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Developments regarding Burger King and its franchisee association, the National Franchisee Association ("NFA"), in the past few months have raised as many questions as they have answered. NFA Board Chairman Dan Fitzpatrick and other board members resigned at a meeting in early December, and they were replaced by four veteran Burger King franchisees: Bob Boss, Vernon Duckrey, Ray Meeks, and Gary Robison. Another franchisee, Joe Anghelone, joined the board in January 2006.

Highlights of the latest franchising cases from around the country.

Nine years ago, Congress introduced a new savings tool for investors called the Roth IRA. This new version of an Individual Retirement Account was named after the Senator that was instrumental in its creation, and it offered substantial tax advantages to persons seeking to save for retirement. Effective Jan. 1, 2006, legislation extended the tax advantages of the Roth IRA to include 401(k) plans. The "Roth 401(k)" creates a new option for law firms offering 401(k) plans to partners and employees, and gives participants the opportunity to accumulate significant tax-free wealth during their lifetime.

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In an increasingly competitive legal services market, where clients are less loyal to their law firms and law firms are competing for business, there is a growing need for law firms to be systematic and disciplined in their approach to business development. Marketing departments are increasingly retooling themselves with client service, business development and sales functions. Attorneys, marketing and sales staff need to work increasingly closely as a team taking on non-traditional roles to ensure continuity in pursuit of business from first contact through the pitching and closing of business.

With civility and ethics at the top of lawyers' agendas, it at times seems to some to be a fragile balancing act as the need to zealously advocate for one's client and keep the practice profitable in a very populated profession can bring one close to the ethical bright line. In fact, the inception of the continuing legal education mandate in many states came on the heels of ethics breaches that were grievous enough to demand that ethics, professionalism, and general professional development be mandated. Out of crisis did come opportunity.

Last spring ,i&gt;The National Law Journal</i> reported that firms are taking steps to make it harder for headhunters to poach associates, primarily by removing information about associates from their Web sites ' information as basic as direct-dial numbers, e-mail addresses and biographical or practice-group data. More recently, <i>Law Firm, Inc.</i> reported that only four of the top 10 firms deserved an "A" for the completeness of associate information on their Web sites (see, www.lawfirminc.com/texts/0505/dls0505.html). The first question this raises is simply whether "cloaking" associate information has any effect; and the second, more interesting, question is whether firms' cloaking associates - but not partners - tells us anything about how the market for lateral associates differs in structure and function from the market for lateral partners.

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With globalization and the increasing number of mergers; with the opening of more branch offices by the national firms; and with record number of lawyers leaving law firms, competition in the legal profession has become more intense and cutthroat. As a result, are there more law firm bankruptcies on the horizon? If so, what are the ramifications? What procedures must be followed? The goal of this article is to provide an overview of the basic issues likely to surface in a law firm bankruptcy case.

Features

Symantec Corp.'s acquisition of startup IMlogic Inc. underscores increased corporate instant messaging (IM), and highlights two small firms' major role as messaging technology providers.