Jay Shepherd
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Biglaw, Billable Hours, Money, Shameless Plugs, Small Law Firms
Small Firms, Big Lawyers: How Do You Set Your Billing Rates?
Ed. note: This is the latest installment of Small Firms, Big Lawyers, one of Above the Law’s new columns for small-firm lawyers. Ever since I stopped billing by the hour in 2006, lawyers are constantly asking me, “How do you set your prices?” It’s a topic I’ve lectured on and written about frequently, and my […] -
American Bar Association / ABA, Conferences / Symposia, Small Law Firms, Social Networking Websites, Technology, Twittering
Small Firms, Big Lawyers: Twitter and Business Cards at the ABA TechShow
Ed. note: This is the latest installment of Small Firms, Big Lawyers, one of Above the Law’s new columns for small-firm lawyers. When 1,500 lawyers gathered at this week’s ABA TechShow in Chicago, an interesting thing happened: The business card died. When these lawyers weren’t listening to the dozens of cutting-edge seminars or browsing the […] - Sponsored
Profit Powerhouse: Elevating Law Firm Financial Performance
In this CLE-eligible webinar on April 10th, we’ll explore the most common accounting pitfalls and how to avoid them for your firm. -
American Bar Association / ABA, Small Law Firms, Social Networking Websites
Small Firms, Big Lawyers: Shutting Lawyers Up, and the Power of Constraints
Ed. note: This is the latest installment of Small Firms, Big Lawyers, one of Above the Law’s new columns for small-firm lawyers. I’m reporting to you live from Chicago at the 25th Annual ABA TechShow, where an amazing group of passionate lawyers from around the country have gathered to talk and teach about the future […]
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Billable Hours, Eliot Spitzer, Law Revue, Law Revue Video Contest, Non-Sequiturs, State Judges, State Judges Are Clowns, Technology, Videos
Non-Sequiturs: 04.11.11
* New Egyptian democracy is already putting critics in jail. Dammit Middle East, this is why we can’t have nice things. [Gawker] * We must make sure this technology never gets into the hands of clients. [LawyerClock] * So it appears that South Dakota actually does have one badass living and working there — but […] -
Small Law Firms, Weirdness
Small Firms, Big Lawyers: The Perfect Font ... To Show You Don’t Care
Ed. note: This is the latest installment of Small Firms, Big Lawyers, one of Above the Law’s new columns for small-firm lawyers. If you want to send a message that you really don’t care what your document looks like, or that you never really gave it any thought, then this is the font for you. […] -
Media and Journalism, Practice Pointers, Small Law Firms
Small Firms, Big Lawyers: Six Steps to Becoming an Expert
Ed. note: This is the latest installment of Small Firms, Big Lawyers, one of Above the Law’s new columns for small-firm lawyers. So you’re at a small firm and you want to be successful. Good. Why you wouldn’t want that is beyond me. But if you want to be a successful lawyer, you need to […] -
McDonald's, Shameless Plugs, Small Law Firms
Small Firms, Big Lawyers: Is Your Firm Like Disney World?
Ed. note: This is the latest installment of Small Firms, Big Lawyers, one of Above the Law’s new columns for small-firm lawyers. No, not in the way you think. I’m not talking about E-tickets and giant bow-tied mice and screaming, overtired kids being dragged around by the half-crazed parents determined to get their money’s worth. […] -
Small Law Firms
Small Firms, Big Lawyers: Beware the Uberclient
Ed. note: This is the latest installment of Small Firms, Big Lawyers, one of Above the Law’s new columns for small-firm lawyers. As with love affairs, all lawyer-client relationships must eventually end. If you’re lucky, they won’t end until retirement or death (not the untimely kind; that would be unlucky). More often though, they will […] - Sponsored
Early Adopters Of Legal AI Gaining Competitive Edge In Marketplace
How to best leverage generative AI as an early adopter with ethical use. -
Books, Small Law Firms, Videos
Small Firms, Big Lawyers: Why Are You a Small-Firm Lawyer?
Ed. note: This is the latest installment of Small Firms, Big Lawyers, one of Above the Law’s new columns for small-firm lawyers. Seriously. Why? I don’t mean in a “because I couldn’t get a BigLaw job” way. I mean, “Why are you practicing law in a small firm?” And if you’re looking for work in […] -
Interview Stories, Job Searches, Law Schools, Shameless Plugs, Small Law Firms
Small Firms, Big Lawyers: Enclosed Please Find … No Reason to Hire Me
Ed. note: This is the latest installment of Small Firms, Big Lawyers, one of Above the Law’s new columns for small-firm lawyers. As the owner of a small law firm, I’m always surprised at how many blind résumés I receive in the mail. First of all, who even uses mail anymore? Does anyone seriously think […] -
Money, Small Law Firms
Small Firms, Big Lawyers: Green Beans and Credit Cards
Ed. note: This is the latest installment of Small Firms, Big Lawyers, one of Above the Law’s new columns for small-firm lawyers. There’s this great little Chilean sandwich shop near my office in Boston. Now I don’t know the first thing about Chilean cuisine, but it says “Chilean” on the sign, so that’s good enough […] -
Non-Sequiturs
Non-Sequiturs: 03.14.11
* “How can I keep other people from stealing my idea?” If you’re hoping to do so through copyright law, good luck. [Law of Fashion] * Howrey CEO Robert Ruyak blamed alternative fee arrangements for contributing to Howrey’s downfall, but Jay Shepherd isn’t buying it. [The Client Revolution] * Speaking of Howrey, former partners have […] -
Blogging, Facebook, Small Law Firms, Social Networking Websites, Twittering
Small Firms, Big Lawyers: 7 Reasons to Avoid Social Media
Ed. note: This is the latest installment of Small Firms, Big Lawyers, one of Above the Law’s new columns for small-firm lawyers. Most small law firms are staying away from social media when it comes to marketing, according to a new report from Chicago-based Total Attorneys. The report, which you can see here (a short […]
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Profit Powerhouse: Elevating Law Firm Financial Performance
In this CLE-eligible webinar on April 10th, we’ll explore the most common accounting pitfalls and how to avoid them for your firm.
Sponsored
Early Adopters Of Legal AI Gaining Competitive Edge In Marketplace
How to best leverage generative AI as an early adopter with ethical use.
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1st Circuit, Biglaw, Labor / Employment, Legal Research, Litigators, Small Law Firms
Small Firms, Big Lawyers: It's Not About the Law
Ed. note: This is the latest installment of Small Firms, Big Lawyers, one of Above the Law’s new columns for small-firm lawyers. Let me tell you about a couple of cases I lost. Now, wait: before the Commentariat sharpens its knives (“This guy couldn’t get a big-firm job, then loses all his cases. No wonder […] -
Biglaw, Small Law Firms
Small Firms, Big Lawyers: T-Bone, Esq.
Ed. note: This is the latest installment of Small Firms, Big Lawyers, one of Above the Law’s new columns for small-firm lawyers. Let’s get one thing straight here. It’s a universal law: You can’t give yourself a nickname. Only someone else can give you a nickname, and it has to happen pretty much organically. There’s […] -
Litigators, Rudeness, Small Law Firms
Small Firms, Big Lawyers: Don't Be an Extension Douche
Ed. note: This is the latest installment of Small Firms, Big Lawyers, one of Above the Law’s new columns for small-firm lawyers. About ten years ago, my former law partner and I were involved in a noncompete case against the fourteenth-largest firm in the country. (It’s since slipped about forty spots. As you’ll see, payback’s […] -
Interview Stories, Job Searches, Shameless Plugs, Small Law Firms
Small Firms, Big Lawyers: The Secret to Finding a Small-Firm Job
Ed. note: This is the latest installment of Small Firms, Big Lawyers, one of Above the Law’s new columns for small-firm lawyers. It’s been many years, but I still remember the steps I took to land a job at a small law firm. Even though some of the methods have changed with technology, law students […] -
Job Searches, Shameless Plugs, Small Law Firms, Solo Practitioners
Small Firms, Big Lawyers: The Key Question for Shingle-Hangers
Ed. note: This is the latest installment of Small Firms, Big Lawyers, one of Above the Law’s new columns for small-firm lawyers. Many Above the Law readers are currently facing dismal job prospects as the law-firm economy continues to trail the national economy. Some are law students contemplating graduation without an offer in hand. Others […] -
Biglaw, Small Law Firms, Tax Law
Small Firms, Big Lawyers: Disclaimer — This Post Contains No Tax Advice
Ed. note: This is the latest installment of Small Firms, Big Lawyers, one of Above the Law’s new columns for small-firm lawyers. Nor does it create an attorney-client relationship between you and Above the Law. It may also constitute attorney advertising, depending on the state you’re in (such as boredom or apathy). Please consult the […] -
Biglaw, Billable Hours, Money, Small Law Firms
Small Firms, Big Lawyers: Have You Gotten Stupider?
Ed. note: This is the latest installment of Small Firms, Big Lawyers, one of Above the Law’s new columns for small-firm lawyers. I live near Wellesley, Massachusetts, a Boston suburb usually described with words like “leafy” and “tony.” (I get “leafy,” but I’ve never really figured out “tony.”) Think soccer moms in yoga pants and […]