Costs and Credits: Contrasting Views
January 03, 2006
A&FP reviewers rated Ed Wesemann's feature article from "much to agree with" to "excellent" to "super," but three Board members had differing views on specific points. The following exchange between Ed, John Alber and Jim Davidson is followed by a comment received later from Ed Poll. Yet another perspective on the question of associate profitability is being formulated by another discussant as an upcoming article.
Analyzing the New York Franchise Act of 1980: Q&A with Thomas M. Pitegoff, New York Bar Association, Business Law Section
December 05, 2005
In August 2005, the New York Bar Association authorized the formation of a subcommittee of the Business Law section to review, analyze, and possibly revise or rewrite the New York Franchise Act of 1980 to better reflect the current franchising landscape. The subcommittee has held several meetings and is soliciting input from all interested parties. In this interview, Thomas M. Pitegoff (White Plains, NY) discusses the initial goals of the subcommittee, its progress to date, and its continued interest in receiving comments from franchisors, franchisees, and their representatives, and others who may be affected by the New York franchise law.
The Best of MLF 2005: Looking Back at the 'Benchmark' Year
November 30, 2005
Well, it's been an exciting year here at <i>Marketing the Law Firm</i>. As with past practice, this month's issue will be a look back at the year that was. In this issue we will present February (the January issue recaps part of 2004) through July.
Using Client Profiles for Future Case Management
November 30, 2005
After a rigorous search, which involved input from key firm personnel including our IT director, paralegals, attorneys, senior managing partners, and the Chief Operating Officer, we selected Client Profiles as our case management solution. Since the selection, we have been able to revolutionize the way our users access, share and update information related to all cases and matters; have seen firm-wide adoption of 100%, and are realizing numerous technology-related cost savings and productivity enhancements.
What In The World Is Going On With Lawyer Retirement Planning?
November 30, 2005
In Part One, the author provided an overview of what lawyers (and their firms) were doing about retirement planning, including a discussion on firms that do not use unfunded obligations ' The First Camp. Part Two examines firms that use unfunded retirement obligations, and the current trends in partner retirement planning.
Employee Blogging: What Employers Don't Know Could Hurt Them
November 30, 2005
Technology offers employers significant advantages, but it can be a double-edged sword. Technology has created issues that employers have never dealt with before ' and bases for liability employers have never confronted before.
Big Win For ERISA Plaintiffs
November 30, 2005
In an important win for plaintiffs in ERISA cases, the Third U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that the "doctrine of ratification" cannot be used to justify retroactive application of a change to a pension plan if it would have the effect of reducing a worker's accrued benefits.
Open To Liability
November 29, 2005
Open-source software is a boon to computer programmers: by sharing the source code for freely released software, anyone (with the skill) can modify it for his or her, or that person's business', own needs. And, as attorneys and business people are aware, the no-longer nascent and quickly growing movement for open-source software has this business-boon tool finding its way into many companies' programming departments. <br>It's also finding its way into their lawyers' offices, because the licensing requirements of most open-source software are creating new concerns, and new work, for lawyers serving the tech industry.
