LinkedIn has 175 million users so far. All of whom are looking to network with business professionals specifically. For an attorney, this is an untapped market for potential clients. And, of course, in terms of employment-seekers, it’s a potential opportunity to find (or become) a new hire. So, more than with other social networks, it’s important […]

Last week at the Clio Cloud Conference in Chicago, the law practice management software company gathered 200-plus faithful users for two days of programming, capped by an exuberant launch of Clio's first-ever iPhone app. (iPhone JD has reviewed it, and, yes, iPad and Android versions are coming.) "Clio University" sessions dug into features, and hands-on help was front and center, with a "Genius Bar" and the app's actual design team on hand. But sessions devoted to "Practicing in the Cloud" elevated ClioCon beyond the typical user conference, as thought leaders hammered home on issues surrounding the future of law practice and new opportunities for solo and small firm lawyers. ... READ MORE

A law firm's document management system (DMS) is fundamental. It keeps things working and should make life better. Is yours doing that? Many law firms are using "legacy" systems and don't realize just how far behind their systems are. Current DMSs come with productivity features — sophisticated searching, email management and mobile access — and are based on folder structures that drive consistency across matters, lawyers, clients and the firm. Once you decide to upgrade, you still may not know what you need. Here are questions to ask so you can compare apples to apples. ... READ MORE

There's something interesting going on out on the West Coast of the United States. It's called the Limited License Legal Technician (LLLT), and you can thank the state of Washington for taking the first step in what could turn out to be a major journey for the legal profession. In essence, it empowers someone without a law degree to provide legal services directly to clients. (That muffled cough you hear is the discomfort of the traditional bar.)

Last time, in part four of our Local Marketing series, Mike Ramsey outlined the components you need to design the best law firm website. Obviously, the goal is to attract potential clients to your site. And that begs the question, "How do you know it's working?" In today's part five, Mike points out which stats to mind, along with a Google Analytics primer.

Twitter lists are an easy way to group what flows through Twitter so that you can better organize the flood of information. I've found that Twitter lists are useful for all kinds of things — whether they're private so that you can keep tabs on a hobby or very public so that you can leverage them for networking and business development. I use lists to: 1. Follow conferences and events, such as the #ABATechShow and LTNY. 2. Keep up with groups and associations (COLPM and ILTA). 3. Monitor just the tweets of a core group of people of the likes of @taxgirl and @chrisbrogan. 4. Stay abreast of the happenings regarding a certain keyword such as #legalIT and the popular #legalchat (which are Fridays at 11 a.m. ET). 5. View the tweets of certain users, without technically actually following them. You can add users to lists without following them from your account. There are certain people I refuse to follow, but in some instances I will see their tweets — generally when an event comes around and they start their spam-markety crap (which is why I don’t actually follow them in the first place). Still, this can be a very useful way to see what someone is tweeting that is less noticed than an actual follow. Setting up Twitter lists is easy — the directions are right here. However, there are a few things you will need to decide when creating your lists ... READ MORE

Forever, it seems, the “paperless law office” has been the Holy Grail for technology-focused law firms. They understand that storing paper onsite is expensive — after all, the firm pays as much per square foot to store paper as it does to house a partner — and paper remains at risk to flood, fire or similar disasters. Paper stored offsite is also expensive to store and retrieve. Added to that, there can be significant penalties for removing and destroying old files. Either way, information contained on paper is harder to organize, search for and search through. ... READ MORE

After a certain amount of time on the front lines answering intake phone calls, you and your staff can become jaded and insensitive to callers looking for a lawyer. This is common and natural. It can also cost you tens of thousands of dollars in unrealized revenue if an inability to consistently qualify callers means you are losing new clients you almost had. When taking call after call discussing plight, strife and suffering, a form of “vicarious traumatization” (VT) can occur. ... READ MORE

Each spring when I plant my garden, I have great expectations for all the vegetables I’ll be harvesting. By June, the new plants start to look a little like the pictures in the catalog, but here and there I encounter a few "volunteers" from last year’s crop. Typically, it's a tomato or squash plant embedded among the cucumbers and beets.

The degree to which individual lawyers fail to find professional life personally fulfilling can be a clear indicator of their level of risk of a malpractice claim or disciplinary complaint. So let’s go with that. Ask yourself these quick questions — and while you do, think about the people you work with and how they might […]