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March 10, 2007
Michael Fitzgibbons: Of Mice, Men and CEOs Blogging
At Canadian lawyer Michael Fitzgibbon's Thoughts From A Management Lawyer, see "CEO Blogging - The Risks and Rewards".
Posted by JD Hull at 11:00 PM | Comments (0)
U.S. raccoons invade Germany
Was only a matter of time. Deal with it. From Hermann the German and Spiegel International.
Posted by JD Hull at 03:36 PM | Comments (0)
Tom Kane: Don't compete on price.
See this valuable advice from Tom Kane at his Legal Marketing Blog: "Don't Compete on Price, It's a Loser". My two cents: that goes double if you are a boutique, or cluster of boutiques, competing for high-end clients with large law firms. In that case, you might even want to charge a bit more. And if you leave a large firm, be sure to keep your rates at least as high as they were.
Don't bottom-feed. Compete on service.
Posted by JD Hull at 12:57 AM | Comments (0)
March 09, 2007
Man of Kent, or a Kentish Man?
Soon, and after a few days acting as professionally, seriously and sanely as I possibly can in London during my usual first 48 hours of jet-lagged fog and ill-humour (an ironic curse I haven't shared that freely), I'll be in Kent. As with London, and with the County of Suffolk to the north, from where my mother's family came to Massachusetts via Ipswich 373 years ago, I am completely and hopelessly in love with Kent, mainly the "eastern" part. The County of Kent is the southeastern doorway to the British Isles--it has even more history, legend and myth than London. Lots, and maybe even too much, has happened here during the past 2500 years...
Eventually, in 51 BC, Julius Caesar called it Cantium, as home of the Cantiaci. Augustine founded what became the Anglican Church here in about 600 AD. And of course Thomas Becket, Chaucer's "holy blissful martyr", was killed here (Canterbury) in 1170. I'll stay with lawyer friends in a tiny and ancient rural village I've visited before--during my last visit not long ago, I helped Jane and Michael destroy and begin to re-build their home's 300+ year old fireplace, and I will inspect the finished hearth--and then leave with them for meetings in Austria. They work in legal London but live near Canterbury, in what is traditionally East Kent; therefore, I'll be among "Men of Kent" and "Maids of Kent".
Posted by JD Hull at 11:02 PM | Comments (0)
Work-life balance is still a dumb-ass issue.
Republished here from an October 20 WAC? post. Our sitemeter says that people love to hate this post. But, hey, don't strain yourself--if you are a new lawyer, it can wait until Monday, maybe. Who cares if a few young dweebs are working in your shop on Saturday, or Sunday? All lawyers are the same, and equal, right? And learning how to be a useful lawyer shouldn't be that hard, probably, should it?
Man, you have a law degree--so you already made it, sort of. Have a drink. Smoke a big doobie--one that looks like a super-giant cigar and makes the whole room crazy. You are an elite person. You've got some great ties. Tell the waitress you're a lawyer. Time to be somebody...it can all just wait.
Relax. Don't suffer. Coast. Mail it in. Get by.
Have a good weekend.
Posted by JD Hull at 04:08 PM | Comments (0)
March 07, 2007
O'Keefe: BigLaw Blogging Is Where It Should Be.
Here's a good piece from Seattle's Kevin O'Keefe at Real Lawyers Have Blogs: "AmLaw 200 law firm blog growth in line with law firm blog growth".
Posted by JD Hull at 05:10 AM | Comments (0)
March 06, 2007
Not Too Many Larger Law Firms Blogging.
That finding is reported here in Carolyn Elefant's Legal Blog Watch piece. My take: clients who hire larger law firms (1) aren't that likely to read blogs to begin with; and (2) the few GCs who do read blogs aren't hiring law firms because of their blogs.
And why should they? Blogs are an important marketing supplement--similar to a website or Martindale-Hubbell--but are not likely to be the basis of a decision by an in-house lawyer for hiring a firm to do high-end or high pressure work. That may change--but that is the situation right now. In the meantime, legal weblogs are a wonderful new form of expression, a way for some smaller firms to market, and an important laboratory and forum for new ideas: both in law and in the business of law.
Posted by JD Hull at 08:44 PM | Comments (0)
March 05, 2007
Tom Eagleton (Sept. 4, 1929 – March 4, 2007)
The guy was mega-talented, never boring, and tragically unsung. I was lucky enough to be around Missouri Senator Tom Eagleton (D), a lot one summer long ago when I was attached (through Sen. Gaylord Nelson) to Kennedy's Health Subcommittee. No matter what you thought of his politics, Tom Eagleton (in Senate 1969-1987) was brighter, more driven, more creative, funnier, more polished, and way more interesting than most US politicians on the national stage....
He grew up privileged, but never acted like it. He seemed like a guy who might enjoy a beer. He was accomplished but fun. Openly irreverent, and with a strong Bohemian streak, he loved Pall Mall non-filters. Two or three puffs, and put it out. Over and over. If someone used in normal conversation the word "crazy", he's say "hey, let's watch that word around here, okay?" (making fun years later of his treatment for depression being all over the news in 1972). I can't do him justice--suffice to say Eagleton was something out of a great novel with richly-drawn, complex and beloved heros. I just really liked him.
Posted by JD Hull at 12:19 PM | Comments (0)
I'm sorry--and gulp--but Ann Coulter is wonderfully feisty and funny, too...she's right sometimes--so stop all this PC stuff or I'll turn into a Republican.
It's here (in case you missed it), people are up in arms, and yeah, I like her--and I like John Edwards, too. But Edwards is running for national office. Let's not get too excited about the word "faggot". Unfortunately, in her context, it just means lame and ineffectual; people know what I mean/you mean/Ann Coulter means in that context when you say it the way she said it. Besides, it was funny--and her main point was not about Edwards, being gay or Edwards being gay (which no one believes for a second); rather Coulter lamented that all forms of human eccentricity and even small-mindedness which we liberals do not like this week have become illnesses society much treat.
Despite being surrounded all day long by Republicans, WAC? is not homophobic, likes gays, likes non-gays, likes people, likes words and even prefers the alternatives of "poof" or "fudgepacker" from time to time ("packer", for short, and for ease of reference, is good, too...). I also like the words "weenie", "twit" and "harpy", and the expressions "wretched harridan" (for an unpleasant woman) and "big-enough-to-have-their-own-zip-code" (for extremely portly people). But none of these are suspect classifications under the law either--nor should they be. They are not "hate" speech. So WAC? probably needs lots of rehabs--including one for swearing (hey, is there a "one-stop" facility I can go to?).
Posted by JD Hull at 12:13 AM | Comments (0)
March 04, 2007
3-party system: accept, evolve--or just smoke a Marlboro?
No child ever wrote to Santa, "Bring me, and a bunch of kids I've never met, a pony, and we'll share."
Politics, the art of controlling one's environment, is still important to me. For years I worked and/or raised money for candidates of the Democratic and Republican parties, and now I've grown very weary of the whole thing. But I still love author and humorist P.J. O'Rourke--for years Rolling Stone magazine's "Republican" counterweight to Hunter S. Thompson--who wrote the above in "Why I Am a Conservative in the First Place", RS (July 13-27, 1995). P.J.'s got a point--and it's a good place to start all political conversations. Human selfishness and willfulness is an old, old verity.
Posted by JD Hull at 05:19 PM | Comments (0)
Venables and Holmes Conspire.
See Delia Venables' Internet Newsletter for Lawyers, March/April 2007. In May/June, Nick Holmes of Binary Law will join her as co-editor.
Posted by JD Hull at 09:53 AM | Comments (0)