BUILDING A ‘BULLET-PROOF’ IT INFRASTRUCTURE
Quick! What ages faster than a Gruyere cheese? If you answered, ‘our firm’s technology infrastructure’, you’d be on the right track. A 2016 technology survey of law firms disclosed that 47% of firms were spending between $8,000 and $21,000 per attorney on technology resources, while 14% were spending over $21,000. By 2020, with the arrival […]
TAMING THE COMPLEXITIES OF COMPLEX LITIGATION
Any lawsuit may be lengthy, costly, require outside experts, involve multiple parties, and have significant sums of money at stake. But when you seriously up the ante for each of those factors, drawing the litigation out over several years—if not decades–and employing not a few but full-fledged teams of attorneys while battling over hundreds of […]
MANDATE DEBATE: THE LEGAL SIDE OF MANDATORY VACCINATIONS
On September 9, 2021, President Biden signed into law what have been described as sweeping vaccine mandates designed to combat the Public Health Emergency (PHE), commonly known as the COVID-19 pandemic. Through the use of Executive Orders, the President mandated COVID-19 vaccinations for millions of Americans, further bolstered by OSHA’s Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) covering […]
GROWING YOUR FIRM – WHERE TO RE-INVEST FIRM PROFITS?
Thinking of ‘taking the money and running’ as your firm’s profitability soars? Underinvesting in the practice you’ve grown thus far is possibly one of the worst long-run mistakes you can make. Every successful business, from Ford Motor Company to today’s high-tech behemoths, has one thing in common – strategic reinvestment of profits. For the professional […]
THE MORE YOU KNOW – DUAL BACKGROUNDS AND THE PRACTICE OF LAW
Do you know any lawyers who also hold an MD? Or perhaps an engineer, biologist, CPA, or computer science whiz who practices law? Today, holding a dual degree in the areas of economics, life sciences, or engineering can definitely give you an edge whether applying for a job in a multi-disciplinary or niche law firm, […]
EMPLOYER TRACKING OF EMPLOYEE DATA
Can your employer monitor your browsing history and other personal data of yours? The simple answer is—yes. And such employer tracking is becoming much more widespread in the era of Covid-19 remote work arrangements, with a plethora of tools available for use by your employer. We will examine how far your employer can go with […]
THE GLOBAL SUPPLY CHAIN CRISIS AND CONTRACT PERFORMANCE
‘A Contract is a promise or set of promises, for the breach of which the law gives a remedy, or the performance of which the law in some way recognizes as a duty.’ – Restatement (Second) of Contracts §71 (1981) From backed-up ships waiting at the U.S.’s two largest container shipping ports in California, to […]
HIPAA COMPLIANCE – BALANCING PRIVACY, PROTECTION, AND PORTABILITY
We all expect that our personal health information will be kept strictly confidential, right? However, there is a difference between confidentiality and privacy. But what is it? In today’s technologically advanced health care system, your medical information is likely ‘shared’ by no less than a minimum of 20 different information handlers, from doctors to […]
WITHER THE BILLABLE HOUR? DETERMINING THE VALUE IN VALUE BILLING
Ever heard of Reginald Heber Smith? Perhaps not by name, but indeed by legacy. He is the lawyer who came up with the notion of The Billable Hour and the practice of law has never been the same…until now. Recently, both multi-lawyer firms and solo practitioners have begun to weigh the value of hourly billing […]
BURNING THE MIDNIGHT OIL – AND BURNING OUT THE ASSOCIATE
Boredom, poor work-life balance, and assignment to terrible cases that they do not enjoy are some of the common complaints voiced by mid-level associates when asked to comment on burnout in the workplace. So why do they stay? The pay is excellent. Today, law firms are re-examining the value of a system that greatly rewards […]
