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We found 2,077 results for "Accounting and Financial Planning for Law Firms"...

Compensation: Is <i>Not</i> Tracking Contributions a Good Idea?
Joel Rose authored last month's <i>A&amp;FP</i> article on how to balance compensation for law firm partners whose strengths lay in origination, production and management. So <i>A&amp;FP</i> sought his reaction to the following thought-provoking quote from Peter C. Lando and Matthew B. Lowrie.
Profitability RULES: Update on their Origin
Last month's sidebar article on "profitability levers" invited ' well, predicted ' corrections to my hearsay report on the origin of the RULES acronym for profitability factors: realization, utilization, leverage, expense control, and speed of billing and collection. <br>Joseph A. Bailey of PwC, a textbook coauthor cited in that sidebar and also the coauthor of this month's feature article on globalizing law firm operations, concurs with my source's belief that Bob Arndt was one of the RULES originators.
It's Not What You Bill, It's What You're Paid
Over the past two decades, the monitoring of legal bills by insurance firms that are paying for outside counsel has become standard practice. Whether using in-house accounting staff or hiring a third party, insurers have put attorneys on notice about what they will pay for, and how work must be documented. In turn, attorneys who defend insurance cases have had to adjust the way they do business.
News Briefs
Highlights of the latest franchising news from around the country.
An Examination of the Hotel Industry and Multi-Branded Franchisors
Franchises dominate such industries as fast food, automobile, rental car, and cosmetics, but perhaps no business model is as dependent on franchising as the hotel industry. As a result, the hotel industry presents an interesting study on how multi-branded franchisors deal with unique issues affecting the relationships between the franchisor and its franchisee, suppliers and vendors, and the traveling public.
Financial Analysis: Critical to Sound Strategy
With the legal landscape in constant flux ' including numerous high- and low- profile mergers, dissolutions and consolidations ' leaders of most law firms have been forced, willingly or no, to engage in some serious strategic thinking about their firm's future. For many firms, however, "thinking strategically" has failed to produce quality strategy.
Health Savings Accounts
Starting in 2004, law firms have another option in attempting to mitigate rising health insurance costs. Recently enacted Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) offer law firms and their employees a tax favored vehicle to pay for medical expenses.
Partner Compensation: Striking a Balance
Partner compensation is invariably the topic of most interest in every law firm. It is also a topic that involves the most fervent debate and encompasses the most varied points of view.
Basics Revisited: Evaluating The Profitability Of New Work
Your 50-attorney firm has been operating slightly under capacity; there is not enough work to keep all attorneys billing their standard hours. A prospect would like to engage the firm to handle all its litigation, which would mean a substantial number of guaranteed billable hours. Good news, right? This company, however, wants to negotiate a discounted rate and also wants specific partners to handle the work. Your initial instinct tells you to take on the work to keep the firm at maximum capacity. But will it be profitable in the long run? Should you take on the work? How can you decide?
Profitability Levers: The Lore and Lure of the RULES
The importance of profitability levers is compelling, but readers who sense some haziness about the subject should note that different authors conceptualize the levers differently.

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  • The 'Sophisticated Insured' Defense
    A majority of courts consider the <i>contra proferentem</i> doctrine to be a pillar of insurance law. The doctrine requires ambiguous terms in an insurance policy to be construed against the insurer and in favor of coverage for the insured. A prominent rationale behind the doctrine is that insurance policies are usually standard-form contracts drafted entirely by insurers.
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  • Abandoned and Unused Cables: A Hidden Liability Under the 2002 National Electric Code
    In an effort to minimize the release of toxic gasses from cables in the event of fire, the 2002 version of the National Electric Code ("NEC"), promulgated by the National Fire Protection Association, sets forth new guidelines requiring that abandoned cables must be removed from buildings unless they are located in metal raceways or tagged "For Future Use." While the NEC is not, in itself, binding law, most jurisdictions in the United States adopt the NEC by reference in their state or local building and fire codes. Thus, noncompliance with the recent NEC guidelines will likely mean that a building is in violation of a building or fire code. If so, the building owner may also be in breach of agreements with tenants and lenders and may be jeopardizing its fire insurance coverage. Even in jurisdictions where the 2002 NEC has not been adopted, it may be argued that the guidelines represent the standard of reasonable care and could result in tort liability for the landlord if toxic gasses from abandoned cables are emitted in a fire. With these potential liabilities in mind, this article discusses: 1) how to address the abandoned wires and cables currently located within the risers, ceilings and other areas of properties, and 2) additional considerations in the placement and removal of telecommunications cables going forward.
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