Friday, January 30, 2009

Have you read these?

A smattering of interesting posts from the blawgosphere and beyond

Thursday, January 29, 2009

Have you read these?

A smattering of interesting posts from the blawgosphere and beyond

  • When No News Is Bad News” from James Warren in The Atlantic. Journalism is changing. Not in a good way. This post is a little out of scope, but as Warren puts it: “This matters because of the unique role journalism plays in a democracy.
     

  • Watching the time go by” from Jay Shepherd at The Client Revolution. Shepherd is an important voice in the billable hour debate, but you’ve seen his name here a few times so you already knew that. Repeat after me: clients want value, not hours. 

  • Savvy Lawyers Value Their Human Capital” from Gini Nelson and Victoria Pynchon on The Complete Lawyer. Worth a read for the unnamed GC’s quote alone, this post offers great advice for lawyers and firms alike on getting through these tough economic times, not just in one piece, but ahead of the competition. 

  • Client Technology Surveys - A Powerful Little Tool” from Dennis Kennedy on DennisKennedy.blog. Although technology surveys are not my gig, client communications are. This post reminded me that there are many opportunities to talk to your clients about things that matter to them. When you say, “tell me what you do so I can do it too,” your client will like that. A powerful little tool indeed. 

  • How to Ask for an Outside Counsel Budget That Really Means Something” from Rees Morrison and Paul Morrison on Law.com. Improving the quality of outside legal budgets through better communication helps both lawyer and client better quantify the value of legal services. What’s not good about that? This article provides practical advice on doing it. 

  • Marketing Me: Why it’s worth it” from Heather Milligan at The Legal Watercooler.  Milligan really nails it on this one. Personal experience has taught me what she articulates so well: never ever forget that you alone are responsible for your career. The fact that she names me in the post only confirms how smart she is! Thanks, Heather.

  • 10 Ways I Use Twitter and Why I Do It The Way I Do” from Susan Cartier Liebel’s Build a Solo Practice blog. There are a lot of posts, and by a lot of posts I mean A LOT OF POSTS, on how lawyers can use Twitter effectively. This one rises above the rest.

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Have you read these?

A smattering of interesting posts from today's legal and other blogs 

  • Leadership After the Layoffs” from Jeffery Connor in Law Practice Today. Connor addresses some of the issues law firm leaders need to keep in mind as they keep their firms together. Not surprisingly, honest and timely communication is crucial.

  • How to - Step One” and “How To - Alternative Bill” from 3 Geeks and a Law Blog. Toby Brown uses these posts to move the billable hour v alternative billing debate from theory into practice in what promises to be a series of useful how-to posts. I still think the billable hour is being unfairly maligned (that’s a hint that I am working on a response post), but fully agree that lawyers need practical advice on changing the way they bill. 

  • You Have 500+ On LinkedIN? So What?” from Kyle Lacy’s blog, Sometimes it’s better to be socially creative. I like this because I’m a firm believer in “so what;” but I REALLY like it because he writes “that there is nothing valuable in the social media world that is easy.” Success takes work.

  • Is Biglaw Planning on Changing the Rules of The Game?” from Carolyn Elefant’s MyShingle blog. Responding to Professor Larry Ribstein’s Ideablog post on the death of BigLaw (mentioned here yesterday), Elefant emphatically refutes Ribstein’s suggestion that ethic rules are to blame for the fall of BigLaw. Still not convinced? See Elefant’s other post on the same topic, “Are Ethics Rules What's Killing Biglaw?,” from Legal Blog Watch.

  • Take The Plunge!” from Nicole Auerbach in In search of perfect client service. Another piece in the alternative billing conversation, this post argues that clients need to take responsibility for changing the rules by forcing their outside firms to adapt. I’ll have more to say on this soon, but in the meantime this is an important voice in the debate.

  • Corporate Blogging - Is it Worth the Effort?” from Pivotal Branding. Research shows that few readers trust corporate blogs. The post talks about getting beyond that mistrust to enhance your firm’s reputation. Do you think it would change the game if a law firm currently going through layoffs blogged about their layoffs like Zappo’s CEO Tony Hsieh did last year? What would it do to their reputation?

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Have you read these?

A smattering of interesting posts from today's legal blogs 

Monday, January 26, 2009

The Re Tweek

A selection of law week's notable tweets:

Saturday, January 24, 2009

Have you read these?

A smattering of interesting posts from today's legal blogs

Thursday, January 22, 2009

Have you read these?

A smattering of interesting posts from today's legal blogs

Have you read these?

A smattering of interesting posts from today's legal blogs

Monday, January 19, 2009

The Re Tweek

The Re Tweek: a selection of last week's notable tweets

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

The Re Tweek

The Re Tweek: A selection of last week’s notable tweets