INNOVA: An Innovation in the Document Creation Process
March 30, 2004
Like it or not, in order to produce and collaborate on documents, the legal community is dependent on more and more software products which are increasingly sophisticated and interdependent. To maximize the financial investment in these products, it's optimal to leverage the integration opportunities that they offer. Firms have the option to take on custom development to achieve this goal, or to invest in a third-party product where the software vendor is responsible for keeping their product updated to integrate with new versions of other programs on the desktop. Innova, developed by SoftWise Corporation, is an example of a comprehensive, feature-rich, template program that standardizes and simplifies the document creation process. It integrates with a variety of contact management, document management and fax server programs typically found on a legal desktop.
An Updated Look at Tabs3 Version 11.2
March 30, 2004
Software Technology, Inc., the maker of Tabs3, has released Tabs3 Version 11.2 of its time and billing software program. The Version 11.2 release of Tabs3 provides new and enhanced features that range from the use of proportional fonts in reports and billing statements and a new statement designer, to a redesign of data entry interfaces and reports.
The Era of Mega-Case Litigation
March 30, 2004
The era of mega-case litigation has arrived. In the last 2 years, mega-cases ' those with more than 500,000 pages for review ' have become commonplace according to leading law firms and litigation support vendors. Indeed, in high profile cases today, document collections can easily run over 50 million pages ' roughly a terabyte of data, or the equivalent of about 20,000 Banker boxes. The rapid growth of electronic documents presents significant challenges for corporations and law firms involved in litigation. Dealing with the challenges of document reviews across multiple, related cases is also becoming increasingly important for many corporations.
Demographic Analysis: Foreshadowing the Future of Your Law Firm
March 30, 2004
In law firm management audits and strategic planning, an objective demographic analysis can be a very important analytical tool. On a firm-wide and practice group basis, charting firm demographics can provide a substantive foundation for conclusions about the current standing of a law firm, and sometimes, provide the genesis for startling insights about the short- and long-term strategic position of a law firm, individual office, or practice group.
Part-Timers: Good Value for the Money
March 30, 2004
Now, more than ever, women lawyers place enormous value on flexible work schedules. Firms that support such schedules reap benefits in the form of higher retention, increased profitability, and more diverse leadership. In turn, the legal profession ' and, on a broader level, society ' benefits from contributions by part-time lawyers who are in a better position to devote time to activities that make attorneys better citizens. These core conclusions emerged from a new survey of 167 lawyers at 37 firms in the Atlanta area. These attorneys included women and men, associates and partners, part-time and full-time lawyers, and retired and active attorneys.
Around the Firms
March 30, 2004
Movement among major law firms and corporations.
Last Chance for Compliance HIPAA Privacy for Small Health Plans
March 30, 2004
April 14, 2004 is the approaching deadline for small health plans ' plans that have annual total premiums (both employer and employee contributions) of $5,000,000 or less ' to comply with the privacy regulations under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).
Spousal Maintenance: Confronting the Emotion
March 29, 2004
In negotiations, as in mediation, many divorce attorneys find spousal maintenance to be one of the most difficult areas of conflict to resolve. This may be because spousal support often represents something entirely different for each spouse, and for each couple: Is maintenance meant to compensate for pain and hurt when the other party is leaving the marriage or having an affair? Is maintenance required to reimburse one party for past contributions to the career of the other party or to the family? Is maintenance viewed as an entitlement to one party or a source of guilt or failure to another? Was spousal support part of the "social contract" created within the family, which determined that one parent would stay home with children? Or were the parties never able to agree on such a social contract in the family during the marriage but one parent stayed home anyway? Is maintenance a source of anger because the receiving spouse is not working to his or her full "potential"?
Gay Marriage Pushed to the Forefront By Activist Mayor
March 29, 2004
After a prolonged silence on the increasingly charged national issue of same-sex marriage, New Yorkers finally entered the fray in February. It all began, of course, when New Paltz mayor Jason West, a 26-year-old who ran for mayor last year on the Green Party ticket, became the first elected official in New York State to preside over the marriage of a gay couple. None of the couples were issued marriage licenses, a prerequisite to marriage under state law. On that first day, February 27, West married 25 couples in the Village Hall parking lot.
