IFA Legal Symposium: Financing Remains Immense Problem for Franchisors
May 27, 2010
Conversation at the 41st annual International Franchise Association Legal Symposium focused on the challenges that franchisors and franchisees are facing in obtaining financing for continuing operations and expansion, as well as other impacts of the two-year U.S. recession.
The End of the World or a Brave New One?
May 26, 2010
Firms that succeed will have four distinct and unifying characteristics: a clear strategy; focused leadership; rewards systems aligned with their strategy; and a well-functioning (and efficient) administrative support structure. These are the firms that prospered in 2009 and will continue to prosper.There is
The New Legal Workplace
May 26, 2010
Workers and managers alike are struggling to figure out what will be expected from them in the coming business quarters, and how to deliver on these expectations. Here are three highlights for legal professionals, which just may make the difference between being in the black or in the red.
Alternative Fee Arrangements
May 26, 2010
How can a law firm choose a fee arrangement that is beneficial for the client and calculated to be profitable for the firm? Once that fee is set, how can the law firm best manage the engagement to ensure sustained profitability? How can it measure profitability in this new environment?
Improving Compensation Decisions in a Mixed Economy
May 26, 2010
How should a law firm approach compensation decisions in the current economy? The fundamentals still apply: a focus on the quality of the compensation decisions and the interrelationship of those decisions with culture and strategy.
Loss in Injury and Death Matters
April 29, 2010
Careful attention to all the elements of economic loss, and careful discovery on damages, is essential in ensuring a fair recovery that compensates the plaintiff for what was actually lost.
DIY e-Commerce Law
April 28, 2010
Entrepreneurs in e-commerce have long thrived on serving those who subscribe to the "do it yourself" ("DIY") method of doing business. Legal services are no exception to this trend. Online self-help legal sites, such as nolo.com, have grown in tandem with the general expansion of online commerce. But there are still times when it really is dangerous to "do it yourself" and when it is best to rely on trained professionals.
Generating Leads By Finding Buyers in Trouble
April 28, 2010
Legal services are not sold, they are bought. You can't sell something that the other person doesn't want. Hence, the most effective way to detect a lead is to find someone ready to buy.
Powering Your Way Out of the Recession
April 28, 2010
The vision of this article is to provide a model that may be used in discussing how a firm can power into the next few years. It uses a watershed analogy to demonstrate drivers for higher margins and the skills required to maximize each stream of effort running toward the earnings "lake."