Category: Social Media

Shijiazhuang Market Supervision Bureau Fines Trademark Agency 50,000 RMB for Attempting to Trademark Olympic Gold Medalist’s Social Media Account

On May 18, 2022, the Shijiazhuang Yuhua District Market Supervision Administration issued an Administrative Penalty Decision against a Shijiazhuang trademark agency for attempting to trademark the name of Eileen Gu’s Douyin account (TikTok’s sister app in China). Eileen Gu won three gold medals in the Beijing Winter Olympics earlier this year and has become extremely popular in China.

On February 11, 2022, Wang XX, the legal representative of the trademark applicant Hebei Yi Biotechnology Co., Ltd., contacted Wang YY, a staff member of a trademark agency in Shijiazhuang, China, to apply for trademarks for Frog Princess Eileen in English and Chinese.  Frog Princess Eileen is the name of the 2022 Winter Olympics champion and model Eileen Gu’s (Gu Ailing) Douyin registered account. This account has released videos since August 29, 2018.  Ms. Gu won gold medals in big air and halfpipe and a silver medal in slopestyle at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing. She then received a lot of media coverage and became famous, with a great reputation and influence. Therefore, Ms. Gu has the prior rights to the names of her Douyin registered account “Frog Princess Eileen” and due to their high popularity and influence, the scope of protection for “Frog Princess Eileen” is more powerful than the general right of trade names.

 

A promotional image from Gu’s recent campaign with Louis Vuitton. Credit: Louis Vuitton

 

At the same time, Ms. Gu made outstanding contributions to my China’s gold medal list in this Winter Olympics. Applicants other than Ms. Gu herself that register and apply for the trademarks “Frog Princess Eileen”  not only damages the prior rights of the Winter Olympic champion Gu but also damages the public interests of the society, which is easy to cause social damage and adverse effects. In this case, the trademark agency in Shijiazhuang, as a trademark agency agency for many years, nonetheless applied for a trademark even though it should have known or knew that the trademark would damage the existing prior rights of others.

Accordingly, the trademark agency was fined 50,000 RMB and Wang YY and Li (business personnel) were each fined 5,000 RMB.

The full text of the punishment is available here (Chinese only) courtesy of 知识产权界: 行政处罚决定书.

Article By Aaron Wininger of Schwegman, Lundberg & Woessner, P.A.

For more intellectual property news, click here to visit the National Law Review.

© 2022 Schwegman, Lundberg & Woessner, P.A. All Rights Reserved.

How to Create an Impactful and Authentic Pride Month Social Media Campaign for Your Company

June is Pride Month, which offers companies of all kinds a unique opportunity to celebrate, show support and raise awareness for LGBTQIA+ rights on their social media channels.

Businesses of all kinds and sizes can get involved, raise awareness and give back for Pride Month regardless of their budget or reach.

While Pride is most definitely a celebration, an impactful Pride campaign should include education, awareness, and center around people.

Celebrating Pride and showing your support for the LGBTQIA+ community is not a trend— and it shouldn’t be treated as such.

Here’s how to create and implement an impactful and genuine Pride Month social media campaign at your company.

The Do’s and Don’ts of Pride Month social media planning

Before you dive head-first into planning your corporate Pride initiatives, it’s important to get a wide range of employees involved in the planning process.

If your company has an LGBTQIA+ affinity group or diversity committee, collaborate with them or if you don’t have a group, consider convening a committee of employee volunteers of diverse backgrounds to serve as a sounding board and provide their input as your plans begin to take shape.

Please note: these volunteers should be compensated for their time and efforts in some meaningful way (vacation time, bonuses, gift cards, etc.). While it may be too late to do this for this year’s campaign, activate or assemble the group now for your 2023 initiative.

Don’t: Exploit social initiatives and conversations as a means to reach business goals.

Celebrating Pride and showing your support for the LGBTQIA+ community is not a trend— and it shouldn’t be treated as such.

If you’re simply posting rainbow-branded imagery (rainbow washing) during the month or posting about your commitment to the cause without having any real initiatives or actions to back it up, you’re just paying lip service to and perhaps exploiting yet another social initiative. Make sure your company can really walk the walk before you talk the talk. Performative allyship can backfire, alienating your employees, your clients, recruits, and others.

Remember that everyone (employees, clients, and the general public) is watching what you post online, even if they don’t actually like or comment on it.

Do: Ask yourself why you’re supporting this initiative and have a clear purpose.

Before publishing Pride-related content, ask yourself, are we actually adding value to this conversation? What are we hoping to gain from inserting ourselves into this conversation? What are our motivations? Is our company an actual safe space or inclusive environment that includes active and engaged allies?

Remember, Pride Month should not be about your business goals. You also don’t have to have accomplished all of your LGBTQIA+ related inclusion goals to commemorate Pride, but your efforts should be more than surface level.

Do: Support LGBTQIA+ initiatives year-round.

If you don’t already take steps to support the LGBTQIA+ community year-round, take the opportunity to discuss doing so with management and staff before Pride. June is only one month out of the year, a month where it’s arguably the “most acceptable” to show support for the LGBTQIA+ community. To be a true ally, it’s important to show this level of support year-round. Work to ensure that your company’s policies and practices are inclusive and address the needs of your LGBTQIA+ employees.

In addition to internally focused actions, consider how your true commitment can be reflected externally. There are many organizations to which you can donate and volunteer. Solicit voluntary feedback from your LGBTQIA+ employees and clients to ensure that they feel involved and included in the process.

Do: Educate yourself and those around you on the origins and history of Pride Month.

Pride Month has a rich, political history that companies often fail to understand and recognize as they participate in Pride Month. Pride Month is celebrated in June to honor the 1969 Stonewall Uprising in Manhattan — a tipping point for the Gay Liberation Movement in the United States.

Not only is Pride a time to recognize the progress that’s been made since the Stonewall Riots, but it’s just as important to acknowledge how far we still must go as a society, particularly considering recent efforts to overturn or narrow the progress that has been made. A successful Pride campaign should have education and awareness at its core.

Do: Make education and awareness the core of your campaign.

Ideas for content for your Pride Campaign can include educating your followers on the meaning behind the Pride flag, using posts to tell the history of the Pride flag, and what Pride means to your employees, and run their answers in Q&A posts.

Another idea is to create posts to help followers better understand Pride Month and provide resources to help people better educate themselves on the cause and support those of the LGBTQIA+ community.

In addition, spotlighting members of the LGBTQIA+ community is a helpful way to educate your followers and amplify the contributions of individuals.

No matter what you choose, create a campaign that is rooted in improving awareness and education amongst your community.

Do: Let inclusivity be at the core of your all campaigns.

Inclusivity should be an active mission as part of your Pride campaign, and for your future marketing efforts too. Aim to have better representation on social media for your community — that means including people of all marginalized or otherwise underrepresented voices.

If you really want to reach, represent, and support your diverse community, it’s time to make active shifts towards better inclusive marketing year-round. It’s less about what you need to do for Pride today and instead, how are you supporting LGBTQIA+ folks year-round?

Do: Put your money (and time) where your mouth is.

Instead of treating Pride like a marketing campaign, put your efforts toward an activity that will positively impact the LGBTQIA+ community.

While monetary donations can be helpful, volunteering at community events or spending time with LGBTQIA+ advocacy organizations can be more impactful for your employees.

Consider hosting or taking part in LGBTQIA+ programming and donating to local charities doing work in your community to support LGBTQIA+ initiatives.

Do: Use the right hashtags to be discovered

  • #lgbtqia
  • #lgbtqpride
  • #lgbtqhumanrights
  • #equality
  • #pridemonth
  • #loveislove
  • #pride

Every organization that wants to support Pride on social media can find a way to do so, we challenge you to do it in a way that is authentic, genuine, and impactful to your brand and most importantly, to your employees and your clients. The world is watching you, so challenge yourself by doing the right thing.

This article was authored by Stefanie Marrone of Stefanie Marrone Consulting, and Paula T. Edgar, Esq, the CEO of PGE Consulting Group LLC, a firm that provides training and education solutions at the intersection of professional development and diversity, equity and inclusion. 

For more legal marketing and law office management news, click here to visit the National Law Review.

Copyright © 2022, Stefanie M. Marrone. All Rights Reserved.

Small Businesses Don’t Recognize Risk of Cyberattack Despite Repeated Warnings

CNBC surveys over 2,000 small businesses each quarter to get their thoughts on the overall business environment and their small business’ health. According to the latest CNBC/SurveyMonkey Small Business Survey, despite repeated warnings by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and the FBI that U.S.- based businesses are at an increased risk of a cyber-attack following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, small business owners do not believe that it is an actual risk that will affect them, and they are not prepared for an attack. The latest survey shows that only five percent of small business owners reported cybersecurity to be the biggest risk to their company.

What is unfortunate, but not surprising, is the fact that this is the same percentage of small business owners who recognized a cyber attack as the biggest risk a year ago. There has been no change in the perception among business owners, even though there are repeated, dire warnings from the government. Also unfortunate is the statistic that only 33 percent of business owners with one to four employees are concerned about a cyber attack this year. In contrast, 61 percent of business owners with more than 50 employees have the same concern.

According to CNBC, “this general lack of concern among small business owners diverges from the sentiment among the general public….In SurveyMonkey’s polling, 55% of people in the U.S. say they would be less likely to continue to do business with brands who are victims of a cyber attack.” CNBC’s conclusion is that there is a disconnect between business owners’ appreciation of how much customers care about data security and that “[s]mall businesses that fail to take the cyber threat seriously risk losing customers, or much more, if a real threat emerges.” Statistics show that threat actors are targeting small to medium-sized businesses to stay under the law enforcement radar. With such a large target on their backs, business owners may wish to make cybersecurity a priority. It’s important to keep customers.

Article By Linn F. Freedman of Robinson & Cole LLP

For more cybersecurity legal news, click here to visit the National Law Review.

Copyright © 2022 Robinson & Cole LLP. All rights reserved.

DOJ Limits Application of Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, Providing Clarity for Ethical Hackers and Employees Paying Bills at Work Alike

On May 19, 2022, the Department of Justice announced it would not charge good-faith hackers who expose weaknesses in computer systems with violating the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA or Act), 18 U.S.C. § 1030. Congress enacted the CFAA in 1986 to promote computer privacy and cybersecurity and amended the Act several times, most recently in 2008. However, the evolving cybersecurity landscape has left courts and commentators troubled by potential applications of the CFAA to circumstances unrelated to the CFAA’s original purpose, including prosecution of so-called “white hat” hackers. The new charging policy, which became effective immediately, seeks to advance the CFAA’s original purpose by clarifying when and how federal prosecutors are authorized to bring charges under the Act.

DOJ to Decline Prosecution of Good-Faith Security Research

The new policy exempts activity of white-hat hackers and states that “the government should decline prosecution if available evidence shows the defendant’s conduct consisted of, and the defendant intended, good-faith security research.” The policy defines “good-faith security research” as “accessing a computer solely for purposes of good-faith testing, investigation, and/or correction of a security flaw or vulnerability, where such activity is carried out in a manner designed to avoid any harm to individuals or the public, and where the information derived from the activity is used primarily to promote the security or safety of the class of devices, machines, or online services to which the accessed computer belongs, or those who use such devices, machines, or online services.”

In practice, this policy appears to provide, for example, protection from federal charges for the type of ethical hacking a St. Louis Post-Dispatch reporter performed in 2021. The reporter uncovered security flaws in a Missouri state website that exposed the Social Security numbers of over 100,000 teachers and other school employees. The Missouri governor’s office initiated an investigation into the reporter’s conduct for unauthorized computer access. While the DOJ’s policy would not affect prosecutions under state law, it would preclude federal prosecution for the conduct if determined to be good-faith security research.

The new policy also promises protection from prosecution for certain arguably common but contractually prohibited online conduct, including “[e]mbellishing an online dating profile contrary to the terms of service of the dating website; creating fictional accounts on hiring, housing, or rental websites; using a pseudonym on a social networking site that prohibits them; checking sports scores at work; paying bills at work; or violating an access restriction contained in a term of service.” Such activities resemble the facts of Van Buren v. United States, No. 19-783, which the Supreme Court decided in June 2021. In Van Buren, the 6-3 majority rejected the government’s broad interpretation of the CFAA’s prohibition on “unauthorized access” and held that a police officer who looked up license plate information on a law-enforcement database for personal use—in violation of his employer’s policy but without circumventing any access controls—did not violate the CFAA. The DOJ did not cite Van Buren as the basis for the new policy. Nor did the DOJ identify any another impetus for the change.

To Achieve More Consistent Application of Policy, All Federal Prosecutors Must Consult with Main Justice Before Bringing CFAA Charges

In addition to exempting good-faith security research from prosecution, the new policy specifies the steps for charging violations of the CFAA. To help distinguish between actual good-faith security research and pretextual claims of such research that mask a hacker’s malintent, federal prosecutors must consult with the Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS) before bringing any charges. If CCIPS recommends declining charges, prosecutors must inform the Office of the Deputy Attorney General (DAG) and may need to obtain approval from the DAG before initiating charges.

Article By Kyle R. Freeny, Linda Ricci, Jena M. Valdetero, and Brittany M. Fisher of Greenberg Traurig, LLP

For more data privacy and cybersecurity legal news, click here to visit the National Law Review.

©2022 Greenberg Traurig, LLP. All rights reserved.

Trade Mark Infringement – Muslim Dating App Meets its Match [.com]

A recent Intellectual Property Enterprise Court Decision (IPEC) on 20 April 2022 has decided that ‘Muzmatch’, an online matchmaking service to the Muslim Community has infringed Match.com’s registered trade marks.

The decision by Nicholas Caddick Q.C was that Muzmatch’s use of signs and its name amounted to trade mark infringement and/or passing off of Match.com’s trade marks. This case follows successful oppositions by Match.com to Muzmatch’s registration of its marks in 2018, and unsuccessful attempts by Match.com to purchase Muzmatch between 2017 and 2019.

Match.com is one of the largest and most recognisable dating platforms in the UK. It first registered a word mark ‘MATCH.COM’ in 1996 and also owns other dating-related brands including Tinder and Hinge with other marks including the word mark ‘TINDER’. Match.com used a 2012 TNS report to illustrate its goodwill and reputation and 70% of people surveyed would be able to recall Match.com if prompted, 44% unprompted and 31% of people would name Match.com as the first dating brand off the ‘top of their head.’

Muzmatch is a comparatively niche but growing dating platform, which aims to provide a halal (i.e. in compliance with Islamic law) way for single Muslim men and women to meet a partner. Muzmatch is comparatively much smaller and was founded in 2011 by Mr Shahzad Younas and now has had around 666,069 sign-ups in the UK alone.

The Court considered that the marks ‘Muzmatch’ and ‘MATCH.COM’ and each company’s graphical marks, had a high degree of similarity in the services provided. The marks were also similar in nature orally and conceptually and the addition of the prefix ‘Muz’ did not distinguish the two marks, nor could the lack of the suffix ‘.com’ or stylistic fonts/devices.

The key issue of the case relates to the idea of the term ‘Match’ which is used by both marks to describe the nature of the business: match[ing]. Muzmatch argued that as both marks share this descriptive common element, so it is difficult to conclude that there is a likelihood of confusion between the two marks as the term just describes what each business does.

 The Court found that finding that there is a likelihood of confusion for a common descriptive element is not impossible, as the descriptive element can be used distinctively. The average consumer would conclude that the portion ‘Match’ is the badge of origin for Match.com due to its reputation as a brand and the very substantial degree of distinctiveness in the dating industry. An average consumer would have seen the word ‘Match’ as the dominant element in the Match.com trade marks and Match.com is often referred to as just ‘Match’ in advertisements.

Aside from its marks, Muzmatch utilised a Search Engine Optimisation strategy from January 2012 whereby it utilised a list of around 5000 keywords which would take a user to a landing page on the its website. In the list of the keywords used, Muzmatch used the words ‘muslim-tinder’, ‘tinder’ and ‘halal-tinder’ which were accepted by Muzmatch during the litigation to have infringed Match’s trade marks of the Tinder brand including the word mark ‘TINDER’. Muzmatch’s SEO use was also found to cause confusion based on some of its keywords including ‘UK Muslim Match’, which again uses the term Match distinctively, therefore a consumer may confuse a link to ‘UK Muslim Match’ with ‘Match.com’.

Therefore, the Court found that there was likely to be confusion between Muzmatch and Match.com because of the distinctive nature of the term ‘Match’ in the world of dating platforms.  An average consumer would conclude that Muzmatch was connected in a material way with the Match.com marks, as if it was targeted at Muslim users as a sub-brand, so this confusion would be trade mark infringement under S10(2) of the Trade Marks Act 1994.

The Court also considered that Muzmatch had taken unfair advantage of Match.com’s trade marks and had therefore infringed those marks under S10(3) of the Trade Marks Act 1994. This was due to the reputation of Match.com’s trade marks and because a consumer would believe that Muzmatch was a sub-brand of Match.com.

The Court rejected Muzmatch’s defence of honest concurrent use and found that Match.com would also have an alternative claim in the tort of passing off.

Key Points:

  • The Court found that a common descriptive element can acquire distinctiveness in an area, solely because of a company’s reputation and influence in that market.
  • The use of Search Engine Optimisation strategies can also constitute a trade mark infringement.
  • The lack of the suffix ‘.com’ in a mark is not sufficient to distinguish use from a household brand such as Match.com, so care should be taken with brands such as ‘Match.com’, ‘Booking.com’[1]

Source:

[1] Match Group, LLC, Meetic SAS, Match.Com International Limited v Muzmatch Limited, Shahzad Younas [2022] EWHC 941 (IPEC)

[1] Note- Blog Post of July 6 2020 Relating to Booking.com- https://www.iptechblog.com/2020/07/us-supreme-court-opens-doors-to-generic-com-trademarks/

Article By Connor Sargeant and the Intellectual Property and Technology Practice Group at Squire Patton Boggs (US) LLP ​.

For more intellectual property legal news, click here to visit the National Law Review.

© Copyright 2022 Squire Patton Boggs (US) LLP

The Metaverse: A Legal Primer for the Hospitality Industry

The metaverse, regarded by many as the next frontier in digital commerce, does not, on its surface, appear to offer many benefits to an industry with a core mission of providing a physical space for guests to use and occupy. However, there are many opportunities that the metaverse may offer to owners, operators, licensors, managers, and other participants in the hospitality industry that should not be ignored.

What is the Metaverse?

The metaverse is a term used to describe a digital space that allows social interactions, frequently through use of a digital avatar by the user. Built largely using decentralized, blockchain technology instead of centralized servers, the metaverse consists of immersive, three-dimensional experiences, persistent and traceable digital assets, and a strong social component. The metaverse is still in its infancy, so many of the uses for the metaverse remain aspirational; however, metaverse platforms have already seen a great deal of activity and commerce. Meanwhile, technology companies are working to produce the next-generation consumer electronics that they hope will make the metaverse a more common location for commerce.

The Business Case for the Hospitality Industry

The hospitality industry may find the metaverse useful in enhancing marketing and guest experiences.

Immersive virtual tours of hotel properties and the surrounding area may allow potential customers to explore all aspects of the property and its surroundings before booking. Operators may also add additional booking options or promotions within the virtual tour to increase exposure to customers.

Creating hybrid, in-person and remote events, such as conferences, weddings, or other celebrations, is also possible through the metaverse. This would allow guests on-site to interact with those who are not physically present at the property for an integrated experience and possible additional revenue streams.

Significantly, numerous outlets have identified the metaverse as one of the top emerging trends in technology. As its popularity grows, the metaverse will become an important location for the hospitality industry to interact with and market to its customer base.

Legal Issues to Consider

  1. Select the right platform for you. There are multiple metaverse platforms, and they all have tradeoffs. Some, including Roblox and Fortnite, offer access to more consumers but generally give businesses less control over content within the programs. Others, such as Decentraland and the Sandbox, provide businesses with greater control but smaller audiences and higher barriers to entry. Each business should consider who its target audience is, what platform will be best to reach that audience, and its long term metaverse strategy before committing to a particular platform.
  2. Register your IP. Businesses should consider filing trademark applications covering core metaverse goods or services and securing any available blockchain domains, which can be used to facilitate metaverse payments and to direct users to blockchain content, such as websites and decentralized applications. Given the accelerating adoption of blockchain domains along with limited dispute resolution recourse available, we strongly encourage businesses to consider securing intellectual property rights now.
  3. Establish a dedicated legal entity. Businesses may want to consider setting up a new subsidiary or affiliate to hold digital assets, shield other parts of their business from metaverse-related liability, and isolate the potential tax consequences.
  4. Take custody of digital assets. Because of their digital character, digital assets such as cryptocurrency, which may be the primary method of payment in the metaverse, are uniquely vulnerable to loss and theft. Before acquiring cryptocurrency, businesses will need to set up a secure blockchain wallet and adopt appropriate access and security controls.
  5. Protect and enforce your IP. The decentralized nature of the metaverse poses a significant challenge to businesses and intellectual property owners. Avenues for enforcing intellectual property rights in the metaverse are constantly evolving and may require multiple tools to stop third-party infringements.
  6. Reserve metaverse rights. Each Business that licenses its IP, particularly those that do so on a geographic or territorial basis, should review existing license agreements to determine what rights, if any, its licensees have for metaverse-related uses. Moving forward, each brand owner is encouraged to expressly reserve rights for metaverse-related uses and exercise caution before authorizing any third party to deploy IP to the metaverse on a business’ behalf.
  7. Tax matters. Attention needs to be paid to how the tax law applies to metaverse transactions, despite the current tax law not fully addressing the metaverse. This is particularly the case for state and local sales and use, communications, and hotel taxes.

Ready to Enter?

As we move into the future, the metaverse appears poised to provide a tremendous opportunity for the hospitality industry to connect directly with consumers in an interactive way that was until recently considered science fiction. But like every new frontier, technological or otherwise, there are legal and regulatory hurdles to consider and overcome.

Article By Charles B. Ferguson, Jr. and Kimberly A. Wachen of ArentFox Schiff LLP

For more technology legal news, click here to visit the National Law Review.

© 2022 ArentFox Schiff LLP

Comparing and Contrasting the State Laws: Does Pseudonymized Data Exempt Organizations from Complying with Privacy Rights?

Some organizations are confused as to the impact that pseudonymization has (or does not have) on a privacy compliance program. That confusion largely stems from ambiguity concerning how the term fits into the larger scheme of modern data privacy statutes. For example, aside from the definition, the CCPA only refers to “pseudonymized” on one occasion – within the definition of “research” the CCPA implies that personal information collected by a business should be “pseudonymized and deidentified” or “deidentified and in the aggregate.”[1] The conjunctive reference to research being both pseudonymized “and” deidentified raises the question whether the CCPA lends any independent meaning to the term “pseudonymized.” Specifically, the CCPA assigns a higher threshold of anonymization to the term “deidentified.” As a result, if data is already deidentified it is not clear what additional processing or set of operations is expected to pseudonymize the data. The net result is that while the CCPA introduced the term “pseudonymization” into the American legal lexicon, it did not give it any significant legal effect or status.

Unlike the CCPA, the pseudonymization of data does impact compliance obligations under the data privacy statutes of Virginia, Colorado, and Utah. As the chart below indicates, those statutes do not require that organizations apply access or deletion rights to pseudonymized data, but do imply that other rights (e.g., opt out of sale) do apply to such data. Ambiguity remains as to what impact pseudonymized data has on rights that are not exempted, such as the right to opt out of the sale of personal information. For example, while Virginia does not require an organization to re-identify pseudonymized data, it is unclear how an organization could opt a consumer out of having their pseudonymized data sold without reidentification.

ENDNOTES

[1] Cal. Civ. Code § 1798.140(ab)(2) (West 2021). It should be noted that the reference to pseudonymizing and deidentifying personal information is found within the definition of the word “Research,” as such it is unclear whether the CCPA was attempting to indicate that personal information will not be considered research unless it has been pseudonymized and deidentified, or whether the CCPA is mandating that companies that conduct research must pseudonymize and deidentify. Given that the reference is found within the definition section of the CCPA, the former interpretation seems the most likely intent of the legislature.

[2] The GDPR does not expressly define the term “sale,” nor does it ascribe particular obligations to companies that sell personal information. Selling, however, is implicitly governed by the GDPR as any transfer of personal information from one controller to a second controller would be considered a processing activity for which a lawful purpose would be required pursuant to GDPR Article 6.

[3] Va. Code 59.1-577(B) (2022).

[4] Utah Code Ann. 13-61-303(1)(a) (2022).

[5] Va. Code 59.1-577(D) (2022) (exempting compliance with Va. Code 59.1-573(A)(1) through (4)

[6] C.R.S. 6-1-1307(3) (2022) (exempting compliance with C.R.S. Section 6-1-1306(1)(b) to (1)(e)).

[7] Utah Code Ann. 13-61-303(1)(c) (exempting compliance with Utah Code Ann. 13-61-202(1) through (3)).

[8] Va. Code 59.1-577(D) (2022) (exempting compliance with Va. Code 59.1-573(A)(1) through (4)

[9] C.R.S. 6-1-1307(3) (2022) (exempting compliance with C.R.S. Section 6-1-1306(1)(b) to (1)(e)).

[10] Va. Code 59.1-577(D) (2022) (exempting compliance with Va. Code 59.1-573(A)(1) through (4)

[11] C.R.S. 6-1-1307(3) (2022) (exempting compliance with C.R.S. Section 6-1-1306(1)(b) to (1)(e)).

[12] Utah Code Ann. 13-61-303(1)(c) (exempting compliance with Utah Code Ann. 13-61-202(1) through (3)).

[13] Va. Code 59.1-577(D) (2022) (exempting compliance with Va. Code 59.1-574).

[14] Va. Code 59.1-577(D) (2022) (exempting compliance with Va. Code 59.1-574).

Article By David A. Zetoony of Greenberg Traurig, LLP

For more data privacy and cybersecurity legal news, click here to visit the National Law Review.

©2022 Greenberg Traurig, LLP. All rights reserved.

Top Legal Industry News for Spring 2022: Law Firm Hiring, Industry Recognition, Women in Law

We’re back with another edition of our legal industry news roundup. Read more below for the latest updates in law firm hiring and expansion, legal industry awards, and recognition of leading women in the field today.

Law Firm Hiring and Expansion

Keller and Heckman added Counsel Daniel P. McGee to the firm’s Tobacco and E-Vapor practice. Mr. McGee’s experience includes counseling companies on a broad range of complex tobacco industry and U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulatory matters and developing strategies to help companies bring new products to market.

“Daniel’s expertise and industry perspective will be invaluable to Keller and Heckman clients who are carefully navigating the challenges and pitfalls of a highly regulated and rapidly evolving legal landscape,” said Azim Chowdhury, a Partner in the firm’s Tobacco and E-Vapor and Food and Drug practices. “In addition to expanding our tobacco and e-vapor capabilities, we are especially looking forward to utilizing Daniel’s expertise in state law compliance, particularly for clients expanding into the hemp and CBD categories.”

Richard Mann, Chair of Keller and Heckman’s Management Committee, expressed excitement over Mr. McGee’s joining the firm, saying. “The addition of Daniel to our practice demonstrates Keller and Heckman’s commitment to helping our clients understand and comply with continuously evolving regulations in this growing field.”

Mr. McGee said he’s looking forward to collaborating with the Tobacco and E-Vapor team at Keller and Heckman.

“After spending the bulk of my legal career as in-house counsel to the tobacco industry, I made a strategic decision to focus on the industry as a whole and join a law firm that is a leader in tobacco regulatory compliance and public policy initiatives.”

Norris McLaughlin, P.A. welcomed Michael J. Willner as a Member in the firm’s New York office. Mr. Willner joined the firm’s Real Estate, Finance, and Land Use Practice Group.

Mr. Willner works with individuals and entities involved with managing real estate assets, as well as condominiums and co-ops. He specializes in condominium and cooperative law, commercial and residential real estate transactions and related litigation.

Holtzman Vogel Baran Torchinksy & Josefiak PLLC opened a new office in Phoenix, Arizona. The firm held its ribbon cutting ceremony on April 26 for the office at the Esplenade with the Arizona Chamber of Commerce.

The office is led by resident Partner Christine Fort and Dallin M. Holt, Of Counsel.

“After over 20 years representing high-profile clients in all aspects of political and regulatory law, we are grateful to now open our fourth office to help support our growing roster of clients in the West,” said Managing Partner Jill Holtzman Vogel, former Chief Counsel for the RNC and a sitting member of the Virginia General Assembly. “We could have chosen anywhere to expand our reach, but Arizona and the Phoenix metro area is dynamic and fast-growing – just like our team. This is absolutely the right place for Holtzman Vogel to put down roots, and we are thrilled to open the doors and get started.”

Goldberg Segalla added Ian G. Zolty to the firm’s Workers’ Compensation group in Princeton, N.J.

Mr. Zolty has experience counseling and defending employers, insurance carriers, and third-party administrators in workers’ compensation matters throughout New Jersey, including hospitals, insurance companies and school boards, among others.

Legal Industry Recognition

City & State New York named three shareholders at Greenberg Traurig, LLP to its 2022 Energy & Environment Power 100 list: Steven C. Russo, Doreen U. Saia, and Zackary D. Knaub. The recognition spotlights significant legal professionals in the New York area that are “reshaping the energy industry – and rescuing our environment.”

Mr. Russo is the co-chair of the firm’s Environmental Practice, focusing his practice on environmental law, the National Environmental Policy Act, the State Environmental Quality Review Act, and more. Ms. Saia is the chair of the Albany Office’s Energy & Natural Resources Practice, where she focuses her efforts on supporting national and international electricity corporations and aiding in related financial transactions. Mr. Knaub is a shareholder in both the Environmental and the Government Law & Policy groups, practicing specifically in energy and environmental legal and government affairs matters, including litigation, dispute resolution, government procurement, and regulatory matters.

Tammie Alexander, chair of the Business Department at Steptoe & Johnson PLLC, is a 2022 Bar Foundation Fellow, appointed by the West Virginia Bar Foundation Board of Directors.  Recognizing lawyers and judges in West Virginia with noteworthy dedication to the practice of law, the Bar Foundation has nominated only 450 out of 6,000 eligible individuals since 1999. Since the program’s inception, 22 Steptoe & Johnson attorneys have been selected as fellows.

Ms. Alexander, located in the firm’s Morgantown office, focuses her practice on an array of topics, including banking, real estate, commercial transactions, title insurance, and construction matters. She primarily assists with large scale projects that involve multiple property owners, governmental agencies, and financial investors.

The South Carolina School of Law provided the Platinum Compleat Lawyer Award, the school’s highest alumni honor, to Erna Womble, retired litigation partner at Womble Bond Dickinson (US) LLP. Established in 1992, the Compleat Lawyer Awards are meant to recognize alumni for notable professional, civil, and legal accomplishments. Recipients are members of the field who exemplify professional competence, ethics, and integrity.

Erna Womble, who graduated from the University of South Carolina School of Law in 1986, joined Womble Bond Dickinson in 1987. Today, she serves as the Co-President of Clearly Bespoke Strategies, Inc., a strategic advising company. Ms. Womble said of the award: “I am profoundly honored by the award from the law school which began my career as a lawyer-in-training. One of my excellent professors often admonished that when lawyers cease to learn, they cease to be good lawyers. More than three decades later, I’m still a lawyer-in-training. I am forever grateful to my beloved firm which afforded me the singular privilege of raising children whilst working with scions of industry and holders of the public trust in serving some of the firm’s best clients.”

Women in the Legal Industry

The Los Angeles Business Journal announced their “Women of Influence: Attorneys,” list which included Stubbs, Alderton & Markiles’ Heather Antoine. The list highlighted lawyers working for large businesses in legal areas such as data protection and intellectual property law.

Heather Antoine focuses her law firm practice on corporate property and data protection as Chair of the firm’s Trademark & Brand Protection practice, and Co-Chair of the Privacy & Data Security practice group. Some of her credits include features in the Los Angeles Times and CNBC.

Robinson & Cole LLP voted partner Britt-Marie K. Cole-Johnson to join the firm’s Managing Committee, allowing her to participate in the firm’s policy and practice strategic development. This comes after a series of noteworthy recognitions in the legal field: Cole-Johnson was recently presented with the Distinguished Leader Award by the Connecticut Law Tribune’s Connecticut Legal Awards, and she was additionally selected as an honoree for The 100 Women of Color Gala & Awards.

“[Ms. Cole-Johnson] is well-known for her talents as a legal advisor but also for her deep commitment to community organizations. She joined the firm thirteen years ago after law school and has been a true and constant champion for equitable and inclusive business practices within the firm, with her clients, and within the community. I look forward to her bringing that leadership and perspective to our Managing Committee,” said Robinson & Cole colleague Rhonda J. Tobin.

The accolades followed a recent appointment by Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont for the Connecticut Paid Leave Authority board.

Romer Debbas, LLP formed an all-female, diverse Agency Lending & Affordable Housing Department, focusing on representation in the property market. Partner Carmen I. Pagan, and Associates Catherine M. Azevedo and Pamela U. Norbert lead the new team with years of legal knowledge in real estate financing, commercial property law and lending service providers.

The new department expanded the firm’s practice areas in bankruptcy, corporate and business law, immigration, litigation, taxation and trusts and estate law.

For more business of law legal news, click here to visit the National Law Review.

Article By Rachel Popa, Chandler Ford, and Jessica Scheck of The National Law Review / The National Law Forum LLC

Copyright ©2022 National Law Forum, LLC

10 Law Firm Newsletter Ideas to Attract Clients

How to Start and Grow a Newsletter for a Law Firm

Email marketing often gets a bad rap. After all, we all know the annoyance of getting spam and promotional emails. Much of this content just ends up deep in our inbox. The same can happen to newsletters… especially boring ones.

Don’t let your law firm email newsletter fall to this fate. In this guide, I’ll talk about how to start a successful newsletter and use it to attract clients.

Plus, you’ll get 10 content ideas for creating an engaging newsletter.

Why start a newsletter?

A study conducted by Law Technology Today found that 86% of law firms fail to collect an email address when they acquire a new lead. Starting an email newsletter is one way to prioritize growing your email list and taking down information to nurture users into potential clients.

With this in mind, an email newsletter is about more than just sending a generic email every month; instead, it can be an effective tool for drumming up new business for your law firm. It also gives you a medium through which you can share firm news, build trust with your subscribers, and establish your law firm’s brand.

Benefits of starting a law firm newsletter

Email newsletter marketing offers many benefits to your law firm. Beyond simply sending updates to your email list, an email newsletter can bring the following perks:

  • Connection – A law firm newsletter builds connection with your new and potential clients by telling them more about your firm and offering a way for subscribers to respond directly to your email.
  • Traffic – An effective newsletter can work to drive more users to your website and social media pages.
  • Sales – Newsletters offer a convenient way for subscribers to reach out to your firm, increasing the likelihood that they will turn into new clients.
  • Community – Sending a consistent newsletter can help drive users to your social media accounts, therefore growing your community and visibility on social.
  • Reputation Management – Email provides an avenue for you to build rapport with your audience, get ahead of bad PR, and ultimately build trust in your firm.

How to write a law firm email newsletter

Before you sit down and start typing away at your newsletter, you’ll want to understand the fundamentals of what it takes to write and market a great newsletter. Here’s how to get started.

Define your target audience

Generalism is the killer of many marketing campaigns. If you don’t define your target audience – that is, the interests and persona of the people you are trying to reach – you risk offering the wrong type of content to the wrong audience. And disjointed messaging won’t bring the client-generating results that you want.

Instead, you’ll want to brainstorm a few factors to ensure you are writing for your ideal audience. These factors include:

  • What types of legal services your audience is interested in
  • What legal issues they are struggling with most
  • What questions they’re likely to have about the legal process
  • What their goals are when it comes to hiring a lawyer
  • What interests they have in understanding law, the legal system, etc.

If you’ve been in your field for a while, you’ll likely have an idea of how to answer these questions. If you’re more green, you can always ask your network, social media followers, and existing clients some of these questions to better understand their interests.

Grow your email list

Of course, before you can see results from an email newsletter you’ll need an audience to send it to! Now, building an email list organically takes time, but it’s worth it to build a list of subscribers who are actually interested in your content.

Never buy email subscribers, as these will likely be dead accounts or otherwise users who will never work with you. Instead, invest in blogging and website marketing in order to grow your community organically.

Here are some tips for growing your law firm email list:

  1. Embed a signup form on your website in order to capture users’ contact information (at the very least, their email address and name)
  2. Publish helpful blog content to drive organic search engine traffic and traffic from social media
  3. Offer downloadable content – like PDFs, infographics, guides, etc. – behind a sign-up wall to encourage users to subscribe
  4. Use email marketing software like Mailchimp to add email list signup forms to various pages or articles on your website
  5. Offer value with impactful content. If you’re able to demonstrate that you are an authority in your industry, people will be excited to subscribe for future updates

Plan your content

With your target audience in mind, you can begin to plan your newsletter content. I highly recommend choosing a “theme” and then building out a newsletter based on that theme.

For example, one month you may decide to talk about common mistakes people make in hiring a lawyer. So, you write four newsletters over the course of the month – each one addressing a different ‘mistake’ people make and how to avoid it.

You can use a notebook, Google Doc, or spreadsheet to plan your content and keep organized. Try to plan at least a month in advance so you are prepared with content ideas ahead of time. You can even write your content and schedule the delivery weeks or months out.

Write your newsletter

Whether you consider yourself a good writer or not, drafting a great email newsletter is relatively simple. There are just a few tips to keep in mind to help you produce engaging content every time:

  • Write an eye-catching subject line. Rather than simply say “newsletter”, you can include the actual subject of your email (e.g. ‘Don’t make this mistake…) to entice subscribers to click
  • Make it “scannable”. Instead of typing a long wall of text, break your email content into shorter paragraphs, sentences, or bulleted lists. This makes it easier for readers to ‘scan’ your content and find the content they are interested in.
  • ‘Close the loop’. This is a concept I got from an email copywriter. Open your email with a ‘hook’ – could be a tip, a question, or an intro to a story – and then resolve the hook at the end of your email. For example, you could open with “Many clients make a huge mistake in hiring a lawyer…” and then at the end of the email you say “Don’t want to make that mistake? Here’s how to avoid it…”. This keeps readers interested from start to finish.
  • Add a link. Include links to related blog posts, social media posts, videos, etc. to drive traffic to your other channels.
  • Include a call to action. Either encourage readers to respond to a question (e.g. “What do you think about…?”), contact you directly (e.g. “Respond now to schedule a consultation”), or visit your other platforms (e.g. “Visit our website to learn more about…”).

Use an email platform

Email marketing software like Mailchimp and ConvertKit makes it easy to write, format, schedule, and deliver your newsletter content. There’s no need to create a long CC chain to your subscribers and send your email manually. These tools allow you to send your newsletter to an entire list, schedule the delivery date, add media, and more.

Preview and test your newsletter

It’s always a good idea to preview your newsletter to check if you made any mistakes. Further, send yourself a test email to make sure there are no delivery issues. You can then also see how your newsletter looks on different devices and decide if you need to change up your content.

Send it out

Once your email template is complete, give it a final once-over for any selling issues or mistakes. When you’ve double-checked your content, you’re ready to send it to your email list.

Track results

Most email marketing tools will also provide analytics regarding your email open rate, subscriber growth, or unsubscribe rate. These metrics will help you determine the success of your newsletter and make adjustments over time. For example, if you see that your open rate is low, that may mean you need more engaging subject lines. Or, if there have been a lot of unsubscribes, this may mean users aren’t enjoying your content.

Try these creative law firm newsletter ideas

Now, the funnest part of publishing an email newsletter is the amount of creativity there is in thinking up content ideas. I strongly encourage you to be adventurous with your newsletter and not be afraid of veering from the same old script.

Here are some creative law firm newsletter ideas for you to consider:

1. Topic series

Produce a series of newsletters that cover a primary topic. For example, you can commit the month of November to talk about “DUI FYIs”, in which you reveal helpful tips in addressing a DUI over a series of emails. This approach gets subscribers looking forward to your upcoming emails and makes it easier for you to plan your content.

2. Q&A

The legal process can be super confusing for clients and the general public. With this idea, you can address a single question and answer via email over the course of the campaign. Again, this can encourage users to look forward to your upcoming Q&A sessions.

3. Interviews

Know an industry expert who has a perspective to share? Highlight this individual and provide value to your audience by including an interview in your newsletter. You can do this several times in your email marketing strategy. And, it can get subscribers to ask questions to your email campaign, which is great for deliverability and engagement.

4. Email course

Some topics warrant a deeper explanation. For subscribers wanting to learn more about the legal process or a particular topic, you can offer a multi-step email course. They will have to open each email to get new nuggets of information and to complete the course.

5. Videos

It’s no secret that today’s users love video content. Including videos in your emails is a good way to improve open rates and direct users to your video (typically, your YouTube channel or website). Be sure to include “Video:” in your email subject line to encourage subscribers to one your email.

6. Templates

Many email marketing platforms offer professional-looking email templates you can use so you don’t have to design your newsletter from scratch. A great-looking email could encourage users to engage with your content. Typically, these templates include social media icons as well, which can direct more traffic to these platforms. You can update colors, fonts, logos, images, and more.

7. ‘Get to know me’

When new subscribers join your newsletter, they may not know much about you. A “Get to know me” email can help introduce them to you, your interests, and your approach to law. Keep it fun by sharing interesting facts about yourself, likes and dislikes, hobbies, or whatever you think will be exciting to your audience.

8. Meet the team

Similarly, you can run a “Meet the team” series to introduce your entire staff to your list. This is a great way to build trust and provide that added human connection. If you have a large staff, consider breaking this out into several emails for even more content.

9. Storytime

Email subscribers love a good story. Now, while you don’t want to share any confidential information about your cases, you could share lessons learned from the industry, funny office stories, or a personal life story. You can even slowly tell the story over a course of emails to keep readers interested.

10. In the news

We’ve all come across hot news stories where celebrities land themselves in legal trouble or a large company is going under. Turn trending topics into legal lessons, offer your own unique spin, and make the legal process more relatable to your readers. We are all talking about these pop culture stories anyway, might as well use it for great email content!

Email newsletters build connection with your audience

An email newsletter is one of the best ways to build trust and connection with potential and existing clients. Remember, subscribers care less about “marketing content” and more about the value your firm can provide, the stories you tell, and how you can help them navigate their legal woes.

So, keep things fun and interesting with creative email content. Try different media, switch up topics, and, above all, stay consistent so you nurture a strong, engaged audience.

Copyright 2022 © Hennessey Digital

Article By Jason Hennessey with Hennessey Digital.

For more articles about law firm management, please visit the NLR Business of Law section.

A Lawyer’s Guide to Integrated Marketing

Like many lawyers, I did not learn about marketing in law school. I knew nothing about communications or media relations before law school, either. When I graduated and began practicing at a boutique matrimonial law firm, there was no internal or external marketing resource, and no direct conversations or plans about public relations or branding. One founding partner talked about the importance of reputation for connecting with potential clients and how his connections in the legal community resulted in many referrals, but he never mentioned marketing.

Yet, as I tagged along to bar association meetings, drafted articles that the partner published in a legal journal, and received encouragement to network at Inns of Court sessions, I saw this side of legal practice come to light. We didn’t call it marketing, or PR, and it was well before social media, but I understood that the partner was intentionally marketing the practice and generating awareness of the firm’s experience — an effort that resulted in new client engagements.

When I decided to leave law after a few years, I enrolled in a New York University course about marketing for professional services. As luck would have it, the instructor was Deborah Brightman Farone, an extraordinary legal marketer then and now — she was inducted into the Legal Marketing Association’s Hall of Fame at the organization’s 2022 annual conference. Deborah introduced me to the field of law firm marketing, and since then, I have worked with hundreds of lawyers and professional marketers on business development and integrated marketing plans, and have helped them make marketing part of their daily practice.

Most lawyers need to understand what this marketing thing is all about. I see firsthand their appreciation for the importance of building client relationships, cross-selling expertise within the firm, and networking. However, I don’t see an understanding of the terms and tactics of legal marketing as often. I think that with so much to learn in law school, there just isn’t time to learn the business side of law. Once a lawyer is practicing law, there may be little direction about how to reach prospects and referral sources, stand apart from other lawyers doing similar work, and find time to “market oneself.”

I frequently read articles where lawyers describe their routes to becoming partner or managing a practice or office. The words “PR” or “marketing” may not appear in their answers, but as someone who has advised lawyers about practice growth for more than 20 years, I know that positioning themselves as knowledge leaders played a role in the success of their relationship-building and practice development. And that, of course, is marketing.

This article will take you through five steps I always examine with lawyers who are just getting started with marketing, or participating in a firmwide marketing program.

  1. Acknowledge the Need for Education

Earning a JD and passing the bar exam prepare a lawyer for the practice of law, but not the business of law. My colleague Vivian Hood recently wrote, “Law schools focus on teaching the art of law, and not so much on the art of connections.” Courses about marketing, public relations, or social media are not part of the law school curriculum. Rather, law school teaches students to read cases and apply precedent, analyze facts and frame arguments, and spot the real issues and see the red herrings. Likewise, legal writing courses, moot court competitions, internships, and other hands-on work prepare them for practicing law. Their understanding of marketing may extend to billboards they see on their way to work, law firm ads in legal journals, or networking events with bar associations.

Lawyers know how to practice law, but do not know what marketing is or how it supports business development and revenue. Education is the first step to heightening awareness. On many occasions, I have explained how PR works so lawyers understand the events that result in being quoted in a trade publication, or the behind-the-scenes steps that go into earning a speaking engagement at an industry event.

  1. Discuss Perceptions of Marketing

The only way to know how an attorney perceives marketing is to ask, and then provide guidance about worthwhile and suitable marketing efforts.

Lawyers often shy away from marketing because they associate it with sales. My colleague Glennie Green explains, “Most attorneys envision some sort of sales when the idea of marketing and business development comes up. They see car salespeople, or aggressive pitches for timeshares. But that is the wrong mindset. Business development is not sales. Business development is cultivating and nurturing relationships.”

Relationships can be built in many ways. A common misconception is that marketing success is based on the ability to be a natural rainmaker who can walk into any room and instantly make connections for the firm. That belief can create unrealistic expectations and undue stress, because rainmakers are few and far between. Relationships can be built and nurtured without that unique rainmaker quality. Everyone adapts to situations differently ­— some of us are introverts, others extroverts, or a combination of traits.

  1. Assess the Impact of Previous Experiences

Lawyers may base their perceptions of marketing on prior experiences. Lawyers have told me, “I wrote many articles in the past, and they never amounted to any new business.”

“I traveled to speak at a conference, and not a single attendee turned out to be a new client.”

“I did an interview with a reporter who misquoted me.”

“I have a LinkedIn profile, but I’m not interested in doing anything with it; it’s just like Facebook.”

Many people fear failure, and many transactional lawyers and litigators are driven by winning. It is no surprise, then, that lawyers question the value of something that has not been a winner in the past. Understanding and acknowledging these hesitations can lead to productive discussions about marketing and, more specifically, about techniques that may be better suited for the lawyer.

  1. Discuss the Time Commitment

The billable-hour model of legal practice can affect a lawyer’s availability to market their practice. Too many business-driving commitments will inevitably frustrate a lawyer and diminish the success of marketing. It’s better to work with a distinct set of action items that can take only a few minutes a day rather than many hours each week.

Glennie Green has helped lawyers identify their advocates — assistants, paralegals, the firm’s librarians; people they can partner with to achieve their action items. One managing partner with a busy practice serves as an example of this effort. “He has made a commitment to conduct a certain number of meetings a month with current and potential referral sources,” she says. “He enlists a paralegal in the office to help schedule those meetings, as well as maintain his ‘marketing’ calendar. This allows him to keep his focus on his practice and manage the firm. He regularly checks his calendar for new appointments, and he says he looks forward to seeing whom he will meet with next. Once he realized that he didn’t have to do it all and enlisted some help, his plan and marketing goals became not only manageable but systematic.”

  1. Find the Comfort Zone

Marketing efforts must be tailored to a lawyer’s personality and interests. Everyone has a different comfort level. Some lawyers love to speak at conferences, and others would rather research a case and write an analysis for a journal. One lawyer may already enjoy engaging on social media, and another may feel crushed for time but would be amenable to doing a 30-minute interview with a reporter. Perhaps a lawyer may enjoy participating in an association’s events or committees. Green explains, “Knowing a lawyer’s areas of confidence, and recognizing what causes any discomfort, is crucial to establish the right marketing plan with the flexibility to change direction as needed.”

The avenues for marketing include website content and branding, social media posts and engagement, media relations, published quotes and articles, rankings submissions and awards, conferences and speaking opportunities, networking, events, and more. The questions and conversations I’ve provided lead to more precise choices of marketing tactics, as well as more informed expectations of results. An integrated marketing and business development program offers lawyers a selection of tactics, with deliberate matching to their preferences and the flexibility to change as needed.

Article By Liz Bard Lindley of Jaffe

For more business of law legal news, click here to visit the National Law Review.

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