NY Firms Pledge Lawyers to 50 Pro Bono Hours Annually
January 03, 2006
Thirty of the 55 large Manhattan law firms asked by the New York City Bar Association to endorse its aspirational "Statement of Pro Bono Principles" have pledged their lawyers will perform 50 or more hours per year.
Something Old, Nothing New, Everything Borrowed, Shades of Blue
January 03, 2006
Before you run off to copyright your Web site, as advocated in Michael McCoy's accompanying article, you may want to check that it's original! Consider these observations of Ms. Tursi, abridged from her commentary in <i>A&FP</i>'s sibling newsletter <i>Marketing the Law Firm</i>.
Mismeasuring the Profitability of Associates and Practice Groups
January 03, 2006
Last month A&FP examined the dangers of considering profitability metrics in isolation ("Matter Profitability: When Metrics Mislead" by Steve Campbell). Board member Ed Wesemann now provides a similarly fresh look at the pitfalls of using "business-like" industrial cost accounting to make managerial judgments in a law firm. Ed's most recent book ' Creating Dominance: Strategies for Law Firms ' was featured in our June 2005 edition.
'Just Trust Me'
January 03, 2006
Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN) has publicly defended himself against allegations of insider trading by insisting that he was not aware of inside information when he sold his stock in Hospital Corporation of America (HCA), the hospital chain founded by his father and brother. He has also stated, numerous times since his election to the Senate, that because his HCA securities were in a "qualified blind trust," he could not even be certain about the extent of his holdings at any given time. Frist's civil and criminal exposure under the securities laws is likely to turn on interpretations of SEC Rule 10b5-1, which addresses trading "on the basis of" material nonpublic information in insider trading cases.
Never the Twain Shall Meet?
January 03, 2006
The June 2005 acquittal of HealthSouth founder and Chief Executive Officer Richard M. Scrushy on all charges in a high-profile federal corporate fraud prosecution was widely considered a surprising setback for the Department of Justice (DOJ). But even before the final acquittals in Scrushy, the trial judge's finding that the government's civil and criminal investigations had "improperly merged" resulted in the suppression of Scrushy's SEC deposition and the dismissal of three perjury charges based upon that testimony. <i>United States v. Scrushy</i>, 366 F. Supp.2d 1134, 1137 (N.D.Ala. 2005). Judge Karon Bowdre's decision provides an opportunity to review the law governing the proper conduct of parallel proceedings, and to ask when co-operation between civil enforcement and prosecutorial authorities contravenes those standards.
The Government's Evolving Position on Privilege
January 03, 2006
As recently as 6 months ago, many commentators were proclaiming the demise of the attorney-client privilege and work product protection in the context of corporate internal investigations. It now appears that these predictions were premature. Law enforcement officials are becoming more sensitive to the legitimate reasons for protecting a corporation's ability to assert these privileges. Although, from the viewpoint of business, there's still a long way to go, companies have reason to be hopeful.
CD: Building Your Professional Network
December 21, 2005
Building Your Professional Network Take control of your own success and don't let yourself be left unprepared. Success in the legal profession is built on your ability to bring in the work. New business and revenue are your building blocks and you have to be able to market and sell business. These essential networking skills are not learned in school. So how do you acquire them? '
