Is the iPhone Safe for Lawyers?

This subject was a hot topic for discussion on Solosez on Monday. While form and features – not to mention that certain “wow” factor that makes working fun – are important whenever a lawyer selects a smartphone, Rule 1.6 of the Rules of Professional Conduct dictates that the choice of device and service provider [...]

Friday Reading: Don Draper’s Guide to Being a Better Lawyer

I try to make time every Friday to catch up on all the things that I’ve piled up, both literally and virtually, to read when I have a chance.  As I began sifting through some of it this morning, I thought it might be fun to share what I think is the most insightful, most [...]

When It’s Time to Say “So Long…”

From time to time I get calls from lawyers who are looking for information on shuttering their practices.  Sometimes it’s for happy reasons, like appointment or election to a judgeship or a long-awaited retirement.  Other times it involves a family relocation and, sometimes, small firms just don’t gain the traction they need to keep on [...]

A Tale of Two Emails or I Don’t Talk to Strangers

I received two email messages recently. Each was from someone I did not know. Both posed a single, easy-to-answer question, but it’s amazing how different my reaction was to each.
The first contained nothing but the question and the sender’s name and city. The question challenged something that I had written in an [...]

Get Your Hand Out of My Pocket!

There have been several recent news reports of municipal and county court clerks here in Alabama embezzeling fees and fines that they handled in the course of their work.  Theft in the workplace goes on all the time, but it’s likely gotten worse as a result of the recession.  And it’s not just confined to [...]

ABA TECHSHOW: An Affordable Investment – Particularly in a Down Economy

I have to disclose right up front that I might be just a little bit biased since I’m chairing this year’s ABA TECHSHOW, presented by the ABA Law Practice Management Section (April 2-4), but even if I weren’t, I’d still feel this is one of the best CLE investments any lawyer can make given the [...]

When You Go to Heaven, Will Your Practice Go to Hell?

None of us likes to think about death and dying, even those of us who do wills and estate planning. But every lawyer should – especially those in solo practice and very small firms – because unexpected death or disability could really put your clients’ matters in jeopardy if you haven’t created a plan [...]

The Organized Lawyer – Who, Me?

One of the best things about working for a bar association is that I sometimes get free stuff. Not bribe-type stuff for personal use – that’s against the rules for state employees – but things like review copies of books, which are OK. I got one recently that’s both an easy, interesting read [...]

Crisis Averted! – IOLTA Accounts Now Fully Covered

On Friday the FDIC issued a final rule which now classifies IOLTA accounts as non-interest bearing accounts for the purposes of the Transaction Account Guarantee Program. So, why is this important to Alabama lawyers?
Recently, a few very smart lawyers who had taken the time to think about it realized that under the interim rules [...]

Fraud Alert! Georgia Lawyer Caught in Trust Account Scam

The globalization of business has provided many opportunities for lawyers in Alabama to use an Internet web site to attract potential business clients from around the world. Unfortunately, globalization has also opened many lawyers up to the possibility of being caught in an attorney trust account scam that’s making its way across North [...]