firms doing?” was a question that I heard over and over. Whether the topic was a billable hour requirement, parental leave policy, marketing initiative, or just about anything else, the question of what other law firms were doing always seemed to be relevant.

read more about expanding our horizons in law firm management “The Evolution of a Question”
Categories
Legal Tech

Technology Levels the Playing Field

A large man and a small man standing in front of an industrial door.
Photo by Tiger Lily at Pexels.

Back when I was a teenager, I worked in a warehouse with Warren.

Warren and I unloaded trucks. Warren would stand in the truck and toss boxes to me which I would stack on the floor. A truck might contain boxes of various sizes and weights. One small box might contain screwdrivers that weigh a ton.  The next might be a large container of disposable aluminum cooking trays that was light as a feather.

read more about legal tech making it easier to compete with big law “Technology Levels the Playing Field”
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Murray The Wannabe Feminist

Ode To Dan and Mara

Young girl and boy jumping on a bed.
Photo by Tima Miroshnichenko at Pexels.

This is a story about a boy named Dan who never cleaned his room. Dan’s mom tried the three ways that she knew to get Dan to clean his room. She threatened him. She bribed him. She tried child psychology. Nothing worked. Finally, she ordered Dan’s little sister Trish to clean Dan’s room.

Trish was unhappy and accused her mother of gender bias, but being socialized to be somewhat more compliant than Dan, she did what she was told. Trish’s friend Mara had a similar experience and also ended up doing her brother’s chores.

read more about Who does the non-billable stuff in law firms “Ode To Dan and Mara”
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Law Students and Young Lawyers

The View From the Bottom of the Pyramid

Ancient Pyramids
Photo by David McEachan at Pexels.

Throughout my years as a partner, managing partner, practice group leader and supervising lawyer, I used to speak to young lawyers who told me what they thought that I wanted to hear. Things like how much they loved their jobs, how supportive the firm was, and how they loved working evenings and weekends. They were quite right. That is exactly what I wanted to hear.

read more about what young lawyers don’t know “The View From the Bottom of the Pyramid”
Categories
Law Firm Management

Those Who Got Away

Man loading is things into a box marked "Fired."
Photo by ANTONI SHKRABA at Pexels

Let me tell you about a lawyer named Josh. Josh was not very good. Everybody said so, especially the partner who was his practice group leader.  Eventually the firm redirected Josh’s career path. He moved on and started his own practice. Josh did very well on his own. He developed a great reputation in the profession practicing the same type of law that he was not good enough to practice at his old firm.

read more about firms letting good lawyers get away “Those Who Got Away”
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Law Students and Young Lawyers

Tell Me Another Story from the Old Days, Grandpa

Couple sitting on the back of their vehicle with their heads down and boxes behind them.
Photo by Karolina Grabowska at Pexels.

As a recession may be looming and Banks may be enforcing their mortgages, I thought that I would share this story from the recession in the early 1990’s.

There was a law firm that did volume mortgage remedy work for a Canadian Bank. A somewhat junior real estate lawyer who I will call Barbara managed the files. The work was somewhat routine but required precision and organizational skills, and Barbara did it well and earned a reasonable salary.

read more about making career Decisions “Tell Me Another Story from the Old Days, Grandpa”