From time to time, I am asked to review books. I don’t know why. But the idea of being asked makes me feel good, so time permitting, I generally agree. Frequently, the books are not very good. This was, most decidedly, not one of those occasions. Your Witness is a compilation of stories. Stories about… Continue Reading
Monthly Archives: June 2008
Book Review: The Curmudgeon’s Guide To Practicing Law
Posted in People, Places and BlawgsOn Wednesday afternoon, I had the great pleasure to participate in a CLE program on blogging, sponsored by Counsel on Call in Chicago. To my immediate right was Mark Herrmann of Jones Day. Mark is one of the authors of Drug and Device Law, a blog devoted, not surprisingly, to drug and device law. Mark… Continue Reading
Email Free Fridays As Tool To Strengthen Client Relationships
Posted in Client CommunicationsLife without email? Probably not happening. But what about a day without email? Just imagine–an entire day where you actually had to … speak with people. Gulp! As I was driving in this morning, I was, as always, listening to NPR. The story that caught my attention was one on email-free Fridays at… Continue Reading
Tiffany’s And The Billable Hour
Posted in Hourly Rates and AlternativesGreat (and lengthy!) post by Bruce MacEwen in Adam Smith, Esq. discussing theories about why General Counsel have been slow to move from the billable hour notwithstanding how much they loathe the status quo. No summary can do justice to the post, so be sure to invest the time to read it. It’s provocative,… Continue Reading
Document Retention: The Road To Perdition?
Posted in Client ServiceConsider this a public service announcement. Better yet, a heads-up on something you should be speaking with your clients about. NPR ran a story this morning about document retention and the cost it adds to litigation. Among the highlights of the story: Ten years ago, a case with 300,000 pages of documents was huge. Today,… Continue Reading
Price Of Oil Continues Upward
Posted in CommentaryI’m on vacation today with the whole family (meaning we are using the Suburban). Stopped to get gas and blew the entire vacation budget. Wow! Anyway, got me wondering just how fast the price of oil has been increasing. At the beginning of 2006, oil was $60 per barrel. A year later, it was $75… Continue Reading
Were You Born To Blog? Chicago Panel of Bloggers Provides Insights
Posted in People, Places and BlawgsI will be joining John Wallbillich (The Wired GC) and Mark Herrmann (Drug and Device Law) on a panel to discuss our thoughts on the value of blogging. The two-hour panel — "Were You Born To Blog?" — will take place in Chicago next Wednesday, June 25, from 3 to 5 p.m. Details on the… Continue Reading
Budgeting For Litigation: No Excuses
Posted in Client Service, Hourly Rates and AlternativesThe excuses are as numerous as they are legendary: "I didn’t know the other side was actually going to take depositions." "Who knew the court would actually want a brief on the summary judgment motion?" "We’ve got no chance of winning the motion but it will help us ‘educate’ the judge." Everybody has their favorites… Continue Reading