Engagement Letters
Engagement letters in the big law firm are like death, taxes, and timesheets. You can't live with them. You can't live without them. On the one hand, while many practitioners may not realize it, engagement letters are part of the attorney-client contract that defines the relationship between the parties. This article identifies the general ground rules regarding engagement letters, the bells and whistles that such letters can contain for the good of the law firm, and the problems that can arise when lawyers don't pay attention to or fail to follow to the letters.
News Briefs
Highlights of the latest franchising news from around the country.
Court Watch
Highlights of the latest franchising cases from around the country.
Avoiding Common Collection Blunders
Electronic discovery is filled with pitfalls and mistakes that can be avoided with proper planning and preparation. One area that can have the greatest impact on the defensibility and the cost of e-discovery is evidence collection. The effective execution of this phase will go the farthest in improving overall e-discovery success while lowering associated risks. In other words, if data is harvested and restored in a legally defensible, forensically sound manner, then the overall project will have a much better chance of achieving a favorable or expected outcome. Following are some common mistakes often encountered in e-discovery ' and some advice on how to avoid them.
Overcoming the Barriers to Organizational Change
Last month, we explained that in order to stay ahead of the competition in today's economic environment, a law firm needs to be flexible and agile in adapting to change, whether through a corporate restructuring, adopting new technologies or processes, or introducing new products or services. We discussed a number of important ways of doing so, and we conclude this month with a final major area: IT.
Orientation Revisited and Reinvented
Many firms have instituted elaborate machinery for their recruiting (entry-level and lateral) and orientation, but there is a long way to go toward stellar results regarding orienting, integrating, and retaining those hard-won recruits. Some of the difficulties are generational; others can be traced to the traditions of partnership culture, which often lacks openness about management and how the firm handles the business of law. This article focuses on pumping up orientation programs.
Career Journal: Across the Pond
Law-firm marketing in the UK has witnessed some important developments over the last three years. Firms of all sizes, from large international players to smaller niche firms, have made sizeable investments in their business development departments. U.S. firms with a presence in the UK and Europe have also invested heavily in this key area.
Op Ed: 'Miranda' Rights
What I think is that for the most part, women in law have feared being themselves because if they showed their 'feminine side,' they would be perceived as not good enough or smart enough to succeed. I am here to say that's just rubbish."--Elizabeth Anne 'Betiayn' Tursi
