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In last month's issue we looked at a pending complaint made against a forensic psychologist to the ethics committee of his professional organization by an examinee unhappy with the psychologist's recommendation. We also explored case law in the Seventh Circuit that holds the decisions of professional organizations are not reviewable by the courts as long as the person being disciplined was given procedural due process. In this month's installment, we see how this state of affairs not only negatively impacts the professional prospects of the medical expert but also the free expression of valid medical opinions in the courtroom and other comparable settings.
Well we're off to another exciting year here at Marketing The Law Firm. I thought that I would give everyone a heads up on this year's "Best Of" competitions.
Features
Your law firm's Web site design has remained static for years. While it may be functional, it's not generating the traffic you originally envisioned, it's not interactive and the overall design is looking a tad dated. You may also not have anyone in-house who can devote the requisite time and effort needed to make the firm's site a productive new business and practice development 24/7/365 marketing tool. <br>Many law firms still don't understand that a poorly designed Web site can damage the firm's credibility and impair its image. So what's the solution? Seek the services of a Web-crafting firm that will not just be a vendor, but a Web partner and architectural strategist.
All marketing directors have experienced it. They receive an e-mail that describes a terrific deal closed or case "just" won by an attorney at the firm. The attorney requests a press release and a full-blown public relations push to all media outlets. But curiously, nowhere in the e-mail does the attorney mention when the big case or deal happened. As it turns out, it is because it happened more than a month ago and, since the client did its own press release immediately after the fact, every media outlet known to man covered it then. So how can a marketing director say no, without actually saying it? The dilemma is that you cannot send the release to the media again, weeks after the fact, but you don't want to tell the attorney that he or she has no options either. So here are some suggestions of how to make the most of old news.
Features
Last month we started our Year in Review, and made it up through June. In Part Two, we finish off the highlights of 2004.
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Recent rulings of importance to you and your practice.
More than 2 years ago, the Internal Revenue Service published Revenue Ruling 2002-22, 2002-19 I.R.B. 849, in which it held that section 1041 of the Internal Revenue Code governed the transfer of stock options and interests in certain unfunded deferred compensation arrangements to the employee's spouse under a marital property settlement. As a result, the employee spouse was not taxable on the transfer. Instead, the spread on the options (the difference between the value of the employer 's stock at the time of exercise and the striking price) and the amount received as deferred compensation under unfunded arrangements were taxable to the nonemployee spouse in the same way and to the same extent as it would have been taxed to the employee. The ruling interpreted section 1041 to have established the rule that property transfers in divorce should be taxed as if the property conveyed were community property that had been transferred in settlement of the transferee's community property rights. As community property, stock options and interests in unfunded deferred compensation arrangements constituted "property" for section 1041 purposes, and the amounts received by the nonemployee spouse would be ordinary income to her (or him), taxable as compensation under IRC '83 and would be "wages" subject to employment taxes and withholding by the employer.
New York's highest court, the Court of Appeals, recently issued a ground-breaking opinion, holding that a battered woman's failure to prevent her children from witnessing her own abuse does not automatically give protective agencies license to remove the child. <i>Nicholson v. Scoppetta</i>, 113, Oct. 26, 2004.
Features
Most divorce clients initially feel "powerless" about the events of their lives and their potential divorce litigation. With some creativity, attorneys can encourage their clients to take affirmative steps from the onset, and permit them to feel proactive instead of reactive to the circumstances in which they find themselves. This initial interview with a client carries significant weight and sets the tone for the attorney-client relationship. Attorneys can impress a potential client with their experience in dealing with these issues and solidify the client's trust in their expertise. The creation of trust in the relationship must occur. To accomplish this goal, the attorney must listen to the potential client's facts. Depending on the circumstances, the attorney analyzes the information presented, counsels the client on what facts are important to prove the case and informs the individual how to obtain them. The "empowered client" now has a sense of direction and actually may uncover significant information that might resolve or alter the final result of the case.