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How Lawyers and Other Professionals Can Set Up Their Work-From-Home Space During COVID-19

Since the federal government’s mandated social distancing orders due to covid-19, working from home has presented new challenges for professionals at law, real estate and financial firms alike. Below are four tips on how you can get acclimated in your redefined workplace.

Set Boundaries – One of the benefits of working from home is the ability to take advantage of the extra time on your hands since the work commute has vanished. However, it can be tempting to work from the most comfortable place in your home – your bed. Studies have found that working from your bed decreases productivity levels and makes it difficult to fall asleep at night because your brain associates your bed with work and stress. It is important to set boundaries between your workspace and your place of relaxation. Try setting up your space in a separate room such as the living room or guest room; in a smaller or studio apartment, you can set up a divider wall to establish designated spaces for work and play.
Lights, Camera, Action! – Having your workspace near a window where natural lighting can seep through is an energy booster and stress reliever. According to medical professionals, the rays from the sun improve the communication between the regions of the temporal lobe which control emotions such as anxiety and stress. Sunlight also produces endorphins and serotonin hormones – “happy” hormones – that enhance our moods throughout the day.
Minimize Distractions – While this is a challenge if your home has turned into a school and entertainment center, there are ways to avoid daily distractions. One example is limiting cell phone usage by using the “Screen Time’s Downtime” feature available on all Apple iPhone devices and many Android devices. Try setting it up during your work hours to avoid spending unnecessary time on social media. Wall calendars, daily to-do lists and designated browsers for personal and business activities can also keep your mind focused throughout the day. If you live with loved ones and/or roommates, establish “quiet hours” so everyone is on board and aware of your allocated time to focus.
Create a Routine – When adapting to this new reality, creating a routine is key to maintaining your mental wellness and productivity. Shower at the same time you normally would, wear what you would normally wear to the office (although loungewear may be tempting!) and prepare your preferred type of coffee, tea or infused water to start your day. Most notably, make sure you go outside and remain active to improve blood circulation to the brain. When it’s time to return to business as usual, you won’t feel sluggish and your mind will feel ready more than ever to tackle the day.

ARTICLE BY Shania Jackson at Berbay Marketing & Public Relations Firm.

For more on working from home, see the National Law Review Law Office Management section.

Legal News and Updates for January 2020: Law Firm Moves, Legal Industry Trends

Law firms and the businesses that surround them have hit the ground running in 2020, with tons of announcements, big moves by law firms and innovation across the entire field. Read on for a small taste of some of the exciting developments in the legal industry.

Hiring and Law Firm Moves

Patent preparation and prosecution law firm, Harrity & Harrity, LLP recently announced the firm had added four new patent attorneys: Joseph Lentivech, Patrick Hansen, McCord Rayburn, and Bret Tingey; as well as two new law clerks: Sara Ko and Abigail Troy.

Joseph Lentivech is based in Mobile, Alabama, and returns to Harrity & Harrity to practice after his service as an Administrative Patent Judge at the United States Patent Trademark Office (USPTO). His practice focuses on the prosecution of patent applications in electrical and computer technologies, encompassing telecommunications and computer hardware and software. Patrick Hansen will be based in the Raleigh office, and has experience representing petitioners and patent owners in post-grant proceedings, with specialization in patent applications for electrical, computer and mechanical technologies. McCord Rayburn has international patent experience, coordinating inbound national state patent application filings for foreign corporations, and he will work out of the law firm’s Charlotte office. Bret Tingey focuses on patent preparation and prosecution in mechanical and electrical technology, with extensive experience writing memos and briefs in IP litigation–including some submitted to the US Supreme Court–and he will be based in Raleigh. Law Clerks Sora Ko and Abigail Troy both have experience in patent preparation and prosecution before the USPTO and will work out of Harrity & Harrity’s DC office.

Paul Harritiy, a partner in the firm, called the group “superstars” and says, “we are excited for this group to join our team and assist the firm in continuing to provide excellent customer service to our Patent 300 clients.”

Lipson Neilson started off 2020 by announcing it has added nationally-recognized Surety & Fidelity Law attorneys Phillip G. Alber, Jeffrey M. Frank, Omar J. Harb, and Jessica L. Wynn, all four previously with Alber Frank PC law firm. Alber will head up a new Lipson Neilson office in Grosse Pointe, Michigan, and Frank, Harb and Wynn will be based in the firm’s Bloomfield Hills, Michigan office.

Jeffrey Neilson, a co-founder of the firm, says, “They’re a tremendous and immediate asset to our firm in the area of Surety & Fidelity Law and bring significant expertise in other areas of law and litigation as well. I think their decision to move to Lipson Neilson is a good indication of our reputation, our work and our culture.”

In a move that will strengthen the firm’s healthcare and corporate practices, Manatt announced that Paul A. Carr-Rollitt has joined as a healthcare partner in the Los Angeles office. Carr-Rollitt focuses his practice on corporate healthcare concerns, and his healthcare transaction experience includes mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, reorganizations, affiliations, public offerings, and private equity transactions. His practice includes advising non-traditional and traditional health care entities, and his advice is legal, business-oriented, and incorporates strategy as well as policy concerns. Bill Bernstein, the leader of Manatt Health, calls Carr-Rollitt a “perfect fit” with Manatt’s growing practice. Bernstein says, “He brings with him an excellent roster of clients and has a national healthcare practice, which encompasses both payers and providers.”

On his end, Carr-Rollitt says Manatt’s blending of strategy with legal advice is an approach he’s always appreciated. “I am excited to be part of a firm that has a strong understanding of and commitment to the future of the healthcare industry and to work with some of the most forward-thinking professionals from coast to coast,” he says.

Last week, Katten announced that Mitchel C. Pahl has joined its Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation practice as a partner in the New York office. Pahl’s practice concentrates on employee benefits and executive compensation in private and public company M&A’s. He has also been involved in high-profile corporate transactions in a variety of industries including real estate, health care, and financial services. Additionally, he has advised clients on the operation and design of qualified retirement plans, equity incentive plans, and other compensation arrangements, as well as on negotiating executive employment agreements and separation packages.

Kate Ulrich Saracene, Katten partner and leader of the firm’s Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation practice, praises Pahl’s decades of experience across complex transactions. “Mitch also brings new capabilities to Katten with his focus on qualified retirement plans, benefit plans for non-profits and experience working with ESOPs,” says Saracene. “With the addition of Mitch, we’ve achieved our goal of building a full-service employee benefits and executive compensation practice, able to advise any type of client on any type of plan or transaction.”

Cornerstone Research started off 2020 by naming Dr. Yesim C. Richardson as President. In a departure for the organization, Richardson will share leadership with CEO Rahul Guha, who also took on his role on January 1, 2020. The duo succeeds Michael E. Burton, who had served in both roles since July of 2014.

Yesim Richardson Cornerstone Research — Yesim Richardson

After a period of succession planning, the organization decided it made the most sense to divide the responsibilities of the CEO and President, and have two individuals fill those roles instead of combining them. “At this stage in our history,” says Dr. Guha, “we believe splitting the CEO and president responsibilities ensures the most effective leadership structure for our future.” Prior to her appointment as President, Dr. Richardson served on Cornerstone Research’s board of directors, and has been active on firm governance committees. In her new role as president, she will focus on talent strategies and service delivery, and continue to consult and support Cornerstone Research experts on litigation matters and other consulting questions. “Cornerstone Research has always lived its values . . .we have been guided by our commitment to deliver top-quality work to our clients, provide exceptional support to our experts, and develop pathways to leadership for our outstanding staff,” says Richardson. “We have enhanced the way we run the firm to support this commitment even more fully. I am proud and grateful to partner with Rahul as we look ahead to the continued growth and success of this extraordinary company.”

Porter Wright announced last week that Deb Boiarsky was promoted into the firm’s Chief Operating Partner position. This development comes after the firm has grown, with two new offices and a 30-percent partner increase across the firm. Boiarsky focuses her practice on employee benefits–specifically ERISA and IRS compliance–but in her role as the Chief Operating Partner, she will work with firm leadership to oversee day to day operations at the firm with an eye towards strategy and securing firm growth and development. Bob Tannous, managing partner of Porter Wright and the former Chief Operating Partner, indicates that a business mentality is key to success in this role. “Deb is known for being measured and considerate,” he points out, “and for fostering strong relationships in and outside of the firm.”

Law Firm Innovation and Developments

Kluk Farber, a female-founded law firm in New York and Los Angeles, has partnered with Vivvi Early Learning, a provider of employer-sponsored on and near-site child care, to provide children aged six weeks to five years access to near-site back-up care. Vivvi has worked in a variety of industries with employers to provide childcare for employees, including hospitality, media, and advertising. Partnering with companies who understand childcare is a major pain point for their employees, and their solution can increase employee morale while lowering turnover and absenteeism.

Kluk Farber, already a progressive leader in the legal industry for providing flex-time and supporting work-life balance, entered into this partnership acknowledging that the way child care is traditionally set up is not ideal for working families. “Being a female in law is not an easy feat to begin with, but having a family and achieving work-life integration? That’s nearly impossible,” she says. “We learned of Vivvi’s transformational work through the NYC female founder community, and knew instantly that it was a resource we needed to integrate immediately.”

Norton Rose Fulbright advised on the development and implementation of the world’s first consumer-ready digital fiat currency, assisting NZIA Limited to create the currency for the Central Bank of the Bahamas. The currency, known as “Sand Dollars” is a central bank digital currency_or CBDC–and is part of Project Sand Dollar. Sand Dollars will be issued by the state’s central bank, and are the same as legal tender, backed by the government and used by the public. The currency went live in digital wallets in December of 2019 and was used locally immediately after, as local businesses were onboarded through banks and other financial institutions. Now, the sand dollars are basically, legally, the same as cash.

The Bahamas was one of the first areas to develop a CBDC, and the island nation will benefit in a variety of ways; including inclusion in the financial system of unbanked and improved expenditure and tax systems. Norton Rose Fulbright Vancouver-based partner, John Kim, commented: “The innovative nature of Project Sand Dollar required us to provide equally innovative solutions to our client. Our input resulted in a system that would not only meet the requirements of current financial and regulatory regimes but actually leverage them to provide a CBDC solution that enables people to conduct more secure and instant transactions.”

Fortis Law Partners will now offer legal guidance on estate planning practice, assisting clients with asset-protection strategies, gift planning, and tax reduction. Paige K. Justus, a senior corporate associate with the firm, will head the practice, which will also assist clients with wealth protection strategies, wills, living trusts, powers of attorney, guardian designations for minor children and healthcare declarations. Along with individual estate planning strategies, the estate planning practice group will work with nonprofits desirous of obtaining tax-exempt status assistance.

Legal Technology and Industry Developments

Embroker, Inc, a digital insurance company, announced the Lawyers’ Professional Liability platform, ideal for both large and small law practices. This platform allows law firms across a variety of sizes to secure and enroll in legal malpractice insurance quickly, efficiently and affordably.

Embroker CEO Matt Miller says the new Embroker platform can leverage technology to improve a traditionally onerous process. “They [attorneys] only have to spend a few minutes on each year and receive a quote from an A+ rated insurance provider,” Miller says. “By leveraging Embroker technology, our overhead is less intensive than the traditional decades-old model, and we are also able to provide lower rates that are going to be very attractive.”

Embroker will target law firms with 1-10 attorneys nationally, as these are traditionally most impacted by the onerous process of purchasing malpractice insurance without large staffs. The platform is currently available in 31 states, with approval pending in other states as the product is offered nationwide.

Lex Mundi recently released its Global M&A Trends Report, featuring insights from almost 70 Lex Mundi member firms from all over the world. Each of these firms shared insights on mergers and acquisitions within their purview, focusing on key concerns facing M&A practitioners, deal activity by segment, and 2020 predictions. The report indicated that due diligence and deal structure rank highly, with 18% and 14% of member firms respectively ranking those issues as major areas of concern. Matters of cybersecurity and data privacy are spurring concerns in due diligence, as buyer companies are working to mitigate risk across cyber, anti-corruption, and data privacy.

Despite global disruptions such as trade wars, Brexit, and economic instability, the majority of Lex Mundi Member firms (as much as 60%) indicated they expected M&A activity to remain the same in 2020; with the top industries such as energy and power, financial services, manufacturing, technology, healthcare, and life sciences seeing heavy activity.

Last week Jennifer Schaller moderated a panel at the 27th Annual Marketing Partner Forum in Miami, Florida on Client Journey Mapping for Law Firms. In conjunction with the discussion on Client Journey Mapping, the National Law Review is conducting a survey on elements of client journey mapping, and we will be analyzing and writing up the results. The survey is still open, so please consider taking a few minutes to add your insights. All responses are completely confidential.

That’s it for now. More to come as 2020 progresses!

ARTICLE BY Eilene Spear of The National Law Review / The National Law Forum LLC.

For more legal industry news, see the Law Office Management section of the National Law Review.

Legal Industry Trends for November 2019: Law Firm News, Diversity Awards and Legal Technology Updates

As we march on to the end of 2019 and into the holiday season, the legal industry continues to buzz with constant development and innovation. Read on to learn about a few of the highlights happening in law firms across the United States, legal technology developments that are changing the way law is practiced, and things to anticipate in 2020.

Law Firm Developments, Hires and Moves

Buchalter recently announced the formation of a new Cannabis & Hemp Industry Law Group This, in many ways, is formalizing a group that has been operating for several years. In 2013, it all began when a client of the firm was tasked with operating a medical cannabis collective. Since then, the group has expanded to over 100 clients in the industry utilizing over twenty-five lawyers across each of its practice groups, demonstrating the broad reach of the cannabis industry. Building on those early experiences, Buchalter’s Cannabis & Hemp Industry law group will assist businesses in the industry across a variety of areas, including intellectual property, tax, real estate and financing. Oren Bitan, Shareholder in the LA office will co-chair the group with Martin P. Florman, Managing Shareholder of the Orange County office. Florman says, “We anticipate significant growth of this industry over the next decade while we continue to offer clients unparalleled expertise in distressed assets, banking and the Bank Secrecy Act, and real estate related concerns in this rapidly evolving industry.”

Davis Graham & Stubbs LLP, in Denver, Colorado announced the addition of four associates Omeed M. Azmoudeh (Trial Department); Stephanie Block-Guedez (Finance & Acquisitions Department); Molly Kokesh (Trial Department); and Rob McCary (Finance & Acquisitions Department). These additions will bolster the firm’s litigation and finance and acquisitions department, and two of the associates, Azmoudeh and McCary, were formerly summer associates at the firm.

Jeff Cody Norton Rose Fulbright — Jeff Cody of Norton Rose Fulbright

Norton Rose & Fulbright recently announced the election of Jeff Cody as its U.S. Managing Partner, effective Jan. 1, 2020. Cody will also serve as Chair of the U.S. Management Committee. The outgoing managing partner, Daryl Lansdale, says: “Jeff has a passion for our firm, its people and our clients. Our partnership has the utmost confidence in Jeff to provide leadership and vision during a time of change and innovation in the legal profession.”

Cody has been a partner with the firm since 2001, and is based in Norton Rose’s Dallas office. He has significant experience in complex commercial disputes in healthcare, financial and information technology industries; specifically healthcare reimbursement matters, complex stock and asset purchase and sale agreements, and information systems development projects. Cody: “I am proud and honored to be entrusted by my partners with this leadership responsibility. I am confident in the firm and optimistic about our future in this dynamic legal landscape. With leading lawyers across the U.S. and around the world, we stand committed to delivering a superior client experience with high-quality and high-value legal advice.”

Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP announced that digital health regulatory advisor Yarmela Pavlovic will join the firm as a partner in its Health and Digital and Technology Groups. Yarmela has extensive experience working with digital health, software as a medical device and assisting life sciences companies as they navigate the FDA approval process. Lisa Suennen, who leads Manatt’s Digital and Technology practice, says: “Healthcare products and services companies at the intersection of technology and health are facing increasingly complex and rapidly changing regulatory processes, requiring expert counsel to plan and engage with the regulatory bodies that make it possible for high-quality health innovations to come to market. Yarmela’s experience will be a tremendous value-add to our already significant capabilities in the digital realm.” Pavlovic, who describes her work as “a mix of legal and consulting” is excited to join Manatt, and says: “Manatt is the ideal next step in the growth of my practice and will help me provide an even wider array of capabilities to both startups and large companies that engage with the FDA.”

Calfee, Halter & Griswold LLP recently announced the hiring of Phillip A. Casey to co-chair Calfee’s Public Utility Regulatory practice group. Casey has more than 25 years of experience in energy law focusing on public utilities, both in house and within a law firm. His experience includes economic regulatory matters, corporate governance, new entrant certification, and regulatory strategies across jurisdictions. Additionally, he has incident response experience and major litigation management in this field. Casey calls Calfee’s energy practice “an incredibly talented group of experienced attorneys” and he says, “I look forward to demonstrating Calfee’s capabilities and leadership beyond Ohio and throughout the Midwest in this new role.”

Law Firm Awards, Recognition and Achievements

Benchmark Litigation, designed to feed the need for specialized study in the labor and employment practice area, provides rankings based on law firm questionnaires, peer review interviews and client reviews. The publication recently announced its second annual Labor and Employment guide and included three attorneys from Ward & Smith as “Labor and Employment” Stars: Ken Gray, Will Oden, and Devon Williams. Oden and Williams lead the firm’s Workplace Safety and Health Practice and the firm’s Labor and Employment practice, respectively. Gray focuses his practice on employment-related litigation, advising clients from start-ups to Fortune 500 companies on breach of employment contracts, employment discrimination and wrongful discharge matters.

Ballard Spahr was recently named the “Law Firm of the Year” recognition for Litigation – First Amendment in 2020 Best Law Firms by U.S. News & World Report. This was on top of the 25 National Tier 1 rankings the firm achieved across a variety of areas, and especially noteworthy as only one law firm per legal practice earns that designation. Firm Chair Mark Stewart sees the award rankings as evidence of the success of the firm’s efforts to grow nationally in depth and experience. Stewart: “By executing our plan to expand thoughtfully and strategically, and keeping our focus on legal excellence and client value, we are serving more clients better than ever before.”

Jeff White Robinson Cole — Jeff White of Robinson Cole

Jeff White of Robinson Cole was recently named a “New England Trailblazer” in the inaugural list by Law.com and Connecticut Law Tribune for demonstrating an ability to “move the needle in the legal industry.” White, the chair of Robinson Cole’s Manufacturing Industry Practice, has significant experience on national and international issues related to the manufacturing industry, and this recognition is further evidence of his understanding of the challenges and need for change in some areas facing the industry. White: “With technological advances driving the boom in manufacturing, we need to continue to innovate in the kinds of things we’re focusing on. Our job as lawyers is to stay on top of these developments, because they’re going to have major implications that manufacturers deal with going forward.”

Under White’s leadership of Robinson Cole’s Manufacturing practice group, the group has risen to prominence as a leader in the field. One of his signature achievements was the creation of the Manufacturing Law Blog, which focuses on issues related to manufacturing rather than casting a wider, more business in general, net. In further recognition of his leadership in the manufacturing industry, in May of 2019 Robinson+Cole was recognized with the President’s “E” Award for Export Service by the United States Secretary of Commerce. The “E” award, established by President John F. Kennedy in 1961 is the highest recognition any U.S. entity can receive for making a significant contribution to the expansion of U.S. exports. Robinson+Cole was the only law firm in the country to receive the honor in 2019.

Law Firm Diversity Recognition

The law firm of Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner was recognized for its long-standing commitment to diversity by the Leadership Council on Legal Diversity, or LCLD. The organization named the firm a 2019 Top Performer and a 2019 Compass Award winner, one of only 21 member organizations that earned both designations this year. The awards indicate a participation in the organization’s programs, such as the Fellows and Pathfinder programs, as well as at least one pipeline program (Mentoring or 1L Scholars).

Bryan Cave is a long-standing member of LCLD, having been a member since the organization began. BCLP participates in the organization’s Fellows and Pathfinder programs, as well as the 1L LCLD Scholars Program and the LCLD Success in Law School Mentoring Program. The recognition came recently at LCLD’s Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C.

In more good news about legal industry diversity, the Diversity and Flexibility Alliance recognized fifty-one law firms for having a partner class in 2019 comprised of 50% or more female partners. These firms “tipped the scales” and were identified in the New Partner Report. The Report, a compilation of publicly available information and reported sources, revealed that 41.3 percent of new partners in 138 major U.S. law firms in 2019 were women, an increase of just over 2% from 2018. As well as the annual increase, the New Partner Report showed that women promoted to partnership is on an upswing overall, with an 8.1% increase since 2012, and more firms across the board are promoting partner classes that are more than 50% women, showing a trend towards “tipping the scales.” Click here for a full list of firms that were recognized for their 2019 Partner Class.

Law Firm Accomplishments and Deals

Sherin and Lodgen’s Renewable Energy Team represented Cambridge Savings Bank in developing a portfolio construction bridge and term loan for three ground-mounted solar facilities in Massachusetts. The project, built by Kearsarge Energy, will generate 8.8 MW of energy and features a 1.6 MW advanced technology battery storage component and will be one of the first to be implemented under the SMART program. The battery storage component is especially exciting, as industry analysts think this type of storage has the power to transform the renewable energy development and distribution in the near future. Sherin and Lodgen’s renewable team was led by Bethany A. Bartlett, renewable energy chair, and Colleen V. Collins, of counsel, and Tyler N. Ballew, and included syndicate partners Eastern Bank and Middlesex Savings Bank.

Global law firm DLA Piper represented SunTrust Robinson Humphrey and SunTrust Bank in closing of U.S. $60 million credit facility for Electric Entertainment. Electric Entertainment is a LA based production company founded by Dean Devlin. Devlin is a well-known producer, whose credits include films such as Stargate and Independence Day, and television series like The Librarian and Leverage. The credit facility will finance upcoming projects on WGN and the CW, and develop other film and television projects. The DLA Piper team representing SunTrust Robinson Humphrey and SunTrust Bank was led by partner Tom Ara, co-chair of the firm’s Entertainment Transactions and Finance practices, and included partner Afshin Beyzaee and associates Greg Young, Payvand Coyle and Rahul Sajnani (all of Los Angeles).

Looking at Pro-Bono work, during National Pro Bono Week in the United Kingdom, and Hogan Lovells ranked number one in Legal Week’s survey for the firm’s pro bono efforts in the UK. The firm did a total of 27,704 pro bono hours in the UK for 2018, and the publication also recognized the firm’s contribution to a variety of projects, including the Westminster and London Bridge inquests. Yasmin Waljee, International Pro Bono Director of Hogan Lovells called the recognition “fantastic.” She said: ” It is not the hours of pro bono that matter but the remarkable impact of the work undertaken by all the firms listed and those that were not.”

Legal Industry Trends, Research and Upcoming Events

Legal Technology company InCloudCounsel announced two new software automation enhancements powered by proprietary research in AI and machine learning. The developments are an Automated initial contract review; that automatically scans and flags clauses that conflict with negotiation requirements, helping to ease the negotiation stage and expedite the review process. The next piece comes into play when negotiation is finished–an AI-powered scorecard creates an abstract summary of key terms in the agreement, scanning the final agreement identifying the key terms in the common clauses. These tools were developed with InCloudCounsel’s proprietary technology, and assist attorneys in working more efficiently and accurately, maximizing their efforts to deliver legal services to their clients.

Hadayat Seddiqi, led the innovation process in his role as director of machine learning at InCloudCounsel. Hadayat’s resume includes work on space exploration robots at NASA, quantum computing at the Department of Energy and DNA sequencing software with a biotech startup. He says, “Our artificial intelligence models bring valuable tools to a field that historically has been very difficult to build similar solutions for. Our models are understanding increasingly complex abstract language and concepts – allowing our proprietary AI to automate a growing number of narrow tasks.”

The Legal Marketing Association released its agenda for the organization’s annual meeting in Denver, Colorado on March 25 -March 27, 2020. The committee putting the conference together, led by Kristen Bateman Leis of Parker Poe and Jonathan Mattson of BakerHostetler LLP, have put together an agenda focused around the organization’s body of knowledge, with an emphasis on wellness and mental health. The keynote speaker, Baratunde Thurston, a comedian, writer and cultural critic whose resume includes work with the satirical Onion, advisor to the Obama White House and work on The Daily Show with Trevor Noah.

Future Marketing Insights recently released a new intelligence report, projecting that legal transcription investments will increase, and those investments will focus on automation of legal transcription services. The demand for legal transcription solutions is global, and accounts for revenues worth 3 billion, indicated by the FMI insights report. This is anticipated to grow at a Compound annual growth rate of ~6% for the next ten years. The report indicated a heavy investment in legal tech startups in Asia Pacific, driving innovation. Additionally, new and improved Automation and Machine Learning technologies, coupled with Natural Language Processing are expected to fuel growth. Challenges include diverse pricing models and legal formats, and customers are demanding predictability and pricing consistency. The market is fragmented and major players are still jockeying for regional dominance–and focusing on innovation, to make the most of the technologies available.

That’s what we’ve got for now. Stay warm and enjoy the upcoming Holiday Season!

ARTICLE BY Eilene Spear of The National Law Review / The National Law Forum LLC.

For more recent law firm news see the National Law Review Law Office Management page.

Technology as Opportunity for Law Firms

Technology is both a threat and an opportunity for law firms. On one end, technology has opened the door for market disruptors like LegalZoom and Rocketlawyer who provide some legal services faster and cheaper than law firms. Some of the low-hanging fruit that law firms and attorneys used to be able to count on is disappearing–or long gone. In a recent research study by Altman Weil, 21% of law firms surveyed said technology was a threat right now, and 53% of firms described technology as a future threat. But in many ways, technology is an opportunity for law firms. The proper technology can help law firms be better and faster, and it can provide law firms with the ability to provide clients with helpful information and analysis much faster than ever before. In our final installment of Re-Envisioning the Law Firm: How to Lead Change and Thrive in the Future, the survey from MPF Insight, the National Law Review will offer an overview of the recommendations surrounding technology in law firms offered in the survey.

Robert A. Young^[1] Former Chair, ABA Law Practice Division:

Technology has been increasingly important for today’s law firm with many experts predicting that it will soon surpass rent as your firm’s #2 expense after salaries. The time has come for managing partners to take a stronger and more proactive role in learning more about this vitally important area.

Having a plan for how technology fits in with your firm’s practice is a crucial part of any leadership strategy. Additionally, having an effective and robust cybersecurity policy in place is essential in today’s data-driven world.

Law Firms are investing more in technology. In 2016, firms surveyed increased law firms increased investment in the following areas by the following percentages:

Cybersecurity, 23% of respondents increased investment
Website, Internet & Digital marketing, 20% of respondents increased investment
Case Management Software, 12% of respondents increased investment
CRM & Database, 10% of respondents increased investment
Competitive Intelligence, 5% of respondents increased investment
Legal Research, 2% of respondents increased investment

Circle Graph Law Firm Technology Spending For obvious reasons, Cybersecurity is the top area for new investment with law firms. In fact, a Chase Cost Management survey report released in 2015 showed that AMLaw 200 firms spend an average of $8,000 per full-time equivalent on information security. As a major concern for law firms and their clients it is imperative that firms have all employees trained and all client data safely secured. Having cybersecurity as a living breathing part of your technology plan can help you reap the benefits of technology safely, and your firm and your clients will benefit. However, good cybersecurity isn’t simply changing your password every six weeks; it is a vital skill set that must be understood from the top down.

Sharon Nelson^[2], president of a digital forensics, information technology and information security firm says:

If your management mindset isn’t there, you are stuck in technological obsolescence. Good cybersecurity is good risk management, and better yet, a marketing tool to use with clients. Don’t just delegate this, that does not work. Learn it yourself, as much as you can-and lead by being knowledgeable–that’s how you ensure the future of your firm.

Website, Internet and Digital marketing is another area of growth in terms of law firm investment. Digital marketing tools can help a firm better target their marketing activities. Re-envisioning says, “The reach is as big or as small as you want it to be and the subject matter can be much more focused, speaking directly to industries and communities through email and social media channels.” By using the technology and data-gathering tools available, law firms can maximize their digital footprint and reach many more potential clients.

A final recommendation from the survey, “Don’t be held hostage by your technology vendors.” By embracing open-sourced Customer Management services and web development platforms, your firm can create a product that works seamlessly into your processes. The time and effort put in up front will pay off with the flexibility available in the end.

Technology is not going away, and the negative elements of technology are already happening. In order to enjoy the benefits technology has to offer, Law firm leadership needs to find the ways that technology can benefit their firms, their attorneys, and their clients.

ARTICLE BY Eilene Spear
Copyright ©2017 National Law Forum, LLC

This is the sixth article in this series. Please find the earlier articles below:

Time for a Change in Law Firm Leadership: A Preview of Re-Envisioning the Law Firm

Innovation, Change and Accountability: A Way Forward for Law Firm Leadership

Strategic Planning in Law Firms: Essential Steps for Success

Marketing Legal Services: It’s Everybody’s Job

Recruitment, Retention and Problematic Partners in Law Firms

_{^[1] Former Chair, ABA Law Practice Division and Former Managing Partner of English, Lucas Priest & Owsley}

_{^[2] President, State Bar of Virginia and Sensei Enterprises}

5 Killer Online Marketing Strategies for Law Firms

Certainly by now we can all agree that the Internet has transformed the legal industry, from how you market your law firm to how legal services are delivered. Still, for many lawyers, the Internet is a confusing place with so many options that can either make you or break you. So let me help simplify things for you. Here are five online marketing strategies that are gold when it comes to delivering leads and boosting your brand:

Narrow your choices. Unless you have an unlimited marketing budget, you can’t do it all — SEO, social media, pay-per-click, content marketing, email marketing, etc. If you throw a little bit at everything — the shotgun approach — you are wasting your money. Instead, focus on two things: (1) where your potential clients are, and (2) what you can measure. You have to be able to measure your success (or failure) to discover what works for your area of practice and to be able to build on the successes.

Use Facebook ads. There are 1.4 billion monthly Facebook users and half of those log in every day. One of the most powerful features of Facebook is ad targeting, the ability to layer targeting options on top of one another to create a highly specific audience. This enables you to target locally and get your ads in front of people who need your services now. Facebook ads are low-cost, so you can experiment to see what resonates with your potential clients and then repeat what works.

Capture leads with what you know. There is a vast amount of basic information you know that prospects want. And there are a number of tools available for you to disseminate this information to them, including blogs, eBooks and free reports. Offer these in exchange for contact information as added value and the leads will follow.

Think mobile. If your law firm website is not already optimized for mobile, make that happen fast. Mobile-friendly sites perform better in search results and also provide a better user experience for prospects.

Automate your lead conversion. A comprehensive law firm marketing program that embraces multiple marketing tools – SEO, PPC, ads, email marketing, social media, blogs, etc. – means leads come in from many different sources. If you don’t have an automated way to deal with them, leads will slip through the cracks and all that hard work and financial investment will be for nothing. Small law firms lose tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars every year because they aren’t tracking their leads and quickly following up with them. Mid-sized law firms are losing millions. Lost leads also hurt your reputation with your referral sources if they supplied the referral and your team doesn’t follow through on the lead.

Authority Marketing and Thought Leadership for Law Firms with John McDougall of McDougall Interactive [PODCAST]

Listen as we speak with John McDougall, McDougall Interactive, on authority marketing and thought leadership for law firms.

Nicole Minnis: Hi everyone. I’m Nicole Minnis with the National Law Review. I’m here today with John McDougall, the President of McDougall Interactive and author of legalmarketingreview.com. Today, we’re going to be talking about authority marketing and thought leadership for law firms.

Welcome, John.

John McDougall: Welcome. Thanks for having me.

Nicole: Thank you. Do you want to go ahead and get started with a little bit of background about McDougall Interactive and what your team is doing?

John: McDougall Interactive is in Danvers, Massachusetts. I started in ’95 at my father’s ad agency doing Internet Marketing. I was actually a media planner before that in ’94 at the agency.

Ever since ’95, I’ve been doing all digital marketing, and now we work with a lot of law firms in different areas, both business to consumer and B2B.

Nicole: It sounds like you have a lot of wonderful expertise that you can draw from while we’re talking today, so I’m looking forward to getting a little bit of insight myself.

John, tell me, what is authority marketing and why is it important to law firms?

John: Authority marketing isn’t a really popular term yet and we’re trying to change that, because thought leadership is quite well known and people, in particular law firms, like to build up their reputation as leaders in certain practice areas by blogging on certain topics.

Authority marketing is taking that idea of building up your thought leadership in a systematic way, so that you can eventually turn your blog and your content into ebooks that become a printed book. Then as an author you get more media engagements, more speaking engagements. It all ties together in a way that also Google will appreciate.

That’s one of the real reasons, as an SEO company, again back from ’95, when we were saying “content is king.” Even in ’95, we used to say that.

We’ve been trying for all these years to get our customers really on board with building up content. It’s often quite hard to do that. What we realized is sometimes people are thought leaders and experts but they don’t have time to write.

Sometimes we do interviews to get their content out there, but the idea is that Google is going to pick up on that. The more you blog and have good content, your SEO rankings will go significantly up.

Authority marketing has good things about just your offline marketing and thought leadership, but it’s really good for Google Organic SEO.

Nicole: Do you recommend that lawyers use more news story content type things, or would they write on evergreen topics, like the estate planning of a $20 million estate? Do you think it’s more of a mix, or that they should focus on one or the other?

John: It’s probably a mix, but what we have seen when people do just news content is that it’s a little maybe boring or flat. Because if you’re just regurgitating news that other people are all talking about, there is only so much thought leadership in that.

Certainly, if there is a breaking issue, like for myself when Google Penguin happens, and different Google updates, I need to be leading the charge and blogging about those topics as they’re happening, to be a thought leader.

It’s not that news is a bad thing, but we have seen some people so overly focused on just news content that it falls short of answering the customer’s questions. So that evergreen content that you talk about and the struggles that people have with various issues — we can find those struggles by looking at the Google keyword tool, and looking at the monthly search volume of the way people are searching.

We can use social media listening tools to figure in your topically related communities what are people concerned with, what are they sharing on LinkedIn groups and Google+ communities. If you can take that content, and as you said, make more evergreen content that’s going to be heavily searched on, then it’s going to prove the test of time and keep ranking.

Google is going to rank that a little better in a long term trajectory, because the news isn’t just over with, this is content that Google will keep bringing back into the search engines, so that keeps a steady stream of visitors to your site year round, as opposed to just news content.

So a bit of a mix is good, but we’re a bit more fans of the evergreen and thought leader content.

Nicole: That makes sense, and just to try to get in front of the readers, with the news worthy things, but also searching for the useful content is what people are normally doing.

Is there a magic number for how often you compile blog posts to create an ebook? Is there a magic number, or a magic date or time? Do you do it four times a year? Or, is there not really a formula for what works for compiling everything?

John: In terms of content volume, once a week is sort of industry standard, that if you’re not blogging once a week, it’s a little bit weak. It really goes up from there to — it really depends on the organization. Mashable is doing maybe hundreds a day of blog posts, or certainly a hundred ish. [laughs] I don’t know the exact number, but I was just talking with one of my guys here who was quoting their editorial calendar and how much they’re producing.

The sites that have the most traffic on the Internet tend to be the sites that have the most content. There is not an exact correlation, because of content quality. If you pumped out 10,000 articles a year, and your quality was crap, then a site with 300 articles might outrank you, because Google is aware of the quality.

Again, I think a blog post a week is a good healthy start. Two, three a week is a little more serious. A blog a day, you’re going to start to get more significant SEO traffic.

Then you can turn that content — maybe at least a couple of times a year, if you have an ebook — that’s great. Hub Spot says that if you have 30 ebooks or more, you’ll have — I forget, I think it’s a 7x increase in leads.

It does depend on your industry, et cetera, but a couple of ebooks a year at least to have a top of the funnel call-to-action. A blog post a week at minimum. Maybe a video a month.

Then, certain times of day — that’s all going to be dependent on your audience. If you’re targeting kids that get home from school at two or three in the afternoon, then you might want to publish just before that, that type of thing, versus a different industry that’s targeting night owls. The time of day is probably depending on your actual audience.

Nicole: We’re doing this right now, but tell me, John, how can lawyers use podcasting to generate more leads and improve their SEO?

John: One of the keys to SEO as we’ve discussed is having more content, but a lot of people aren’t naturally writers. Maybe it’s somewhere between 10 percent of the population.

I was actually at the HubSpot Inbound conference this fall. They had the stats on that. I don’t remember exactly what they were, but basically not everyone is a writer. That’s why blogs often fail, because people hear someone like myself say, “Hey, you’ve got to blog every week.”

The people on the staff say, “Geez, we don’t really have any writers here.” But you think they would be able to publish content because they’re thought leaders. What we realized is there are a lot of experts at law firms that might not be comfortable writing, but they love to talk. Or certainly a fair amount of attorneys like to chat, and they’re really engaging and full of ideas and energy.

We like to bottle that up by interviewing them. Because you ask them to write, they’re busy, and they’re concerned potentially with the billable hour, of course. We all have to make money.

It’s so easy to get a great piece of content in even 15 minutes by asking three questions. Every three questions become about 1,500 to 1,800 words. So every question may be around 500 words if you answer fairly lengthily. So you’re able to, in a 15 minute conversation, get a very long blog post. The average blog post is maybe 500 to 700 words or so.

When people are thinking to write one, that’s what they shoot for. But you can get, again, 1,500 to 1,800 words in 15 minutes. That’s a lot of content. Now what you’re going to do is you’re going to transcribe the text. After this podcast is over, we use CastingWords in New York and some other places. You pay $1 to $1.50 a minute.

You put that text up on the blog post under — we use sound cloud, but that’s just one player. You put the audio file that you can click and listen to the podcast in the blog post itself, then under it, you put the transcribed text. Because you’re picking keywords as the topics before you write the titles of the post and pick the interview questions, it’s a very search-engine-friendly strategy.

You just title the name of the post in WordPress, or whatever you’re using, and that becomes the URL, then you can put that search-engine-keyword-friendly title in the heading, in the title tag. Google is going to read all that nice rich text of Q&A content, and it’s going to pop up in the search engines.

Now, you wouldn’t want to only use podcasting for your blog necessarily. We do that with a lot of our customers. We also like them to either pay us to write or for them to write a little bit of regular prose as well, but it’s an awesome way to get regular, consistent content.

Again, say once a week, if you do an hour of podcasting a month in four 15 minute interviews with three questions each, you’re going to have an easily-generated one blog post a week.

Nicole: How about making the leap to video? How important is a video strategy for SEO?

John: YouTube is the second largest search engine in the world. There was a guy from — it was Distilled, recently that said, “If you don’t have a video and YouTube strategy in 2014, you’re just simply not doing SEO.” [laughs] It’s that important.

Google, they own YouTube. Again, it’s the second largest search engine in the world above Bing, Yahoo, et cetera. Yet, you still have to pick keywords for your YouTube videos.

We do a similar routine with the podcasting where we ask our attorneys to answer basically one question. “What to do if you get pulled over for drunk driving”, for a DUI lawyer, or something along those lines.

When they answer that one question, and that question is something people actually search for, because we’re looking again at the keyword research and the forum social listening to see how people — what are the common questions.

Because we know that that’s an actively looked-for topic, then you’re going to pop up both in YouTube if you upload the video with the right keywords in the title, in the description, et cetera. You can also put in the transcript into the close caption area.

We do the same routine with the podcasting as with the video. We put the YouTube video up in the blog post using the embed code from YouTube. The video shows up, and you can play it right in the blog post, but under that, you put in the transcription of the conversation. Usually those are like one or two minutes long. Maybe three minutes.

You don’t want to kill people with “too long”. Those are going to be maybe 300 words or so. But again, you’re popping up now both in YouTube and your blog because you have the YouTube video in a blog post. You’re getting that extended benefit beyond YouTube of your blog’s ability to rank for the conversation that’s in the video.

Nicole: Those are all really great thoughts. I’m actually personally excited about implementing a podcasting and video strategy for our company.

Thank you so much, John, for joining us today, and talking to us about authority marketing and thought leadership for law firms.

John: Absolutely. Great talking to you.

Nicole: It’s great talking to you, too. I will see you on our next post when we talk about content marketing for law firms another time. Thank you so much.

John: Sounds good.

ARTICLE BY

Nicole Cudiamat Minnis

The National Law Review / The National Law Forum LLC

Tag: law firms

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