Most law firms, regardless of size, have to outsource technology projects to consultants who have capabilities that the firm does not carry in-house. The smaller firms that do not retain a large IT staff must take this approach more often. Fortunately, outsourcing technology support can evolve into a more valuable model for working with outside consultants: "expertSourcing." When a law firm hires a company to assist on a technology project, generally they are bringing in technicians who will execute it within the narrow boundaries of the scope. The consultants may not ask, or even know to ask, crucial questions about how the technology fits into the law firm practice, how it facilitates other firm needs or if a better solution is available.
Our firm wanted a program that would not only organize our case files electronically, but improve workflow and allow for easy access from a desktop as well as remotely. Because of our team approach to handling cases, we also needed a product that would allow each of us to see what tasks or issues another person was handling, without having to inquire as to the status or physically look at the file.
In <i>Merscorp. v. Romaine</i> (<i>see</i> page 7, <i>infra</i>), Suffolk County Supreme Court was faced with a clash between the traditionally local real property recording system and the increasingly national secondary mortgage market. The County Clerk's office had refused to accept for recording instruments filed in the name of MERS (Mortgage Electronic Recording Systems, Inc.), prompting a proceeding by MERS and the operating company that owns the MERS system for a writ of mandamus compelling the County Clerk to record and index MERS instruments. The case resulted in a split decision: the County Clerk is required to record MERS mortgages, but not assignments or certificates of discharge. The court's opinion, however, reveals some misunderstanding both of the MERS system and of the recording act.
Businesses of all sizes and types should not buy Web sites like a commodity. <br>Though it's true that many smaller firms have Web sites, good site design and coding require too much skill and creativity to risk using the lowest-cost provider. <br>Instead, a successful Web-site development contract requires business oversight by the proper personnel ' a team of them ' just as the negotiation of a joint venture or other complex deal does.
Ideally, the objective of defining the role and responsibilities of Practice Group Leaders should be to establish just enough structure and accountability within their respective practice group to maximize the economic potential of the firm, while institutionalizing the principles of leadership and teamwork.
With each successive large-scale cyber attack, it is slowly becoming clear that ransomware attacks are targeting the critical infrastructure of the most powerful country on the planet. Understanding the strategy, and tactics of our opponents, as well as the strategy and the tactics we implement as a response are vital to victory.
The Article 8 opt-in election adds an additional layer of complexity to the already labyrinthine rules governing perfection of security interests under the UCC. A lender that is unaware of the nuances created by the opt in (may find its security interest vulnerable to being primed by another party that has taken steps to perfect in a superior manner under the circumstances.
Many times, courts are faced with the question of whether a loss location is "vacant" under a commercial property policy when trying to determine if the building owner or lessee is conducting customary operations. This article explores various decisions across the United States as to what is considered "customary operations," thereby rendering the property "vacant."
