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Features

e-Commerce Attorney-Client Privileged Records Have a Right to Die Too Image

e-Commerce Attorney-Client Privileged Records Have a Right to Die Too

Jonathan Bick

e-Commerce records may have less legal protection from disclosure than traditional commerce records ' a situation that might cause some concern for e-commerce company principals, their counsel and customers ' even after the companies, and the law firms representing them, no longer exist.

Features

<b>Corner Office: </b>Growth: An Imperative For Survival Image

<b>Corner Office: </b>Growth: An Imperative For Survival

Melchior S. Morrione

Do your current clients provide a steady stream of work that keeps all your lawyers busy? Are new clients constantly knocking at your door with new work based solely upon your firm's reputation? If that's your situation, stop here and read no further. You are in law firm nirvana.<br>Unfortunately, the other 99% of you managing partners are not so lucky.

Features

More from the Best of MLF 2006 Image

More from the Best of MLF 2006

Elizabeth Anne 'Betiayn' Tursi

In last month's issue, we covered the best of MLF from February to and including June 2006. In this issue, we will take a look back at July through November.

Features

Averting Data Security Threats From Portable Electronics Image

Averting Data Security Threats From Portable Electronics

Michael W. Droke & Rachel E. Byrne

The proliferation of flash drives, iPods, camera cell phones, Black-berries, and similar electronic devices has put all companies at added risk for insider theft. With the use of these devices, downloading significant amounts of data is easy, virtually instantaneous, and often very difficult to detect. These risks apply to essentially all companies that allow employees access to electronically stored, confidential, and proprietary information.<br>So what is today's company supposed to do to protect its valuable, sensitive information in the face of the risks posed by new portable devices?

Features

Just-in-Time Benchmarking Image

Just-in-Time Benchmarking

Allison Guidette & Pete Peterson

Benchmarking has long been a difficult undertaking for private service providers and for law firms in particular. While firm partners historically have tracked firm-wide metrics such as billings, profits per partner and individual productivity, firms have until recently not had the means or opportunity to benchmark performance at the practice group, office location and timekeeper level with any accuracy or currentness.<br>This article, as the title implies, discusses how refined performance measures are made possible by a new benchmarking tool, West Peer Monitor' from Thomson West

Features

<b>Sales & Service Strategies:</b> Nine Ways to Provide Superior Client Service Image

<b>Sales & Service Strategies:</b> Nine Ways to Provide Superior Client Service

Adam L. Stock

Improving client service is especially important, as general counsels of large companies have revealed to BTI Consulting that more than two-thirds would not recommend their primary law firm, 50% plan to try a new law firm for a substantive matter this year and they plan to cut nearly 40% of their outside firms by 2008. With decreasing client loyalty, firms need to spend more time improving client service as well as building barriers to entries to other outside law firms.

Features

<b><i>From the Second Annual MLF 50:</b></i> Two Standout Firms Focus on Client-Centric Marketing Image

<b><i>From the Second Annual MLF 50:</b></i> Two Standout Firms Focus on Client-Centric Marketing

Elizabeth Anne 'Betiayn' Tursi

Two firms from the MLF 50 are standouts in the area of client-centric marketing activities and for different reasons. <br>The first, Winston &amp; Strawn, led by Director of Business Development and Marketing Partner Barbara C. Sessions, embarked on an overall visibility campaign with an overarching theme on client-focused service and they did this via their Web site.<br>No less outstanding in harnessing client-centric based marketing is the firm of Holland &amp; Hart. In 2006, the marketing department, led by Director of Marketing Mark Beese (or as he refers to himself the 'Marketing Guy') engaged in several new initiatives; each of them intimately involving the firm's clients, with the goal of deepening Holland &amp; Hart's relationship with current clients and attracting new ones. The firm's advertising campaign has evolved to highlight innovative and successful clients as part of the Holland &amp; Hart trademark western wilderness.

Features

<b>Professional Development University: </b>Feedback Made Easy For Partners Image

<b>Professional Development University: </b>Feedback Made Easy For Partners

Sharon Meit Abrahams

Partners are saddled with one of the most important yet difficult tasks related to managing a team of lawyers: providing constructive feedback. Feedback is a partner's tool to improve performance, efficiency and service quality.<br>The objective in giving feedback is to enhance performance by supplying information to guide the individual toward the level and quality of work that is expected.

Features

Are We Approaching a Profitability Plateau? Image

Are We Approaching a Profitability Plateau?

William G. Johnston & Kristin K. Stark

As we turn the calendar to 2007, law firm leaders will once again be able to tell their partners that their firm hit ' or exceeded ' budget and that their income will increase. That's the good news. <br>The bad news is that, as firms have grown more profitable and pushed harder on the drivers of their firms' economics, it is becoming difficult to identify ways to ensure that the double-digit increases in profitability will continue. After all, the economic model of law firms has only a handful of levers (rates, realization, leverage, utilization, expenses). Once firms pull as hard as possible on each lever, there is not much more they can do. For law firm leaders, managing the expectations of their partners will become a more difficult challenge, particularly since a good portion of those partners have come to expect double-digit increases in profitability each year.

Features

Managing the New Company Thief Image

Managing the New Company Thief

Michael W. Droke & Rachel E. Byrne

It used to be that an employee desiring to steal $2 million from your company would have a hard time doing so unnoticed. Today, that employee can do so undetected while having a casual conversation with you in the office. Unfortunately, in the current environment, the legal system is not forgiving toward companies that take a more relaxed approach with respect to protecting their own sensitive information.

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