Question of the Week

Do you read book reviews?

In the latest issue of the ABA Journal, legal writing expert Bryan Garner laments that book reviews are disappearing from publications. “It might well be that less demand for serious book criticism exists simply because fewer serious readers exist,” he writes. He says that brief online reviews—which may be written…

Jan 4, 2017 1:40 PM CST

What fonts do you use in briefs and other professional correspondence?

Last week, the Virginia Supreme Court added nine options to its list of acceptable fonts (PDF). Previously, only Arial, Courier or Verdana were allowed. Now, you can “go crazy with Tahoma or Times New Roman!” tweeted Lee Berlik, a Reston, Virginia, lawyer. So this week, we’d like to ask you.…

Dec 21, 2016 11:00 AM CST

What reasons have your clients given you for not paying bills on time?

This week, we noted a story about a client who failed to pay the law firm Winston & Strawn nearly $500,000 in legal bills. Among his explanations for nonpayment over a period of months were that lightning struck his house, frying his computer; and that he needed to pay via…

Dec 14, 2016 11:40 AM CST

What gifts are you giving your co-workers this season?

It’s that time of year. Holiday parties are filling up your calendars. And most of us have a lot of shopping to do—even though we may have no good gift ideas. So this week, we’d like to ask you: What gifts are you giving your co-workers this season? Cash? Nothing?…

Dec 7, 2016 2:40 PM CST

Which charities or institutions do you donate money to, and why?

It’s the week after Thanksgiving, and we’ve made it through Black Friday, Cyber Monday—and Giving Tuesday, a global fundraising movement for nonprofit groups that has been promoted since 2012, the New York Times reports. This week, we’d like to ask you (whether you participated in Giving Tuesday or not): Which…

Nov 30, 2016 12:55 PM CST

How do you manage your email?

Work-related emails arriving at all hours can take their toll on your productivity. At Divorce Discourse, family lawyer and consultant Lee Rosen writes about an app that actually holds on to email and releases it in batches at designated times of the day to lessen the number of interruptions. This…

Nov 21, 2016 2:00 PM CST

Do you think the electoral college should be abolished?

U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) filed legislation this week seeking to abolish the electoral college, the Los Angeles Times reported. “In my lifetime, I have seen two elections where the winner of the general election did not win the popular vote,” Boxer said in a statement. “The Electoral College is…

Nov 16, 2016 1:55 PM CST

Should we stop turning the clocks back?

Daylight saving time ended last weekend. Are you worn out from your young children happily waking up an hour early? Does it deflate you to abruptly start commuting home in the dark—or cause you to feel less safe? Some researchers have said that crime increases after the clocks are turned…

Nov 9, 2016 12:35 PM CST

Why did you go to law school?

At a career fair last week, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan told an audience that she went to law school for the wrong reasons. As dean of Harvard Law School, she remembers telling attendees at an admitted student weekend: “Well, you shouldn’t go to law school unless you really…

Nov 2, 2016 1:00 PM CDT

What nonwork pursuits have you noted on your resume?

A recent study found that when male applicants for law firm jobs noted on their resumés hobbies that indicate they had a privileged upbringing—sailing, polo, et cetera—it helped them get interviews. Female applicants who noted such hobbies didn’t reap the same benefits. So this week, we’d like to ask you:…

Oct 26, 2016 12:00 PM CDT

Does the US need a defender general?

In a column this week in Indiana Lawyer, Valparaiso University Law School Dean Andrea Lyon posits that the United States, which has an attorney general and a solicitor general, should also have a defender general. Congress and the executive branch “can and do turn to the attorney general for her…

Oct 19, 2016 1:15 PM CDT

Should lawyers be able to practice freely outside their home states?

The National Association for the Advancement of Multijurisdiction Practice has been litigating the issue of whether admission on motion privileges should be provided to all attorneys in the United States, the October issue of the ABA Journal reports. Currently, 39 states and the District of Columbia permit lawyers who have…

Oct 12, 2016 1:15 PM CDT

What advice do you have for criminal defendants or civil litigants?

This week, we took note of a West Virginia lawyer’s Facebook page, L. Scott Briscoe’s Free Legal Tips. Briscoe’s advice is usually something like Free Legal Tip of the Day #6: “Drinking ice water just before your drug test does not adequately explain why your urine sample is cold.” So…

Oct 5, 2016 12:00 PM CDT

In law school, did you get better scores on longer essay answers?

A working paper by two law professors and a statistics professor at Brigham Young University suggests that longer law school exam responses tended to receive higher scores than shorter ones. The study focused on 5,000 exams from first-year law students. So this week, we’d like to ask you: In law…

Sep 28, 2016 1:30 PM CDT

What do you do to stay organized and meet deadlines in your practice?

In the September issue of the ABA Journal, legal writing expert Bryan Garner provides a sample checklist for the timely completion of an appellate brief. “Brief-writing involves many moving parts,” Garner writes. “Having a checklist will ensure that you and your team are at your best.” This week, we’d like…

Sep 21, 2016 10:45 AM CDT