As the #MeToo movement maintains its impact across the nation, the legal industry continues to respond. Law firms, law departments, bar associations, and even the judiciary are reviewing sexual harassment policies, examining reporting procedures and structures, and fostering dialogue meant to find systematic changes. Attendees at the ABA Annual Meeting in Chicago this month heard […]
“We start with the customer, and work backwards.” – Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon With a decade of candles shining brightly on its birthday cake, legal practice management software company Clio continues to show it is a leader in legal innovation. But ask anyone at Clio if that defines them, and you’ll likely get an […]
It’s time to thank legal aid lawyers. The annual national Pro Bono Week (October 22nd-26th) has started. You probably think this blog is going to delve into why lawyers should do pro bono work. Think again. There is already plenty out there on the benefits of pro bono service. My two cents is that it’s […]
The color-blind approach commonly employed to diversify law firms may prevent leaders from achieving their goal of minority inclusion. Why? Implicit bias. What is Implicit Bias? Implicit bias describes unintentional, fundamental, and pervasive biases that fuel stereotypes and many instances of discrimination. These biases tend to reflect the existing power structure in society. They become […]
You become a better problem solver by solving a lot of problems. In theory, a more experienced legal professional becomes a better problem solver. They’ve experienced the clear, common paths to address clients’ needs. They’ve tackled those crazy outlier circumstances that might turn on a buried statute or vague case law interpretation. They’ve completed the […]
More than politeness, civility in government is the glue that holds our republic together. Discussion about civility tends to focus on good manners, or how people speak and behave. But that’s only part of being civil. That people speak and what is substantively communicated are also key components. Respectful sharing of differing viewpoints and compromise […]
Earlier this month, hundreds of legal professionals gathered in Chicago to attend the Illinois Supreme Court Commission on Professionalism’s The Future Is Now: Legal Services 2.019 conference. This year’s speakers explored topics including evolving alternative legal landscapes, novel access to justice solutions, legal innovation through technology, blueprints for change and more. While each talk varied, there […]
Last month, Maine became the second state to adopt ABA Rule 8.4(g). However, some critics fear the controversial anti-harassment and discrimination rule may be unconstitutional. The rule says it’s professional misconduct for a lawyer to, “engage in conduct or communication related to the practice of law that the lawyer knows or reasonably should know is […]
Illinois’ rural lawyers are disappearing. The uneven distribution of practicing attorneys in the state is startling. Cook County represents 40% of the state’s population and over 70% of its lawyers. Cook County and its six collar counties account for 65% of the state’s population and 90% of its lawyers. That leaves 95 counties in Illinois […]
Yesterday, the Chicago Bar Association (CBA) and the Chicago Bar Foundation (CBF) launched a joint task force to respond to the market failure in consumer legal services. In addition to addressing the gap in access to legal services, the CBA/CBF Task Force on the Sustainable Practice of Law and Innovation will address how lawyers are […]
Clio, a cloud-based legal technology company, announced the results of its 2019 Legal Trends Report this week at the Clio Cloud Conference in San Diego. The annual report is the legal industry’s largest nationwide assessment of client services among law firms. The study found that client service remains a challenge for law firms. Potential clients […]
Modifying the Model Rules of Professional Conduct that prescribe the business of lawyers could help lawyers as well as consumers. That’s a premise of work being done by task forces across the U.S. As I’ve written before, task forces in several states including Illinois, California, Arizona, and Utah are developing recommendations to change legal regulations […]
