The Dirty Little Secret of Law Firm Billing
May 01, 2016
<I>The Wall Street Journal's</I> recent front-page headline on billing rates tells only part of the story. "Legal Fees Cross New Mark: $1,500 an Hour," the Feb. 9 article announced before listing partner hourly rates at several big firms. But that's only part of the story.
Closing the Expectation Gap With e-Discovery Technology
May 01, 2016
Chief Justice John Roberts recently said that the new amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure should "achieve the goal of Rule 1 ' 'the just, speedy, and inexpensive determination of every action and proceeding' ' only if the entire legal community, including the bench, bar, and legal academy, step up to the challenge of making real change."
Professional Development: Building Excitement Around Business Development
May 01, 2016
Ask lawyers what they find EXCITING about selling (it is okay to use the "sales" word) and most will say winning, followed closely by developing new relationships. On the flipside, they fear rejection and failure. Add risk aversion and low resilience to the mix and business development can feel daunting.
Section 181's Extension to Live Stage Productions Doesn't Set Clear Path for Producers, Investors
May 01, 2016
At the end of 2015, Congress passed, as part of a large tax extender bill, the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act (PATH), an extension of '181 of the Internal Revenue Code. Section 181 has been available since 2004 to permit expedited deduction of the costs of a film or TV production. Since inception, this has had several sunset provisions, each of which was extended as part of year-end extender bills. The latest for the first time has extended the availability of '181 treatment to live stage productions.
Covenants Not To Compete
May 01, 2016
Covenants not to compete are not the favorites of courts. Enforcement of such restrictions reduces competition; accordingly, the analysis requires the weighing of various factors and the cases are decided on in a fact-sensitive manner. In <i>Aamco Transmissions v. Romano,</i> the district court elegantly reviewed the specific facts of the case, modified the contractual covenant not to compete, and concluded that the former franchisee did not violate the modified covenant.
Quality Control Of Trademarks in Social Media
May 01, 2016
Trademark licensors, including those in the entertainment industry, are scrambling to keep up with the evolving use of social media as a tool for business advertising. As technology changes, so must the provisions in a trademark license.
NLRB and the Joint Employer: Is Franchising On the Ropes?
May 01, 2016
Recent NLRB decisions have rewritten the labor law map in a variety of ways, but nowhere more significantly than in the areas of franchising and outsourcing. With the decision in <i>Browning-Ferris</i> and decision by the NLRB's general counsel involving McDonald's, the definition of a "joint employer" has grown exponentially broader.
Cloud Computing Security: More Opportunity, Less Threat
May 01, 2016
If you follow the legal technology headlines you might have noticed that we've come full circle on cloud security. Rewind seven or so years, and mainstream cloud computing adoption was being thwarted by grave concerns about data security, data governance and data access. As the cloud became more pervasive in many industries globally, the legal market took note and slowly but surely more law firms went to the cloud.
