David Mowry
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In-House Counsel, Screw-Ups
House Rules: Taking It On the Chin
The fault for any shortcomings in the presentation were my own. I made almost every rookie mistake in the book.But, I took it on the chin. And so it should be with your in-house practice... -
Headhunters / Recruiters, In-House Counsel, Job Searches
House Rules: The Devil You Don’t Know…
David Mowry recently received a cold call from a recruiter. Seemed like a great opportunity on its face. But, as one of his mentors has sagely stated, the devil you don’t know can be much worse than the devil you do know.... - Sponsored
Early Adopters Of Legal AI Gaining Competitive Edge In Marketplace
How to best leverage generative AI as an early adopter with ethical use. -
In-House Counsel, Interview Stories
House Rules: You’re in the House -- Now, Stay There…
After that initial shock of getting an interview wears off, get to the getting. Not only do you want this job, the person on the other end of the phone wants to hire you. Nobody enjoys seeing candidate after candidate -- time is money, and unlike law firms where interviews can entail lavish lunches or dinners, in-house interviews are vastly different....
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In-House Counsel, Job Searches
House Rules: Use Your Resume and Cover Letter to Get Inside
This is the second part of a series on getting yourself in the door to an in-house position. Even though you might not have that much “sexy” work to list on your updated resume, it may not be a problem... -
In-House Counsel, Job Searches
House Rules: Getting Inside (Part I)
Once you’ve decided — either on your own, or with the help of your law firm review — to make the move in-house, what do you do next? The first thing to decide upon is a method to your madness. Disclaimer: If you’ve been engaged in a search for some time, or you are happily […] -
Clerkships, Federal Judges, In-House Counsel, Job Searches, Litigators
House Rules: In Defense of Clerkships in Flyover Land
Last week there appeared a column on this site that denigrated clerkships in the middle of the country. I could not decide if the author was attempting satire, but it seemed to be a straight piece. I would like to offer a counterpoint. I began my career at Biglaw in New York City. The firm […] -
In-House Counsel, Labor / Employment, Layoffs
House Rules: RIF Is a Four-Letter Acronym
When I was a kid, before many of you were born, there were ads during Saturday morning cartoons for a program called “RIF” -– an acronym for “Reading is Fundamental.” Started in 1966 in Washington, D.C., it is supposedly one of the oldest non-profit educational programs in existence. I mentioned RIFs in my last column, […] -
In-House Counsel
House Rules: State of the Union
February 1, 2012 is a singularly important day to Rush geeks (like me). 2112, get it? I’ve been drumming for over 30 years, and was brought up on trying to play along with Mr. Peart. While I succeeded somewhat in gaining enough chops to play Moving Pictures, Side 1 (back when they had albums, which […] - Sponsored
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… -
In-House Counsel, Technology
House Rules: They Don’t Realize What They Have
This column will be published the day our year-end numbers are made public. Word on the street (and the Street) is that we should beat expectations. If true, that would be a very good thing. This isn’t inside information; it’s been opined and published in several national media outlets, and in any event, I am […] -
In-House Counsel
House Rules: Responding to Guesty
I very much appreciate reader feedback on my columns, whether received via email or in the comments. Here’s one of the better critiques from the comments section last week, from “Guesty”: “David — you need to decide what you’re trying to accomplish with this column rather than just describing negotiating a form contract with a […] -
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 […] -
In-House Counsel
House Rules: Positioning Yourself As a Value Add
2012. How many times will some DJ play “(It’s the) End of the World” by R.E.M over the course of the next year? I’d wager about as many times as I was told ad nauseam (pun intended) that a proper Christmas gift is a Lexus (read: upscale Toyota) over the course of the Christmas break. […] -
Holidays and Seasons, In-House Counsel, Litigators, Travel / Vacation
House Rules: Year-End Press
In-house columnist David Mowry mentioned in a past column that the year-end press can lead to some very interesting requests: field reps asking for things that they (should) know to be questionable ethically, absurd customer demands (funny thing how the customers know it’s year-end and try to use that leverage), and the like. It is times such as these, when the pressure is on to assist the Field achieve their targets, that in-house attorneys must be most vigilant in their duty to the corporation....
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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
The Business Case For AI At Your Law Firm
ChatGPT ushers in the age of generative AI – even for law firms.
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
Sponsored
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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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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Crime, Holidays and Seasons, In-House Counsel, Politics, Violence
House Rules: Holidays, Half Empty - Half Full
Disclaimer: I know this is usually an in-house column with tips and tidbits about being a corporate attorney, but there have already been numerous columns about how to network (or not) through the holidays, how to prepare for the next billable year, and how to act at a party. I’m using today’s column to very […] -
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, 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) […] -
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 […] -
Deaths, In-House Counsel
House Rules: Requiem
A close friend’s father passed away. He was 71, a retired school teacher and a great man. A man dying at 71 used to seem far off in my comprehension of time, but as I get older, it’s really not. I learned of his death the day after ATL had posted a story about a […] -
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 […] -
Conferences / Symposia, General Counsel, In-House Counsel, Travel / Vacation
House Rules: The Mile-High Club
I recently spent a week in Denver over two days (“ba dum bum”). The day I arrived, the temperature hit a record high of 80 degrees, and it snowed several inches the next evening. I was supposed to be attending (and enjoying) the Association of Corporate Counsel’s Annual Meeting, but instead, I was frantically trying […]