Law.com Subscribers SAVE 30%

Call 855-808-4530 or email [email protected] to receive your discount on a new subscription.

Search


Ask The Coach
May 01, 2003
This month's question:<BR>We occasionally receive RFPs for work that we really don't want. How can we gracefully phrase the "thanks but no thanks" letter?
On The Job <B>Hiring Process Leads to Good Staffing Decisions</b>
May 01, 2003
Whether you're building a marketing staff, replacing departing employees or expanding the skill sets available for your firm, you'll make better hires if you use a few simple steps to clarify and control the process.
You Are The Tea: The Crucial Role Of Image In Law Firm Marketing
May 01, 2003
Imagine, for a moment that, instead of being an attorney, you are a pile of tea. I'm fairly certain no one has ever asked you to do so before, but bear with me. You are a pile of tea. Not a big pile. A few ounces. And, truth be told, you aren't much different than any other pile of tea. You might be a slightly different flavor. You might be decaffeinated. And, while tea connoisseurs might disagree, to almost everyone else, let's face it, tea is tea. Now, here's your choice: You can put yourself in a generic box with the local supermarket chain's logo on it and sell on aisle 14 for $1.99, or you can pack yourself into a fancy white box decorated with Japanese higura characters with delicate cranes and bonsai trees, call yourself Tazo, and sell at Starbucks for $4.99.
Firms Take Hard Line on Law Directories
May 01, 2003
What is the single biggest marketing expense at many large law firms? Not hip, computer-animated television commercials. Not bold, full-page ads in <I>The New York Times</I> or <I>The Wall Street Journal</i>. Certainly not pens and tote bags handed out to clients and law students.
Product Review: RainMaker Software's Business Intelligence Suite
May 01, 2003
Founded in 1845, Robinson &amp; Cole LLP is a commercial law firm with more than 200 lawyers in six offices throughout Connecticut, Massachusetts and New York. As with most firms, our time and billing system is critical to daily operations. Vast amounts of information go into the system, but extracting data in a meaningful way was always a struggle.
No Strings Attached: Cutting the TechnoCord with a Wireless Law Practice
May 01, 2003
Those frustrating cables ' they're everywhere! Intertwining and connecting seemingly plug-incompatible gadgets in our laptop cases; tangling purses and briefcases in a snakelike mass of plastic-encased cords; connecting Palms to PCs; going from headsets to cell phones; "conveniently" linking us to printers (when sometimes the cables weigh more than the laptop); stretching to scanners; retracting (or not) from telephones; coiling like a garden hose around the legs of our chairs while connecting us to a network. Arrgh! Enough!
Practice Tip: <B>How AutoCorrect Can Help in Document Creation</b>
May 01, 2003
Last month we introduced you to AutoCorrect, a Microsoft Word feature that allows you to automatically detect and correct typos, capitalization errors and general misspellings as you type. We explained the differences between plain text and formatted text and how each is treated within AutoCorrect and also provided steps on how to add and remove AutoCorrect entries.
Put Technology In Its Place ... and Deliver Results To The Bottom Line
May 01, 2003
When lawyers discuss the role of information technology in their practice, a phrase often heard is "it's a necessary evil." Regardless of firm size or practice area, complaints regarding information technology (IT) are unfortunately all too common: large investments ... disappointing results.
Bits & Bytes
May 01, 2003
News and developments in legal tech.
After 100 Years, Hospital Liability Takes a Sharp Turn
May 01, 2003
You are ordinarily not liable for the misdeeds of others, right? Sure, you can be vicariously liable for certain conduct of employees and agents, but not others you may associate with, such as independent contractors. Except sometimes. And now, if you're a hospital that allows independent contractor physicians to treat patients at your facility, "sometimes" is presumptively "all the time." That is the rule laid down in the recent decision, <i>Mejia v. Community Hospital of San Bernardino</i> (2002), 99 Cal.App.4th 1448.

MOST POPULAR STORIES

  • Private Equity Valuation: A Significant Decision
    Insiders (and others) in the private equity business are accustomed to seeing a good deal of discussion ' academic and trade ' on the question of the appropriate methods of valuing private equity positions and securities which are otherwise illiquid. An interesting recent decision in the Southern District has been brought to our attention. The case is <i>In Re Allied Capital Corp.</i>, CCH Fed. SEC L. Rep. 92411 (US DC, S.D.N.Y., Apr. 25, 2003). Judge Lynch's decision is well written, the Judge reviewing a motion to dismiss by a business development company, Allied Capital, against a strike suit claiming that Allied's method of valuing its portfolio failed adequately to account for i) conditions at the companies themselves and ii) market conditions. The complaint appears to be, as is often the case, slap dash, content to point out that Allied revalued some of its positions, marking them down for a variety of reasons, and the stock price went down - all this, in the view of plaintiff's counsel, amounting to violations of Rule 10b-5.
    Read More ›