Archive for the ‘lists’Category

Don’t piss on my leg and tell me it’s raining.

 Legal Rebels 2011

As Kevin Spacey noted, speaking as Kaiser Soze in The Usual Suspects, “the greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist.” Couldn’t agree more. 2 years ago the ABA Journal rolled out its Legal Rebels Project in an effort to convince lawyers that the American Bar Association was more than an aging, superfluous institution or a lapdog to the AmLaw 100. The first Legal Rebels chosen in 2009 included

In fairness, that initial list of 50 honorees also included people who really had contributed to the national dialogue about the profession by blogging, starting an innovative company, or finding a better way to do things. But they were too few and far between to give the project credibility in my eyes. As far as I could see, the ABA was still trying to curry favor with BigLaw partners and associates by featuring bite-sized, cutesy profiles of lawyers doing their own breezy thing. Wee!

So how has the project fared in 2011? Let’s just say that the Journal has returned to what it does best – sucking up to BigLaw – by focusing on the unsung heroes trying to change the system from within: BigLaw rebels. Which makes total sense, because real change only comes from people who bill 3000 hours a year and are driven by an insatiable urge to make partner. Way to go ABA Journal. It takes guts to swallow what BigLaw is dishing out, then ask for seconds… but you pulled it off.

Look, just watch the Staff of the ABA Journal descirbe the Legal Rebels Project in their own words and feel the rebellion welling up in your throat.  I certainly did.

Top 10 Reasons Clients are Like Hot Girlfriends

Are Clients like Hot Girlfriends?

 

10. They’re only attracted to you when you play hard to get

9. They drop you the second something better comes along

8. They care more about looks than substance or character

7. They only want lawyers that claim to be experienced

6. They tell their friends when they aren’t satisfied

5. They won’t tell anyone when they are satisfied

4. They constantly play games with your emotions

3. They’re just in it for the money

2. They take more than they give

And the #1 reason that Clients are like hot girlfriends is:

1. Can’t live with ‘em, can’t live without ‘em!

With apologies and respect to the Humbled MBA, who did it first.

Disclaimer: I’m married to a hot woman who is nothing like this. Having said that …

Posted via email from practice (redux)

Oh Say Can You See …?

In between mouth-fulls of potato salad and fireworks-related trips to the ER this weekend, don’t forget to celebrate our nation’s independence. And for those of you who recently graduated from law school and earned your State Bar: you’ll be happy to know that the job market is a steaming pile. Check out the chart below of the 5 states with the biggest lawyer surplus (New York, California, New Jersey, Illinois, and Massachusetts). Check out the whole ugly story here in the NY Times.

 

Baby Steps to Social Media Awareness

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With his breakthrough performance in Kindergarten Cop, Arnold showed us why he would someday be Governor of California and leader of the free-world. Or whatever. In the meantime, here are some “baby steps” (get it, Kindergarten, baby steps?) to using social media in your practice, courtesy of Sociable Lawyer.

1. Do not be afraid to try
2. Share your knowledge
3. Polish your online rep
4. Strength in numbers

Posted via email from practice (redux)

 

ABA TechShow 2011

As most readers know, I write a column for NYC-based TechnoLawyer called SmallLaw (formerly known as, no joke, “Crazy Mazy”). Anyhow, as TechnoLawyer’s intrepid Chicago reporter I’ve written about the ABA TechShow since 2008; and before that for this blog.

Here are the 12 videos we shot at this year’s TechShow. Feel free to subscribe to my YouTube Channel for more legal tech news and check out my TechnoLawyer pieces as well.

11 Digital Trends to Watch in 2011

Steve Rubel is an interesting guy. I’ve known him for a number of years and communicated directly with him only a few times, still I feel as if I “get him.” Weird, right? Here’s the crazy part: I’ve never met him. I know him exclusively through Twitter and Friendfeed, and in the blogosphere. He’s not even a Facebook friend. The thing about Steve is that he works for ad agency Edelman Digital. As some readers know, I have nothing but contempt for salespeople since all of them are liars and thieves. But I still like Steve; he is smart and regards the social web as more than another channel through which to cram product … or at least I think he does. Anyway, here are 11 trends for 2011 that Steve sees in our collective future (check out the list and Steve’s interesting web page here):

  1. Attentionomics Marketers realize the value of attention, not just exposure.
  2. Digital Curation Content overload requires a guide, and Google is not it.
  3. Developer Engagement Marketers will court web developers to gain an edge.
  4. Transmedia Storytelling Even in 2011 it comes down to a compelling story.
  5. Thought Leadership Companies must recruit expert voices to create content.
  6. Integration Economy Business finally coordinates social media experiments.
  7. Ubiquitous Social Computing Marketing will follow us everywhere on our phones.
  8. Location, Location, Facebook Foursquare taught us how; now Facebook takes over.
  9. Social Media Schizophrenia SM overload is now everybody’s problem.
  10. Google Strikes Back Google beats Facebook and Twitter by indexing them to pieces
  11. All Web Sites Will Be Social Consumers expect social functions in all websites now.

Posted via email from practice (redux)