For 24 years now, Bob Denney has shared his firm’s savvy observations of the most important business trends in the practice of law via his “What’s Hot and What’s Not in the Legal Profession” reports. Attorney at Work is honored to be first to share his annual 2012 report in its entirety.

“No problem,” he said, as he emerged from the alligator-infested river. "No problem," he said, as he slaughtered half a tribe of natives. “No problem,” said the hangman, as he yanked the lever to hang the man—but not for slaughtering the tribe. It was for saying “no problem” for the thousandth time in one paragraph. In the realm of language fads, enhanced by the viral spread of the worst of clichés, the ubiquitous “no problem” takes its perch alongside “niche marketing,” which is really old-fashioned market segmentation, and “branding,” which is simply name recognition and (in products, at least, but not in professional service firms) a promise of consistent quality, taste and performance (which is really impossible in legal and accounting practice).

For my birthday a friend had a tree planted in my honor in my home state of Ohio. (A tad amusingly, the friend’s last name happens to be Sycamore, but be that as it may….) Her gift put a huge smile on my face and was doubly appreciated because the tree was planted as part […]

It's been four years since the start of the great recession (or “lesser depression”) and business owners are acknowledging that recovery is going to be a long, slow process. With no springboard in sight, some economists are calling for another dip. Regardless, good business leaders have wisely right-sized and restructured their operations and, by so doing, improved results. Yet uncertainty and apprehension abound. What can you do to jump-start things in your firm in view of a still uncertain economic environment? Plenty. ... Read More

“When I came out of law school,” recalls Scott Westfahl, director of professional development at Boston’s Goodwin Procter, "I was told ‘Keep your head down, do good solid work and you’ll be elevated into the partnership and build a client base. Your career will work out very well.’ I don’t think anyone believed that was true for all people but we all felt that it was a reasonable possibility if we wanted it.” Today things are different.

This week we were invited to demo two new products aimed at alleviating some of the pain involved in two key areas of law practice: legal research and landing new clients. PacerPRO is a new online research service designed to make finding and managing federal case records a much more pleasant task. Avvo Ignite is a new suite of […]

Mac-loving lawyers recently gathered from all over North America for the 2012 edition of the MILOfest (Macs in Law Offices fest) conference. Organized by attorney and Mac guru Victor Medina, the conference features a wealth of fresh ideas and practical tips for leveraging the power of the Mac ecosystem in a law practice. It’s also a great opportunity to get together with some of the best and brightest in the legal profession, all at Walt Disney World Resort. ...

Everyone knows business development should be part of every day’s to-do list. Still, it’s the rare lawyer who hasn’t at least once experienced the sudden sinking feeling that comes when you’ve just finished your last client work and don’t know where the next is coming from. When it happens to you, don’t panic. While renewing your […]

You've gotten aggressive about marketing. You're winning the game, but mostly (and I say this in the kindest, gentlest manner) you're clueless. You're meeting with lawyers and community leaders to build your referral network. You're advertising on Google AdWords and doing a little on Bing as well. You've got a listing on several websites and you've built a Facebook page for your practice. The good news is that your phone is ringing and the calls are turning into revenue. Life is good. Then, one day, an opportunity comes along to do something different. You've got a salesperson on the line pitching you on search engine optimization for your website. He talks a good game, but he wants you to spend some money and you're not sure if it's a smart move. He hits you with a question: "What kind of return are you getting from what you're spending on Google AdWords?" This is the part where I demonstrate your cluelessness (sorry) ... Keep reading

Staying young book. You’re never too busy to be healthy next year. I wanted to be a lawyer even when I was a little kid, and I was right. I loved the practice. Absolutely loved it. Hell, I loved law school, which is weird. But after 25 years, mostly as a litigation partner at Davis […]