Practice Pointers
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Money, Practice Pointers, Real Estate, Small Law Firms
The Practice: How Much Money Can You Make at a Small Law Firm?
Brian Tannebaum knows when you call him, when you come to his office to discuss the “possibility of leaving,” that it’s the only thing on your mind. Sure, you want your name on the door, more freedom, more client contact. But you just have one real question. One real fear. One real concern. One thing you need to convince your better half of before you make “the jump.” Can I make the same Biglaw money at a small firm? Here’s the answer.... -
In-House Counsel, Practice Pointers
Moonlighting: Why You Should Be a Big Softie at Work
Everyone talks about how soft skills are important for success. Soft skills, also referred to as people skills, EQ, et cetera, are key to influence, persuasion, karaoke smack-talk, and many other aspects of being a savvy lawyer and advocate. They’re essential for both in-house and law firm attorneys. But what are soft skills exactly? We […] - Sponsored
Navigating Financial Success by Avoiding Common Pitfalls and Maximizing Firm Performance
In this CLE-eligible webinar, we’ll explore the most common accounting pitfalls and how to avoid them for your firm. -
Contracts, In-House Counsel, Practice Pointers
House Rules: Risk / Reward
I’m writing this wearing my new bifocals. They take some getting used to after years of regular glasses and contacts. But, after watching me examine small print like I was Mr. Magoo, my wife convinced me that it was time to take a symbolic plunge toward middle age. I admit to no small amount of […]
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Practice Pointers, Small Law Firms
The Practice: Who’s the Idiot That Invented Three Name Referrals?
Brian Tannebaum want to know when lawyers will stop using opportunities to give referrals as a panicked strategy of covering their asses. You know what he's talking about -- the “three names” idiocy? He knows, you were taught this. You never give one name. Why? Because what if it doesn’t work out? Then you’re going to have some sort of imagined problem that someone told you could be very, very bad.... -
Practice Pointers, Small Law Firms
The Practice: Goal Setting – Non-Billable Hour Edition
If you’re a lawyer, and some of you that read this are, you know it’s time to start trying to convince yourself that you’re going to do wonderful things “next year.” Advice is readily available on the internet about the proper way to set goals, but as usual, Brian Tannebaum is here to help you ignore all of that. Here is his surefire way to have a great 2012 as a lawyer.... -
Contracts, In-House Counsel, Practice Pointers
House Rules: Termination Clauses, Remedies, and Other Things to Argue About Before Christmas
Admittedly, I take on some large issues in this column. But this is neither a treatise on contract law, nor the forum to attempt one. I am simply attempting to give some pointers for negotiating commercial contracts. I do very much appreciate the emails that I receive that suggest where I missed some salient information, […] -
In-House Counsel, Practice Pointers
Moonlighting: Just Another Day on Mount Olympus at the Office
An in-house lawyer (let’s call her Athena) was recently offended by a statement made by a law firm attorney (let’s call him Hercules). Athena shared a conversation in which Hercules had told her that his firm would never stoop so low as to represent any companies in her industry (let’s say it’s the tobacco industry). […] -
In-House Counsel, Insurance, Practice Pointers
House Rules: Insurance, LoL, and Indemnity, Redux
I wrote about these contractual issues the week before Thanksgiving. I received so many emails that I thought it best to flesh these topics out a bit more. Also, some of these headings are from the anonymous “comments” section on this site, so I can’t attribute them (and I’ve also edited them for language). 1) […] - Sponsored
Early Adopters Of Legal AI Gaining Competitive Edge In Marketplace
How to best leverage generative AI as an early adopter with ethical use. -
Biglaw, In-House Counsel, Partner Issues, Practice Pointers
Inside Straight: The Mutual Menace Of One Bad Partner
Suppose your firm has one incompetent partner, and our joint has the misfortune to be working with that person. This guy consistently misses important issues. He sends us briefs that read (as did one draft I recently received): “In response to ALR’s motion to dismiss the OC, [plaintiff] added an allegation in the FAC that […] -
Banking Law, Contracts, Health Care / Medicine, In-House Counsel, Practice Pointers, Privacy
House Rules: HIPAA and GLBA and Indemnity, Oh My!
Caveat: I did not write the following dialogue. It is from the “comments” section of one of my columns where I mentioned I’d be writing about HIPAA and GLBA. Unfortunately, I cannot attribute the comments to the persons who wrote them, as they are anonymous; however they are quite apropos of today’s subject: 1) “I […] -
Billable Hours, In-House Counsel, Practice Pointers
Moonlighting: Low-Value Work (or, How to Catch Up on Glee)
Are your in-house working hours recently rivaling the billable hours you thought you had permanently discarded? Is your workload getting way too heavy — i.e., it’s really getting difficult to watch Glee on a timely basis? Do you find yourself working on pretty much the same form of contract over and over and over and […] -
In-House Counsel, Insurance, Practice Pointers
House Rules: Insurance, LoL, Indemnity, and Other Dirty Words
So, the Customer wants you to take on unlimited liability for breach of confidentiality, indemnify (and hold harmless) for any and all bad acts of your employees, and to carry a multi-million dollar insurance policy. What do you do? First, begin by triaging these from simplest to more complicated. During a negotiation it can be […] -
Biglaw, Job Searches, Practice Pointers, Small Law Firms, Solo Practitioners
The Practice: Leaving Biglaw to Become a Relevant Real-World Lawyer
Brian Tannebaum has learned a lot in his first week here while reading comments from the anonymous miserable Biglaw associates. He learned the term “s**t law.” He has some advice for those that want to practice law, and not feed the billable hour factory that is Biglaw....
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Legal AI: 3 Steps Law Firms Should Take Now
If 2023 introduced legal professionals to generative AI, then 2024 will be when law firms start adapting to utilize it. Things are moving fast, so…
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The Business Case For AI At Your Law Firm
ChatGPT ushers in the age of generative AI – even for law firms.
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Is The Future Of Law Distributed? Lessons From The Tech Adoption Curve
The rise of remote work has dramatically reshaped the relationship between Lawyers and Law Firms, see how Scale LLP has taken the steps to get…
Sponsored
Sponsored
Early Adopters Of Legal AI Gaining Competitive Edge In Marketplace
How to best leverage generative AI as an early adopter with ethical use.
Sponsored
Navigating Financial Success by Avoiding Common Pitfalls and Maximizing Firm Performance
In this CLE-eligible webinar, we’ll explore the most common accounting pitfalls and how to avoid them for your firm.
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Contracts, In-House Counsel, Practice Pointers
Moonlighting: Feeling the Kumbaya (Part II)
In Feeling the Kumbaya (Part I), we looked at how different the perspectives of business clients and in-house lawyers can be. Below are a few techniques that have helped me and my clients to feel the Kumbaya for each other (or at least have helped them to not think I’m only a total loser who […] -
In-House Counsel, Practice Pointers
Moonlighting: Feeling the Kumbaya (Part 1)
So you’ve moved in-house or are planning to go in-house sometime. Be ready to think less like a lawyer. Business clients think differently. I know, crazy, right? But, seriously, one of the biggest transitions from working as a transactional lawyer at a law firm and moving over to a company is learning to understand the […] -
Biglaw, Gandolfo "Vince" DiBlasi, H. Rodgin Cohen, Hot Document, Interview Stories, Job Searches, Practice Pointers
An Inside Look at Sullivan & Cromwell's Recruiting Process
Be careful about what you place in the trash. Law firms have paper shredders for a reason; use them. Consider this your practice pointer for the day. Earlier this month, an ATL reader sent us a collection of documents relating to Sullivan & Cromwell's on-campus interviewing program. So, what was in these documents? The contents will be of interest to partners and associates at other firms, as well as law students going through the OCI process right now.... -
Airplanes / Aviation, Biglaw, Job Searches, Law Schools, Practice Pointers, Rudeness, UVA Law
Students Making Fun of Biglaw Interviewer Overheard By MOST OF THE AIRPORT
Every couple of years, people need to be reminded not to have private conversations in public. Who could forget Acela Bob, the Pillsbury partner who talked about firing people on a crowded train? UVA Law students, that's who. We have another installment of: when popping your collar goes wrong.... -
Admin, Announcements, Practice Pointers, Rudeness, Shameless Plugs, Small Law Firms
Small Firms, Big Lawyers: A Civil Practice
In his final Small Firms, Big Lawyers post, columnist Jay Shepherd reminders readers that clients don't like to see their lawyers palling around with the other side's lawyers. They hate the other side; they want you to hate the other side's lawyers. Here are a couple of reasons why you should be civil with opposing counsel.... -
In-House Counsel, Litigators, Money, Practice Pointers
Inside Straight: Projecting Defeat
During my 25 years litigating at law firms, I fretted about two words: “winning” and “losing.” (As one old-timer put it: “They don’t pay you twelve dollars a minute to lose.”) Now I’m in-house, and I’m still fretting about two words: “probable” and “estimable.” What happened? The accounting rules require corporations to take a reserve […] -
Biglaw, Depositions, In-House Counsel, Litigators, Practice Pointers
Inside Straight: Reporting On Depositions
When is a litigator thinking most keenly about a specific witness's testimony? There are two days: The day you're taking (or defending) the deposition of the witness, and the day -- months or years later, if ever -- when you're examining the witness at trial. So when should you be making notes about the witness's testimony and your reaction to it? What do you use those notes for?