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When a firm finds itself in the midst of a management crisis, the place to begin to search for the source of the problem is at the top of the management hierarchy. This may not be a popular notion or an easy task. The purpose is not to find fault. The point is that an organization does not simply evolve. It must be built in an orderly manner. The values that are important to a firm have to be defined and centrally organized. The responsibility for these goals must be keyed to an organizational factor, whether this is a committee or an individual.

See an intriguing ad for a law firm but no pen and paper on hand? Joseph Mitchell, president of textMyCity, is hoping that soon you'll reach for your cell phone. TextMyCity, which Mitchell started seven months ago, is part of a new movement pushing for marketing strategies built around technology. Mitchell's service uses text messaging to advertise and spread information, also known as "mobile marketing." With textMyCity, companies sign up to become members and are issued a tag; when an interested person sees a member company's ad and sends a text message to textMyCity with the tag, the service sends the customer back a text message with contact information.

Since firm attorneys are placed strategically in key global markets, and support staff and firm leaders are spread out among the global office network, it has always been paramount to have not only reliable, but also current, technology to keep everyone connected, ensure seamless business operations and enable firm attorneys to focus on their clients.

The increased use of electronic communications has in turn increased the need for storage and data backup, space for servers and electricity required for keeping those facilities cool and all that equipment powered. According to CNET.com, the daily power consumption of a typical data center is equivalent to the monthly power consumption of thousands of homes. The effect of law firms' current working environment means, in many cases, the organization is not operating in a "green" manner in terms of its use of IT. This article contains information that law firms should consider in order to use IT more efficiently and, ultimately, in a more environmentally friendly manner.

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The practice of "search" as part of electronic discovery is evolving before our eyes. Suddenly, what was once deemed industry standard is insufficient. Keyword search, the legal profession's preferred method for sifting through large collections of electronically stored information ("ESI") in order to find relevant or privileged information, had been widely accepted by courts and the legal community because its effectiveness was assumed and unchallenged. Until now.

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Recent rulings of interest to you and your practice.

Important legal news from neighboring states.

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The issue of legislative action (or inaction as the case may be) in matrimonial matters is always of interest. At present, there are many issues that call for such action and others that are still kicking hopelessly around in this election year. Two such issues come to mind just now, one finally resolved, the other apparently destined to "wait 'till next year.