Let’s face it: Lawyers don’t think, talk or write like regular people. We’re trained not to. The systems we work in are bewildering. The language we speak is full of specialized terms. The documents we create are both written in our language and designed to work within the legal system, making them highly unfriendly to non-lawyers. Regular people know this, and yet they come to lawyers every day (often unwillingly) for help with some of the most important issues in their lives. Many of them have little idea what to expect from this experience, except that whatever happens will probably be confusing and expensive. It’s little wonder, then, that clients are anxious when they walk through your office door. You can’t avoid it at the start of your relationship, but you can alleviate confusion and anxiety if you do two things ... READ THE REST

Client portals are incredibly valuable tools for law firms because they allow lawyers to improve client service by increasing efficiency and streamlining communication.

Whether you consider yourself "social media-savvy" or not, your prospective employees likely are. The days of placing want ads in the local paper are long gone. Certainly, you can post job listings on standbys like Monster.com, or aggregators like Indeed.com, to cover your bases. If you want to target your search to the people most likely to be a good fit, though, you need to go to the places where they are looking for a firm like yours. Today, for better or worse, that is online, using social media sites. READ THE REST

Time is money. We all know it. But the fact is, we all have the same 24 hours each day, and it's just not enough. And like everyone else, when the day ends, it seems like more has been added to our to-do list than has been removed. Want to regain some precious minutes? Here are five techy tips to help protect your most valuable resource — your time. ... READ THE REST

I’m always cautioning lawyers about the hazards of dabbling, reminding them that there really is no such thing as a "simple" will or contract. It's not that I want them to avoid taking on matters that lead them into unfamiliar territory. Rather, my intention is to remind lawyers that if they choose to do this, they must be responsible about it. For example, they might research the law, seek advice from a mentor, find another lawyer willing to act as co-counsel, call in a favor from a colleague or take a relevant CLE course. I just don’t want to see them “shooting from the hip” because that can really backfire.

It is the nature of an abacus to shift — beads making time, marking off distance and space. An experienced abacist knows the score. Still, you’ve gotta have the stones to make the big moves. In 2014, it’s time for Abacus to reset the frame with a big move into the virtual space. You’ll know Abacus, firstly, for its law practice management software, AbacusLaw, which is aging well into its fourth decade, with a recently overhauled UX and UI, and a revamped calendar that works a lot like what you get out of Microsoft Outlook. Then there’s Abacus Billing, Abacus Balance and Abacus Professional Services. But wait: there’s more! Over the course of the past year, Abacus has added a new CEO and CTO, and dozens of other staff; that changeover in management was the spur for the development of Abacus’ latest platform: Abacus Private Cloud. ... READ THE REST

Ethics rules require you to keep your client informed (see ABA Rule of Professional Conduct 1.4). The client’s guidelines may require interval and event reporting. But sometimes it feels like nobody on the other end is reading your client status reports. If you’ve ever had a client ignore an appointment or had to follow up multiple times for settlement authority, this post is for you.

Question: I'm an inexperienced lawyer, and naturally timid. How can I be expected to thrive in a networking environment? What's the best way to follow up after meeting someone? When should I ask for their business? In this edition of "Ask the Experts," the Legal Marketing Association's Marguerite Downey, Tina Emerson and Jim Jarrell help get your networking game off the ground. ... READ THE ANSWERS

Branding. It's one of the most overworked and overanalyzed topics in the marketplace of ideas. Paradoxically, or perhaps consequently, it's also one of the most misunderstood. This misunderstanding isn’t a definitional one. There’s a general consensus that a brand "is the sum of what others think of you" or something similar. But there are two pertinent, preliminary questions beyond “what is branding?” worthy of exploration: Why is it important? And how is it done?

Mindfulness means to be in the present and to accept each moment without preference or judgment. It’s an ancient practice that comes from Buddhism. It's not a religious practice. Rather, it’s a way to engage in our lives with care and awareness. The primary way to practice mindfulness is through meditation, where you sit quietly and settle your mind and body. It’s interesting to note that in every religion, there’s a practice of sitting silently, whether that’s in meditation or in prayer. So how can cultivating mindfulness benefit lawyers? Here are several ways. ... READ THE REST