@BlawgWhisperer

Blogging gig: Comedy required, law degree optional; What data should law school rankings consider?

An item cross-posted at Lawyerist and the humor blog Bitter Lawyer announced this week that Bitter Lawyer is looking for a new editor. Lawyerist Media acquired the blog in 2011. “Since Bitter Lawyer is a humor website, you must either (1) be funny or (2) know funny when you see…

Mar 22, 2013 1:30 PM CDT

What’s the upshot of the Google Reader shutdown for bloggers and the rest of the (not) free world?

When Google announced that it was shutting down Google Reader, its RSS feed reader Legal Blog Watch’s Bruce Carton was, as he put it, part of the “1 percent of the world looked and reacted as if the veterinarian had just said that their dog had only a few months…

Mar 15, 2013 2:16 PM CDT

What office skills lawyers should know in an emergency; America’s next hot sauce lawyer?

Be your own admin Minnesota litigator Sybil Dunlop admits that when she first started practicing, she probably didn’t delegate enough administrative tasks to support staff. “I had a misplaced desire to own 100 percent of my projects,” she writes at Lawyerist. That said, support staffers might not be around when…

Mar 8, 2013 2:30 PM CST

‘Inside the Law School Scam’ blogger signs off; Should appellate briefs have corporate sponsors?

‘I’ve said what I have to say, at least in this format.’ University of Colorado law professor Paul Campos says he has filed his last post at Inside the Law School Scam. Campos started his blog (anoymously, but revealed his identity within a couple of weeks) in August of 2011,…

Mar 1, 2013 2:29 PM CST

Coyote Ugly retaliation claims can go forward; keeping client meetings under control

Technology & Marketing Law Blog and the Delaware Employment Law Blog took note of a couple of retaliation claims against defendant Coyote Ugly (“that’s right—the one from the movie, where hot bartenders dance on the bar,” Delaware employment lawyer Molly DiBianca writes) that survived summary judgment. The underlying suit is…

Feb 22, 2013 3:05 PM CST

Should bar regulators use tech tools to search for ethics violations on law firm websites?

Red-light cameras (so to speak) for lawyer websites? At My Shingle, Washington, D.C., solo Carolyn Elefant took note of a new tool by legal document start-up Docracy that tracks updates to websites’ terms of service agreements at more than 900 social media sites. The tool got her thinking. “Docracy’s TOS…

Feb 15, 2013 4:06 PM CST

‘A kind of Apple Store for legal stuff’ opens; Richard III’s legal legacy

Concierge legal services Right across from the Apple store in Palo Alto, Calif., is the retail location LegalForce, which DirectLaw founder Richard Granat describes as “a kind of Apple Store for legal stuff and other stuff (self-help law books, non-Apple tablets, tablet accessories, etc)” at eLawyering Blog. Granat (who discloses…

Feb 8, 2013 2:29 PM CST

Around the Blawgosphere: Pool of trained associates will eventually dry up, blogger warns

The pool is drying up To an extent, in-house law departments and “New Normal” law firms are benefiting from the investment that “old normal” law firms make in training new associates. “My recollection of the stat is that after five years only two out of ten new associates will still…

Feb 1, 2013 2:45 PM CST

Around the Blawgosphere: Is BigLaw ‘culture’ worth preserving?; In defense of plastic grocery bags

The myth of law firm ‘collegiality’ Law firms should “pay heed to culture” when developing business plans, contemplating mergers, or making lateral hires, according to Citi Private Bank’s Law Firm Group and Hildebrandt Consulting’s recent client advisory (PDF). At Law21, lawyer/consultant Jordan Furlong notes this passage from the advisory: “Law…

Jan 25, 2013 2:30 PM CST

Around the Blawgosphere: Quitting law, by the numbers | The best word processor, word-count wise

Former lawyers confess Why do lawyers leave the law, and how do they feel about their choices? Adam Smith, Esq. and Above the Law teamed up late last year and polled 430 lawyers who had left practice—about half of them expats of Am Law 200 firms. The most common answer…

Jan 18, 2013 2:30 PM CST

Around the Blawgosphere: Craigslist Ad Offers Law Grads an Opportunity to Pay Their Dues—in Cash

For a monthly fee … “It’s come to this,” New Haven, Conn.-based writer Jane Genova wrote at Law and More in reference to a local lawyer’s ad on craigslist that appears to be seeking a “monthly fee” from new law grads interested in shadowing him or her. “Observe the following…

Jan 11, 2013 2:29 PM CST

Around the Blawgosphere: Avoiding ‘Digital Distractions’ While Still Having Quality Time Online

The Double-Edged Touchscreen Writing at her blog, At the Intersection, Edge International general counsel Pam Woldow addresses the “inefficiency disease”–familiar to anyone reading this–of “digital distraction.” While much is written about how technologies that speed up communication increase efficiency in a legal workplace, the constant distraction of email messages and…

Dec 14, 2012 2:30 PM CST

Around the Blawgosphere: The ‘Lawyer Brain’ and Parenting; Should Firms Blaze Two Trails to the Top?

When JDs Know Best At Lawyerist, U.S. Bank attorney Andy Mergendahl acknowledges that having a “lawyer brain” can be harmful in many interpersonal situations. But he also sees where it can be an advantage in parenting—particularly in dealing with disputes between children. “For example, when rough play leads to a…

Dec 7, 2012 2:30 PM CST

Around the Blawgosphere: Actor’s Morality Play; What ‘Lincoln’ Left Out; Profs re ‘Fiscal Cliff’

To Be or Not to Be Immoral Many people have watched Two and a Half Men actor Angus T. Jones’ video testimonial for religious group the Forerunner Chronicles in which he calls Two and a Half Men “filth” that no one should watch. E! Online reported this week that the…

Nov 30, 2012 2:30 PM CST

Around the Blawgosphere: Profs Brainstorm on Election Law, Secession; Will Janeane Garofalo Owe IRS?

Making the Law University of Minnesota law professor Richard Painter wrote at Legal Ethics Blog that he, Harvard Law School professor Lawrence Lessig and other law professors have together outlined and announce their support for a proposed American Anti-Corruption Act, which would “overhaul campaign finance.” A few tenets of the…

Nov 16, 2012 2:30 PM CST