JD Scoop

Media Mentions: JD Supra Contributor Content in the News

Mon, 22 Oct 2012 16:03:45 -0800

Here's a quick roundup of recent media/press pickup for law firm content published and distributed on JD Supra.

A sample of noteworthy links, this roundup does not include the numerous daily references to legal writings on JD Supra within closed-network intranets, niche community forums, wikis, and mobile platforms, nor the likes, tweets, shares, and recommends across social media.

JD Supra Contributors in the News:

Duane Morris in Law.com's Corporate Counsel:

- As U.S. Waits for FCPA Guidance, UK Bribery Act Gets an Update

Venable LLP in Nonprofit Quarterly (NPQ):

- Breast Cancer Awareness Month Criticized for "Little Pink Lies"

Morgan Lewis in Ars Technica:

- Senator wants to bring copyright law to the runway

Proskauer Rose LLP in HR Morning:

- Background checks: What's changing in 2013

Greenberg Glusker in Staffing Talk:

- Staffing News Of The Day, October 17, 2012

Patton Boggs LLP in POWER Magazine:

- Regulators Cannot Move Fast Enough to Protect Grid, FERC Warns

Sands Anderson PC in CIO:

- Worker Had Proper Access When He Snagged Corporate Data, Court Rules

Sedgwick LLP in the Tampa Bay Business Journal:

- Florida mandates email service of court documents

Cadwalader in The Compliance Exchange:

- Compliance News 8/24/12: The SEC Fumbles A Crucial Post-Crisis Battle

Mike Volkov in FierceComplianceIT and PharmaCertify:

- New laws could change the role of compliance officers

- Week in Review, July 27, 2012

Ifrah Law Firm in USA Today:

- Online poker firms forfeit $731M to settle U.S. fraud case

Morgan Lewis in CommonHealth/NPR:

- Daily Rounds; Preventing Alzheimer's; Health Law Repeal Encore; Breastfeeding Cuts Obesity; Loosening The Gift Ban

Ropers, Majeski, Kohn & Bentley in The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers:

- The ASCAP Daily Brief

Pillsbury, Saul Ewing, Warner Norcross & Judd, Orrick, and Foley Hoag in The Wall Street Journal Corruption Currents:

- High Tide: From Iranians Suffering to Jockey Bribery

- High Tide: From Blaming Speculators to Whistleblower Lawyers

- High Tide: From Iran Arming Syria to New Indictments in 'Operation Cookie Jar'

- High Tide: From a Burmese Mogul to Russia's Bout Request

Baldwins IP in The Huffington Post:

- Christian Louboutin vs. YSL 'Red Soles' Court Case Takes A New Twist

Eric Adair on ABC7 local television news, Los Angeles, and Streetsblog Losa Angeles:

- [Video] Baldwin Hills 'fracking' effects disputed

- "Frack Off, Folks!" Says California Legislature in Killing Anti-Fracking Bills

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Previously:

- Media Mentions July 2012
- Media Mentions February 2012
- Media Mentions November 2011

A Lawyer Walks Into a Bar (Exam)...

Fri, 27 Jul 2012 12:12:37 -0800

Well, OK: not just one, but many many thousands - and not quite practicing law yet, but almost.

Even so, we'd like to extend a quick word of congratulations to those of you who took the bar exam this week. A momentous occasion. Enjoy the weekend, unwind in Olympic style, and see if this video resonates. From Bloomberg Law:

Link: Taking the Bar Exam: What It's REALLY Like...

How did it go for you?

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[Video] Ballard Spahr LLP on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

Wed, 25 Jul 2012 10:31:07 -0800

We're pleased to note that law firm Ballard Spahr is extending its ongoing and excellent coverage of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) by posting attorney videos on JD Supra. For your reference:

On CFPB Supervision:

Alan Kaplinsky, head of Ballard Spahr's nationally recognized Consumer Financial Services Group and a pioneer in pre-dispute arbitration: "In my more than 40 years as a consumer financial services lawyer, I have not witnessed an event as momentous to the industry as the creation as the CFPB..."

On CFPB Enforcement:

Enforcement investigations already have begun for credit card payment products, debt collectors, auto lenders, student lenders, and private mortgage insurance. Chris Willis, Consumer Financial Services litigator and leader of Ballard Spahr's task force on Fair Lending: "I have no doubt that the number of scope of these investigations will increase in the following year..."

On CFPB Regulation:

John Socknat, who leads Ballard Spahr's Mortgage Banking practice: "We are in the midst of an unprecedented level of regulation in the residential mortgage space, some of which could be the most significant rulemaking in the history of mortgage lending regulation..."

Visit Ballard Spahr's JD Supra portfolio for additional videos as they come in, as well advisories and updates on the CFPB and other legal issues of the day.

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How Do You Strike the Balance Between First and Being Right in Today's Media?

Thu, 12 Jul 2012 10:32:42 -0800

Just in: Bloomberg Law's excellent, wide-ranging interview with NPR legal affairs correspondent Nina Totenberg. We used Lee Pacchia's first question as the title of this blog post; the topic at hand? Obviously last month's coverage of the U.S. Supreme Court's Obama health care decision...

Pacchia's 14-minute interview with Totenberg touches upon a range of SCOTUS-related issues, including news stories/leaks to do with Chief Justice Roberts. From Bloomberg (bold ours):

"Media reports about Chief Justice John Roberts changing his mind while deliberating about the Obama health care cases are unprecedented because they've come so quickly after the decision was issued, [Totenberg] says. Sources for the stories could be a justice, one of the law clerks or even a spouse of a justice, she speculates..."

Link to the video:

Nina Totenberg: SCOTUS Secrets, Leaks & Pizza with Scalia - Bloomberg Law.

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Regarding media coverage of the SCOTUS Obamacare decision, you might also be interested in:

We're getting wildly differing assessments - Tom Goldstein, SCOTUSblog

Media Mentions: A Roundup of Recent Press Pickup for JD Supra Content Around the Web

Tue, 03 Jul 2012 11:49:42 -0800

Here's a quick look at recent press/media pickup for JD Supra-hosted law firm content.

A sample of noteworthy links, this roundup does not include the references to content on JD Supra within closed-network intranets, niche community forums, wikis, and mobile platforms, nor the daily likes, tweets, shares, and recommends across social media:

JD Supra Media Mentions

Proskauer Rose's Not for Profit group in Nonprofit Quarterly/NPQ:

L3C Proponents Eager for Proposed New Program Related Investments Regulations

McDermott Will & Emery in Law.com's Corporate Counsel:

U.S. Companies Account for More Than Half of Nanotechnology IP

Davis Wright Tremaine on C-Span:

Hearing Evaluates Protections for Consumers Making Mobile Payments

Cadwalader in the Wall Street Journal's Corruption Currents:

High Tide: From Seizing The Horses To Latest Iran Talks Begin

Katten in FINCAD Derivative News:

EMIR OTC derivatives laws will drive up costs for market participants

Ifrah Law in The Nation:

Mortgage Fraud Investigation Pushes Forward, Hires Criminal Prosecutor

McKenna Long & Aldridge in Defense Industry Daily:

Rapid Fire: Not So Rare Earths

Pierce Atwood in Poynter:

Why your news organization's social media policy may be illegal

Pierce Atwood in Forest Business Network:

Proposed final Massachusetts rules would effectively end RECs for biomass power plants

Snell & Wilmer in Huffington Post Business:

Health Plan Costs For Obese And Smokers Could Rise After Supreme Court Ruling

Venable in Huffington Post Politics:

Mitch McConnell Argues Against More Donor Disclosure, Accuses Obama Of Political Retribution

Akerman Senterfitt in Huffington Post Gay Voices:

Transgender Employees Now Protected By Anti-Discrimination Law After 'Landmark' EEOC Ruling

Lawyers.com in Business Insider:

Medical Tourism Is Booming, But That Doesn't Mean You Should Buy In

Mintz Levin Privacy & Security on DataBreaches.Net:

Vermont Updates Data Breach Notification Law

Mintz Levin Intellectual Property in Y Combinator's Hacker News:

Yeesh. What a mess.

Sutherland in Upstart Business Journal/Portfolio.com:

Kickstarter Turns Crowdfunding Up To 11

Patton Boggs in Revolution Analytics' Revolutions:

EU court's SAS ruling conflicts with Oracle v Google

McDermott Will & Emery in WSJ's Corruption Currents:

High Tide: From Wal-Mart Testing Corporate Citizenship To Being Unfit For Command

Reed Smith on Lenders 360:

Why Do Lenders Disdain Bankruptcy Court? 2 Cases Show "Why" and Offer Lessons

Reed Smith and Rosenbaum Law Firm in 401kHelpCenter:

May 2012 Digest

Dinsmore & Shohl on the Ethics Resource Center:

Experts See Impact of SEC Whistleblower Provisions

Collins & Collins in Forensic Magazine:

Prosecution Medical Experts and the Confrontation Clause in New Mexico

Winthrop & Weinstine on CMO.com, Digital Marketing Insights for CMOs:

Will Consumers See Through Invisible Branding?

Duane Morris in National Review Online:

Keep an Eye on Color, and Ignore Character

Sheppard Mullin in Small Business Trends:

The Truth About Pinterest for Your Small Business

Foley Hoag in OTCMarkets:

The JOBS Act and its  Impact on the OTC Marketplace

Sanford Millar in Wealth Strategies Journal:

How Foreign Assets Affect U.S. Estate and Gift Taxes

McNees Wallace & Nurick in Staffing Talk:

Staffing News Of The Day, May 25, 2012

Osler in GLOBE-Net:

Canadian Environmental Assessment Act Review Report

Heenan Blaikie in The Hollywood Reporter:

Hollywood Docket: Jimmy Buffett Settles Martiniville Flap; Pirate Bay Removes Torrent Links; and More

CATO Institute in TIME:

What if the Supreme Court Kills Rent Control?

Electronic Privacy Information Center in WIRED:

Drones, Dogs and the Future of Privacy

Sheppard Mullin in the Association of State Wetland Managers' Wetland Breaking News:

New and Revised Nationwide Permits for Dredge and Fill Activities

Miller Martin in WorkplaceChoice.org:

11TH Circuit Upholds $1.7 Million Jury Verdict Against Carpenters Union for Illegal Secondary Boycott Campaign Against Non-Union Contractor

Proskauer Labor Relations in WorkplaceChoice.Org:

NLRB: Maliciously False Statements By Employee To Third Party Not Protected

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Also see: Most-viewed on JD Supra>>

A Note on Today's Twitter/LinkedIn News for Lawyers on JD Supra

Fri, 29 Jun 2012 15:03:44 -0800

A quick update:

As you may have read, today LinkedIn announced the end of its relationship with Twitter whereby your tweets automatically appear in LinkedIn network updates. The change is effective immediately.

Note that if you have connected your JD Supra account to LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook, that remains an effective way to share automatically your new content on all three of those platforms.

If you haven't already done so, log in to JD Supra and tether your LinkedIn account to set up sharing between our two platforms. You can do the same with Facebook and Twitter. Get in touch if you have questions.

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Content Strategy and Lateral Hiring in Law Firms: Are You Overlooking Something?

Wed, 27 Jun 2012 17:10:18 -0800

[The following guest post is by Molly Porter, web and social media manager at DLA Piper. Molly and I met recently while presenting together at the Social and Digital Media for Law Firms program hosted by West LegalEdCenter in San Francisco. I asked Molly to write about her takeaways from the all-day conference - insights and action items from her perspective as a digital media specialist in a large law firm. Here's a thoughtful response to do with content strategies from untapped sources - lateral hires:]

Technology lawyer Richard Hsu's presentation on video was one of the highlights of #SML12 for me. I love his One Page Blog (aka Hsu Tube), where the goal is that every post should "provide useful information which can be summarized on no more than ONE PAGE."

Richard's blog is filled with delightfully pithy posts - many of which effectively deploy visuals to convey the information. See his explanation of IP Ownership in Joint Development - a fairly complex topic rendered friendly by his voice over narration and the illustrations of his daughter Maya:

See also his post on Life Science Collaboration Agreements - turned into an interactive Prezi that is as informative as it is fun to explore. So much better than a dry powerpoint.

Legal marketers and content-creating lawyers have a lot to learn from Richard's approach:

He looks outside legal for inspiration - in this case, Kahn Academy which uses a distinctive illustration style to unpack complex topics.
His "DIY" attitude gives all his pieces an inventive and unique feeling, embued with his personality. This is not a guy who is waiting on marketing for direction, nor should he be.
He also defines very clear parameters for his content - which he sets out in his "About this blog" statement on the homepage.

Richard is the kind of person I'm always on the lookout for at my firm. Not only does he "get it" - he produces great content!

Lateral Partners: Untapped Sources of Great Content?

Richard's presentation also made me wonder how firms handle the content of incoming laterals, whether they are bringing content with them - or leaving it behind. In these days of the "lateral boom," we could be talking about a lot of interesting stuff.

Richard himself was a lateral hire earlier this year - yet no sign of Richard's content exists on the site. Not an embedded video on a bio, not even a link to his blog (at least not any place obvious, like his bio page or the press release announcing his arrival).

I do not know why Richard and the firm made this decision. I can only speak to my role and how I might approach this case of "lateral content." How great would it have been to introduce him to our Facebook followers with a link to his magnetic Rubik's cube video instead of a press release? After all, great self-branding by individual lawyers accrues back to the firm's brand.

All this suggests the need to have someone with a digital mindset as a part of the lateral intake process. This person's approach should not be to "take over" or re-brand assets, but to discover what the lateral has produced and to offer assistance in the transition. The objective would be to find out:

What is the quantity and quality of content marketing assets?
Are the assets still timely and relevant?
Can the assets be absorbed into existing vehicles (the firm's main site or blogs) or are new vehicles required?
And most importantly, do the assets violate any existing client relationships?

Additionally, the intake process should take into account the lateral's other digital and social assets. For each lateral, the firm's digital team should:

Search Twitter - if an account that appears to be at least partially devoted to content marketing, follow on main firm or personal account of person in charge of social media (or who cares the most about it).
Search LinkedIn. Connect or message to welcome to the firm and offer assistance with optimizing linkedin profile.
Review the lawyer's predesessor firm site for content that might come over - the bio especially, since sometimes the web bio is the only bio the lawyer keeps up to date.

These activities should be handled with sensitivity - and urgency. The more content the partner has, the more work there is to do. Perhaps there will be little left after you subtract out all the conflicts (biglaw cares a lot about conflicts) and items that have grown stale or irrelevant over time. But you might end up with more than you had in the beginning. PLUS, if you get a lateral like Richard Hsu, you've at least identified someone with a content marketing mindset - and an intellectual curiosity - that can only make your firm and his practice groups look good. Maybe his new firm has big plans for new content created by Richard - I'm looking forward to seeing it.

@Molly_Porter

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Molly Porter is a web and social media manager at DLA Piper. In her current role, Molly collaborates with a global team to develop and implement the digital marketing strategy for one of the world's largest law firms. All views expressed are her own. Follow her on Twitter or on her blog at www.mollyporter.com

Summer Associate? Here's How to Make the Most of It [Video]

Mon, 11 Jun 2012 14:27:57 -0800

Just in from Bloomberg Law, here's a terrific video series for summer associates on how to make the most of your time at the firm over the next few months.

Produced by Spencer Mazyck, the Summer Success series provides insights and advice on a range of summer associate topics from Ari Kaplan (Founder of Ari Kaplan Advisors), Alison Monahan (Founder of The Girl's Guide to Law School), Desiree Moore (Founder and President, Greenhorn Legal LLC), Wendy Siegel (Career Services Director at New York University School of Law), and Carol Sprague (Director of Associate/Alumni Relations and Attorney Recruiting at Skadden Arps).

In other words, this is what the pros think you should do this summer:

On Working with Partners>>

[One takeaway - from Carol Sprague at Skadden: "Take negative feedback and turn it around into something positive..."]

On Managing Assignments>>

[One takeaway - from Alison Monahan: "First thing you do, make sure you understand what you are being asked to do..." (not always as simple as it sounds)]

On Dealing with Colleagues>>

[One takeaway - from Desiree Moore: "Be conscientious and a little bit cautious about how candid you are [to avoid creating a competitive environment with other summer associates..."]

On Avoiding Disasters>>

[One takeaway - Wendy Siegel: "Don't hit 'Reply All'..."]

On Increasing the Odds of an Offer>>

[One takeaway - from Ari Kaplan: "Everyone is going to be talented, smart, and with a great background. You want to show the firm who you are as an individual..."]

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JD Supra's Law News Blogs

Thu, 07 Jun 2012 17:21:16 -0800

Do you read JD Supra's law news blogs? Check 'em out:

In our ongoing work to bring law firm publications to online readers, over the past several months we've launched a series of blogs with their own broad legal focus. On each you will find news roundups and commentary fueled by the excellent advisories and updates published daily on JD Supra:

Small Business Support:

As the name suggests, a news resource focused on issues for small business owners, startup entrepreneurs, managers, and anyone else interested in workplace concerns, labor and employment, copyrights, taxes, and the like. The blog runs on a Wordpress theme we developed in-house. For your reference, here's a look at the top 10 Small Biz posts for last month>>

Corporate Law Report:

Sister site to Small Business Support, run on the same Wordpress theme, here's a resource for executives, in-house counsel, business leaders, and others interested in corporate law topics. Find content here from some of the world's leading law firms. For your reference: top Corp Law Report posts for last month>>

Is That Legal?

We run this blog on Tumblr (customized a theme on that platform) where we see a good number of readers for the type of work you'll find here: news and commentary on personal and consumer-related legal issues that matter to everyone. We cover all manner of topics on Is That Legal?, including privacy, bankruptcy, family law, real estate, social media, and so forth. (A most-viewed list for the last month is forthcoming.)

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We are big fans of Tumblr and have launched a series of focused micro-blogs on the platform, with more to come. My personal favorite is our Buzz blog, where we report on what's trending or noteworthy on the JD Supra network at any given moment. (My favorite, because regularly we post a True or False? In Law... roundup of recent contributor content. Always fun to put together the "quiz" and find a worthwhile musical accompaniment to end the week...)

Other Tumblr microblogs of ours, running on the same customized theme: their names should give away the topic covered by each - Hiring & Firing and Corporate Compliance Report.

Stay tuned for more. And a shout out to @LanceGodard who does much of the editorial legwork for these blogs. We're looking for guest authors - please let Lance know if you'd like to write a guest post for one of our publications.

@AdrianLurssen

4 Strategies for Building Your LinkedIn Connections

Mon, 04 Jun 2012 10:14:13 -0800

[Note: the following post was written by attorney Michelle Sherman, author and editor of Social Media Law Applied. Read Michelle's full BIO below.]

In speaking to attorneys about how to use LinkedIn ("LI") professionally, some people question whether they should accept a request to connect from an attorney at a competing law firm, or from someone they do not already know. There is no right or wrong answer. However, it is worth putting the question in context with how we traditionally develop business.

For example, can you ever imagine a situation in which your firm has purchased a table for a Constitutional Rights Foundation dinner, and when you attend the dinner:

You arrive just as dinner is being served because you have no interest in meeting new people at the event, or handing out a single business card.
You discourage the firm from inviting any of your clients because you don't want people at the event to realize that you work together and with that knowledge try to steal them from you.
If someone does happen to engage you in a conversation, you ignore their requests to stay in touch or meet for coffee.

Hopefully, you appreciate how misguided this thinking is if you want to develop business and network professionally. It is also a terrible waste of a great opportunity.

The same can be said for attorneys who only want to accept LI connections from people they already know. The good news is that the majority of people who are taking advantage of social media appreciate that it is an incredible opportunity to meet people with whom they already have something in common.

Four Tips For Adding Meaningful Connections

Here are four ideas for building your LI connections:

1. Scan The List Of "People You May Know" That LI Generates For You

LinkedIn will generate a list of "People You May Know" that will appear on the upper right corner of your home page, and, from there, you can click to "see more." You can also access it directly by clicking "Contacts," then "Add Connection," and finally "People You May Know." This list is reportedly generated using key words in your profile including employment history, education and interests. LI generates a list of suggested connections that also reflects people with whom you share LI connections. LinkedIn has also made it easier to narrow and shorten the list of recommendations. To do so, you simply click on a college, law firm, or company "logo" that will appear on the page with your LI recommendations.

The list is not foolproof. However, it is pretty amazing how many people you will know and want to connect with on LI. This is a great starting point for building your connections after exhausting the list of people you know are on LI. It is also why you want to take the time to fill out your profile. You can read more here, if you want help in putting together your profile.

2. Mine Your Connections List

Your connections on LI may be connected with people that you know or would like to know better. Sometimes they are hidden, but usually, you can see who is connected with your LI connections. These people are referred to as "2nd" degree connections on LI. You can connect with them by: (1) sending them a personal request to connect, and perhaps mention some of the people you know in common; or (2) asking the person you know in common (your "1st" degree connection) for an introduction through LI.

3. Use The "Advanced" Search Feature On LI

LinkedIn has an "advanced" search feature which allows you to find people by using various search criteria such as all people who worked at a particular law firm and live in California. This "advanced" search feature includes a wide range of criteria so you can narrow your search to people who work in specific industries, belong to certain LI groups, are "2nd" degree connections from you, etc.

4. Connect With People You Meet In Person

A day or two after you attend a networking event or conference, take the business cards you received, and send those people a request to connect on LI. It can be as simple as "Dear [ ], I enjoyed meeting you at the CRF dinner, and hope we can be connected through LinkedIn." This message is sent through LI. You will add a connection, and also prompt most people to take a moment to look at your profile. It is a great way to start a professional relationship that you can develop further through the traditional methods of getting together for lunch or coffee sometime.

Engage With Your Connections.

These are only a few of the ways in which you can build your LI connections with quality people. As you continue to build your connections, remember to take advantage of your professional network on LI by posting updates. Some good uses of the status update feature are to publicize panels you are speaking on with a link to the program, or share a recent article by posting about it with a link. In addition, remember to be engaged with your LI connections by reacting to their status updates. If you are traveling for business, make a point of identifying any LI connections in the area, and try to meet them in person for lunch or coffee.

All the sage wisdom for networking and developing business applies to the connections you are making through LI and other social media. The opportunities are truly unlimited.

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Michelle Sherman is Of Counsel at Slater Hersey & Lieberman LLP, a litigation and social media consulting law firm where she practices with some of her former partners from Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP. Michelle has practiced business litigation for over 20 years, and took one year away from her large law firm practice to be a Los Angeles County Assistant Public Defender where she further sharpened her trial skills and won all her jury trials. Michelle also advises companies on all legal matters concerning their use of social media and the Internet, and also the issues with regard to their employees' use of social media. Michelle is the editor and contributing author to the legal blog Social Media Law Applied, and teaches Law of Mass Communication at USC Annenberg School for Communication & Journalism.

Michelle on: Twitter - LinkedIn - JD Supra

Rogers Towers in the Spotlight - One of Florida's Oldest Law Firms

Tue, 22 May 2012 14:12:55 -0800

[Here's the first entry in our new blog series welcoming law firms to JD Supra:]

In business for over 100 years, Rogers Towers is one of Florida's oldest law firms - with roots in Jacksonville and now offices in St. Augustine, Ponte Vedra Beach, Amelia Island, Naples and Fort Myers. The firm's reputation for excellence extends across Northeast Florida.

Rogers Towers offers a comprehensive range of legal services, with more than 80 attorneys across all offices practicing in construction; corporate; labor and employment; immigration; environment; government and regulatory; commercial litigation; real estate; eminent domain; elder law; family law; health; immigration; intellectual property; tax; estates and trusts. Some of clients have been with Rogers Towers for over 30 years. Clients include Fortune 500 companies, banking and financial institutions, small and growing businesses, local governments, developers, among others.

The firm can be found on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and now JD Supra. We welcome Rogers Towers to the site with a dip into the firm's publication archive:

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What Do Your Clients Expect of You? [Video]

Tue, 15 May 2012 10:19:21 -0800

...ask them! That's what law firm Sands Anderson did - and here, in two video takes, is what they learned:

...

Links to the two videos:

And for your convenience, a handful of quotes/takeaways from both videos:

"We count on our attorneys to support us and give us the right advice and the guidance to make the decisions we need to grow..."
"I feel comfortable calling my attorneys at different times to bounce ideas of them, ask questions, help them support me..."
"Incredible follow-up, incredible follow-through..."
"I love a firm that has focus behind their expertise and they continue to get better in that area..."
"[Our law firm] works with us to help our clients... our clients love you guys."
"We know many of you personally. We know that behind the professional firm there are people of good value who believe in taking care of others."

In short: Support. Guidance. Trust.

Sands Anderson PC is based in Virginia and North Carolina. If you haven't yet seen marketing director Russell Lawson's video explanation of how he motivates the firm's attorneys in their online efforts, you should watch it now.

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Social Media for Lawyers: You Should See...

Thu, 10 May 2012 12:16:58 -0800

[Link: Shauna Causey, Social Media Rockstar, Explains Using Personality to Connect to Clients]

Starting with the above video (part of LexBlog's excellent coverage of the recent Avvocating conference in Seattle) here's a roundup of recent posts on JD Supra offering insights to lawyers and law firms who want to make good use of social media in their online efforts.

For your interest:

Connecting Dots: Practical examples of how social media can work in the law-firm sales funnel (Steve M. Bell, Womble Carlyle):

"At Womble Carlyle, we have been considering how to transition one group of lawyers serving a slowing marketplace into a new and at-least-somewhat-related marketplace that might make good use of their skills and not require a complete re-tooling. Naturally, as we contemplated this strategic repositioning, we tapped the familiar sources of such business information. But because of the existence of social media, we were able to add an additional layer of understanding. It's amazing what one can learn about a new industry or legal sector..." Read Steve's entire piece>>

[Also from Steve: Web 1.0 is decadent and depraved and Fear and Loathing on Web 2.0]

How Law Firms #fail at Social Med (Steve Matthews):

"Before we can talk about law firms' social media failures, we weed to know what exactly we mean by "success." Experience has taught us a few things about successful participation online for both law firms and their lawyers. Success follows law firms that constantly consider and plan their substantive message and focus on bringing that message to an audience where it can resonate..." Read Steve's entire piece>>

Social Media for Attorneys: Tips for Getting the Most Out of LinkedIn (Stephen Fairley, The Rainmaker Institute)

"LinkedIn Signal - build new connections by seeing who is talking about news in your practice area by switching the search bar on your LinkedIn page to "Updates". Narrow your search by region, company, etc. by checking off the boxes on the left..." See all of Stephen's post>>

[Also by Stephen: Law Firm Marketing: Why Attorneys Should Care About Google+]

Aside: the remainder of articles in this post were in fact not written by people named Steve or Stephen. Should that, you know, make any significant difference to your further reading pleasure:

5 Things Attorneys Need to Know About Social Media (by April Besl at Dinsmore & Shohl):

"Social media isn't something that can be pigeonholed into one segment or area of yours or your client's business. Instead, it impacts every facet of the business, from human resources and marketing/advertising to research & development, and routine operating decisions. Even if you or your clients are only using social media for occasional free advertising, the employees of your organizations are using social media daily, bringing with that new issues in labor, intellectual property, corporate and other areas of the law that must be addressed..." Read April's entire post>>

Bloggers: Want Some Tips on Engaging Your Readers? (Cordell Parvin):

"You can write 100 briefs without using the pronouns 'me' or 'I' and that's fine. But a blog is an opportunity to connect with the reader on a more personal level. You do that by sharing your own experiences, being conversational, and (assuming you have one and it's not detestable) letting your personality show..." Read Cordell's entire piece>>

Are Social Media Worth Your Time? (Adrian Dayton):

"More than half of firms surveyed received leads on new matters and 41 percent reported that social media and blogging brought in between $5,000 and $200,000 in new business. So what was different about the firms that reported success and the ones that did not?" Read Adrian's entire piece>>

[Video] Attorney Ethics in the Realm of Social Media: Josh King, VP of Business Development & General Counsel at Avvo (LXBN):

Another video from LexBlog's Avvocating coverage: "So often when we talk about legal marketing ethics and social media, we start with the risks, the pitfalls. It was refreshing then when Josh King, General Counsel at Avvo, remindinded those in attendance at the opening session of Day 2 at Avvocating 2012 that attorneys have every right to use social media to enhance their practices. Though some states have somewhat ridiculous regulations on attorney advertising, it is actually very hard to restrict speech so long as it isn't 'commercial language'..." Watch the entire interview>>

Finally, also see: Developing Your Social Media Strategy, slides from a panel at the West LegalEdCenter Social and Digital Media conference in New York in 2011 (incl. yours truly, Jayne Navarre, Brian Wassom, and John Hellerman).

In June I will be speaking at the next Hildebrandt Institute and West LegalEdcenter program in San Francisco: Social and Digital Media for Law Firms 2012.

It is a single-day event, "focusing on the emerging strategies, tactics and case studies in the successful use of social media by law firms." Register at the link above, and be sure to use the code SML12 to receive 20% off of your registration fee. Join us!

@adrianlurssen

Dewey & LeBoeuf: Demise of a Law Firm

Thu, 10 May 2012 10:58:51 -0800

[Update: after we originally published this post, Bloomberg uploaded its latest video interview on the story - this one with former Dewey partner, Stuart Saft, the first partner to speak on camera:]

[Link: Dewey Ex-Partner: Headhunters and Media Tanked the Firm]

Earlier this week in its coverage of the unfolding Dewey & LeBoeuf story, Above the Law referenced an interesting 2009 article by business lawyer Edwin Reeser titled The Big Law Firm Demise - It Happens Like This.

As ATL pointed out: "Reeser identified nine signs that a firm is in trouble. Going into 2012 (if not well before the start of the year), Dewey exhibited all or almost all nine of them..."

It's a thoughtful piece by Reeser, well worth a read in its entirety, with or without the Dewey story as backdrop. An excerpt:

"There is little transparency related to decision-making and strategic objectives. Decisions that were previously the subject of wide discussion become increasingly reserved for a smaller coterie of decision-makers without notice or even disclosure to the partnership at large. Essentially, the nature and role of the equity partner becomes more like an employee at will and less like a shareholder..."

For your interest, starting with these two Bloomberg Law video interviews, here's a look at how others have analyzed the Dewey & LeBoeuf story over the past few weeks:

[Link: Businessweek Reporter: 6 More Dewey & LeBoeuf's on Horizon]

[ Link: Are Dewey's Difficulties A New Law Firm Trend? with ATL editor-in-chief David Lat]

From attorney, law firm management consultant, and certified title punster Jerome Kowalski:

Excerpted from the last link above:

"One of the odd things is that many at the top of Dewey's dysfunctional food chain - extremely bright, accomplished and talented lawyers - could have avoided much of the pain that lies ahead of them by simply characterizing their relationship with the law firm as something other than 'partners.' The irony is that many of these folks were not partners. They did not share in profits or losses. They had fixed multi-year contracts under which their income was guaranteed, regardless of the fortunes of the law firm. These agreements were the products of avarice, greed and shortsightedness, which could have and should have been avoided."

Of additional interest is this earlier piece by communications pro John Hellerman, written with Howrey in mind, but certainly the points are relevant today: 5 Marketing Lessons from Howrey's Graveside.

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We'll post further commentary as it comes in.

What's your take on the story? Leave a comment...

How Do You Make Something Involving a Lawyer Go Viral on the Internet? [Video]

Fri, 20 Apr 2012 14:23:51 -0800

Good question. Bloomberg Law has an answer and here it is.

[Terms of Use: By clicking play above, you hereby waive any right, title, or interest to the 1:58 seconds of your life that this video will expend and agree to hold JD Supra harmless from any an all action to recover such time in recognition that the company would provide such recompense were it in a position to do so. Woof!]

[Video link: Lawyer Dog Goes Viral - Bloomberg Law]