How to Sell a Coaching Program to Your Firm
May 01, 2003
You've seen or experienced the benefits of coaching firsthand. Now you want to persuade your firm to institute a coaching program for business development and/or general professional development. How do you go about it? The best approach is one that combines rational arguments, strategic "lobbying" and appeals to the ultimate decision-makers - in a way that best matches each individual's personal style.
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?
Proposed Amendments to the FLSA: A Primer
May 01, 2003
The most substantial changes in more than 50 years to the way employers determine whether they are obligated to pay overtime compensation could well become reality. The United States Department of Labor (DOL) issued proposed revisions to its regulations on the "white-collar" exemptions to the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) on March 31, 2003. If enacted in a version close to their present form, the way you do business could change considerably.
Impact of Corporate Governance Reforms on Private Companies
May 01, 2003
Public companies are facing dramatic changes in disclosure and corporate governance requirements under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and new or proposed rules from the SEC, NASDAQ and the NYSE. While these new rules and regulations do not generally cover private companies, they do affect private companies.
The Hottest Dish in Real Estate
May 01, 2003
Television has changed the American city from top to bottom. In the days of Lucy and Ricky, antennas covered apartment rooftops. Then came the cable lines buried under the streets or snaking along utility poles. Now, a device once identified with the countryside is showing up in urban landscapes: the satellite dish."
Patent Infringement Damages: Riding The Wine Railway Can Be Expensive
May 01, 2003
When the plaintiff in a patent litigation contends that it has never made or sold the product protected by its patent, alarm bells should start clanging in the ears of defense counsel. For the odds are that the plaintiff is angling to take advantage of a little-used aspect of the law of patent damages that can lead to a windfall recovery for patent infringement. It is the <i>Wine Railway</i> exception to the well-known "notice" provision of the patent statute. Created by the Supreme Court in <i>Wine Railway Appliance Co. v. Enterprise Railway Equipment Co.</i>, 297 U.S. 387 (1936), the exception can lead to catastrophic and unforeseen patent damage awards. Such damages are unforeseen (and, some would argue, unfair and undeserved) because they arise without any notice of infringement, actual or constructive.
The Attorney, Unemployed
May 01, 2003
Ask Lee Feldshon, a 33-year-old entertainment lawyer who lives in New York. He graduated from Columbia University Law School in 1994, worked at New York's White & Case and several other well-established law firms in the 1990s, then landed a job as director of legal affairs for Madison Square Garden in 2001. He got laid off in 2002.
E & O in the New Corporate Environment
May 01, 2003
Errors and Omissions (E&O) coverage protects policyholders in various professional occupations — such as the legal, medical, architectural, engineering, insurance, and accounting fields — against professional liability claims. This form of insurance, sometimes referred to as professional liability or malpractice insurance, covers economic damages resulting from an error, omission, or negligent act related to the rendering of professional services.
Know Your Billing Software!
April 01, 2003
Attorneys in larger firms don't have to worry if the bills get out the door each month, if suppliers are paid on time, or if the general ledger is balanced. The administrator and "back office" staff take care of this.