Question of the Week

Share Your Haiku About Life as a Lawyer or Law Student

Last week, we noted that the city of San Francisco banned Happy Meals at the same time McDonald’s brought back the McRib for a limited time. The latter occasion was marked by readers of the Los Angeles Times Money & Company blog by posting in the comments of one post…

Nov 10, 2010 5:00 PM CST

Were You a Jock Star or a Cool Kid? Has It Helped You Get Ahead?

Last week, we noted a column by Andrews Kurth partner Kathleen Wu discussing how, at large law firms, anyway, high school cliques seem to persist. “Jocks, cheerleaders, nerds, bullies and drama geeks—firms have them all. They just wear nicer clothes now,” she says. “They’re the ones who do Starbucks runs…

Nov 3, 2010 5:01 PM CDT

What’s the Most Bizarre Excuse You’ve Used/Heard to Call in Sick?

CareerBuilder reports this week that more and more workers are calling in sick with bizarre excuses, likely the result of worker burnout. In its annual survey on absenteeism, CareerBuilder found that 29 percent of workers played hooky his year, calling in sick even when they were well. Having a little…

Oct 27, 2010 4:00 PM CDT

Tell Us About Your Favorite Walk-In Client or Lucrative Chance Encounter

A solo in Texas recently worried aloud about losing his full-time secretary because of her illness. Not only did the secretary help run his office, she also helped manage the walk-in clients who patronize his firm. The anecdote is a worthy reminder that not all clients are found because of…

Oct 20, 2010 4:25 PM CDT

Tell Us Your Client Ground Rules, Real or Fantasy

Last week, we noted the Pincus Family Law firm’s note to its clients on its website: “Client Expectations (Realistic or Unrealistic).” One of the main items: “We do not work on the weekends and do not provide emergency numbers for the weekends,” the Columbia, S.C.-based firm wrote. “There are times…

Oct 13, 2010 7:06 PM CDT

How Do You Stay Fit?

In our increasingly time-crunched society, finding a few minutes to work in a daily dose of calisthenics can be a challenge. So it’s no surprise that busy professionals—lawyers included—are using the time to and from work to get into or keep in shape. Some are biking or jogging to work.…

Oct 6, 2010 5:51 PM CDT

What Hoops Have You Jumped Through to Land a New Client?

We recently came across a Web post by legal consultant Jerome Kowalski that asked: Are 100 Page Reponses by Law Firms to Client RFP’s Really Efficient or Necessary? “The RFP typically requires completion of a 60+ page questionnaire, which frequently requires scores of hours and professional time to complete,” Kowalski…

Sep 29, 2010 5:03 PM CDT

What Legal Term-of-Art Blunders Are ‘Nails on a Chalkboard’ to Your Ears?

This week, we received a comment from a reader of this post: ‘Jersey Shore’ Stars Have Trouble Trademarking their Nicknames. “Using ‘trademark’ as a verb is generally frowned upon by IP practitioners,” the reader wrote. “In fact, it’s a nails-on-a-chalkboard kind of thing. One applies for a trademark registration. One…

Sep 22, 2010 8:15 PM CDT

What’s the Most ‘Out of Bounds’ Thing You’ve Heard a Judge Say During Proceedings?

The Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled this week that a federal judge in Milwaukee made such “out of bounds” comments during the sentencing of a convicted cocaine dealer that resentencing was necessary. After the defendant, Jose Figueroa, claimed he was a good family man. U.S. District Judge…

Sep 15, 2010 8:09 PM CDT

Can You Work with Someone with Whom You Have ‘Profound Disagreements’?

This week, a post of ours noted U.S. Supreme Court justices’ law clerk hiring trends. Justice Clarence Thomas reportedly has the most variety when it comes to law schools—most justices stick with Harvard and Yale law grads, while Thomas has had clerks from lower-ranked schools like Creighton, George Mason and…

Sep 8, 2010 8:21 PM CDT

What Was the Most Memorable Deposition You Have Been a Part Of?

This week, we noted a recent Connecticut Statewide Grievance Committee ruling taking an insurance company’s lawyer to task for asking deposition questions that could have been phrased with more tact. Ultimately finding that his questions were fair, the legal ethics panel declined to discipline the lawyer, who’d been accused of…

Sep 1, 2010 7:53 PM CDT

Extravagant? I Say It’s an Investment

This week, we noted a New York Times story that spotted an ” ‘it’ shoe right now for women in politics” on Reshma Saujani, the lawyer / congressional hopeful featured in the article. While the Times reporter noted that Saujani had no trouble walking all day in the stylish patent…

Aug 25, 2010 8:22 PM CDT

What Are the ‘Unbillable Hours’ That Make Your Work Life Worth the Effort Each Day?

This week, we noted an ex-BigLaw associate’s memoir, Unbillable Hours, in which Ian Graham writes about life at Latham & Watkins. He had doubts about BigLaw life in his first few months, in which he spent a lot of time doing document review. But he found fulfillment at the firm…

Aug 18, 2010 9:12 PM CDT

How Do You Know When to Turn Down a Case—for Your Own Good?

Connecticut lawyer Adrian Baron and his staff were on edge last week after a reports that a disgruntled employee killed eight former co-workers and himself just minutes from their law office. In a Nutmeg Lawyer post, Baron also recalls the case of Connecticut lawyer Nancy Tyler, held hostage by her…

Aug 11, 2010 3:37 PM CDT

How Have You Coped with Professional Burnout?

This week we noted a Corporette post that veered away from women’s workplace fashion and struck a more personal note. Blog author Kat Griffin talked about how years ago she was feeling disengaged at her BigLaw job and got an “attitude revamp” after taking a humor-writing class. “As soon as…

Aug 4, 2010 6:17 PM CDT