Take care of time, and it will take care of you
Abraham Lincoln is often referred to as having said that time and advice are a lawyer’s stock in trade. The client receives advice; the lawyer expends time to provide it. But there are two types of “law time”: the hours necessary to de-velop and provide legal advice, and those necessary to run the practice. Managing […]
Voice recognition software: Removing pen from paper
I never took typing in high school. Since it was an elective, it was offered at 2 p.m., and in my senior year we could leave early if we were done with the required classes. So, it was an easy choice: typing, or General Hospital? Those were the Luke and Laura years, after all. In […]
Google fills in the apps, helps with searches
A couple of columns ago, I wrote about a pair of Google applications of special relevance to legal marketing — Google Alerts and Google Analytics. That’s just scratching the surface of Google’s possibilities for lawyers. This week, I’ll look at a pair of Google tools for self-organization: Google Apps and Google Desktop. Google Apps James […]
The chilling case of the Christmas ham
A December evening in the big city. A light snow was falling, and it was already dark. ome-where outside, a lonely saxophone played “Silent Night.” The notes drifted through the cold air like fast food wrappers blown out of the garbage cans. I was working late, trying to get enough billable hours in to take […]
Handling metered postage without the meter
One of my duties as a clerk during law school was schlepping the postage meter a few blocks to the post office in downtown Milwaukee. It was heavy, and there were always lines once I reached my destination. Postage meters and queues aren’t a part of the lives of attorney Sarah L. Ruffi or her […]
Take steps to prevent fraud in your law practice
One of the last places you’d expect to find fraud is in a law practice. Like accounting, the practice of law is a profession in which ethics are of utmost importance. Accountants and lawyers are often too trusting of their fellow professionals, and therefore leave themselves open to the risks of fraud. The issue of […]
Collaborative divorce gains momentum in Wisconsin
The year was 1999. We were all worrying about Y2K, eating low-carbohydrate diets and asking, “Is that your final answer?” Those are all distant memories now. But one event dating back to the end of the 20th century has gone in the other direction, gaining tremendous momentum: collaborative family law. Way back when, at my […]
Google can alert you to postings about your firm, clients, blog
Since cold and flu season is upon us, I thought it appropriate to take up viral marketing. Like a sneeze in your face, viral marketing all but forces you to pass on a message. So says Milwaukee lawyer Jon P. Groth, of Kyle, Pitman & Sicula S.C., who gave an entire presentation on the topic […]
ADAAA broadens scope of covered employees
The Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act (ADAAA), signed Sept. 25, 2008, significantly broadens the scope of employees who may be covered under the ADA. The act takes effect Jan. 1, 2009. At present, the ADA defines the term “disability” as, “a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more of the major […]
Are you a business collaborator with clients?
In a recent coaching session, an attorney spoke to me about his frustration when he and several colleagues paid a visit to a prospective client. The lawyers were prepared to make a full presentation about the services that the two individuals representing the prospect company had said they were interested in. However, the lawyer recounted, […]
New Supreme Court petition for review rules set to take effect
On Jan. 1, 2009, more detailed rules will guide appellate practitioners in filing and opposing petitions for review by the Wisconsin Supreme Court. While the amendments to Wis. Stat. sec. 809.62 do not modify the review criteria or the petition deadlines, they more fully describe when a decision is adverse, and thus when a petition […]
Are you engaged in ‘civil’ practice?
In recent years, many state and local bar associations have adopted voluntary professionalism goals and standards that attempt to discourage “unprofessional conduct” and encourage “civility” for lawyers engaged in litigation. Typically, these codes are not mandatory, and non-compliance carries no sanctions. In Canada, where civility is highly valued, the Canadian Bar Associ[...]
Legal News
- With GOP convention over, Milwaukee weighs the benefits of hosting political rivals
- Secret Service head resigns as Congress formally investigates
- Milwaukee Police Department issues statement regarding video release policy
- GOP convention sets the stage for the Democratic convention in Chicago, activists and police say
- Survey: Harris has enough delegates to be nominee
- Outside the RNC, small Milwaukee businesses and their regulars tried to salvage a sluggish week
- Biden called to resign immediately after the president announces he won’t seek reelection
- Biden drops out of 2024 presidential race, endorses Harris
- Local PA cops allegedly thought Trump’s would-be assassin was Secret Service
- Biden-Lead Secret Service admits agency denied past requests by Trump’s campaign for tighter security
- Class action filed against Walgreens
- Former Waukesha County Sheriff’s Office lieutenant pleads guilty to smuggling contraband
Case Digests
- Ineffective Assistance of Counsel; Double Jeopardy; Sentencing
- Ineffective Assistance of Counsel; Sexual Assault-Prosecutorial Misconduct
- Contract-Negligence
- Criminal Law; Juvenile Law; Discovery
- Family Law; Child Support; Property Division First paragraph(s)
- Ineffective Assistance of Counsel- Exclusion of Evidence of Witness Bias
- Postconviction Relief-Sentencing-Ineffective Assistance of Counsel
- 14th Amendment – Due Process
- Criminal-Sentencing Guidelines – Enhancement
- Bankruptcy-Tax
- Civil Rights – 14th Amendment-Jury Instructions
- Contract; Foreclosure and Property