It may be among the toughest conversations you ever have to initiate. But when you think a colleague is in trouble—experiencing difficulties with drugs and alcohol or spiraling into a seemingly intractable depression, for example—it is worse, for both your friend and the firm, to avoid the issue. We’ve asked professionals in the know about how to approach a colleague, provide emotional support and establish appropriate workplace accommodations when these delicate issues arise. Last time, Mary Ellen Sullivan spoke with the Hon. Sarah Krauss about substance abuse. This time, the topic is depression.

In the grand scheme of things, we are all newbies adjusting to using mobile devices. After all, even if you had one of the first iPhones, it has only been five years. Technology consultants and others who make their living helping us to find better living through technology see some sad mobile blunders on a daily basis. For this week's Friday Five, Andrea Cannavina of LegalTypist, Inc. has a list of common newbie mistakes, and some quick fixes. ...

At solo and small firm conferences around the country, lawyers gather to polish their skills, learn about new technology—and pick up a marketing tip or two. At the Illinois State Bar Association's Annual Solo and Small Firm Conference last week, one of the key marketing themes heard was how to use technology to attract new clients. Here are four of the best marketing tips heard for building your digital presence—and your client base. ...

Exchanging documents with clients and outside counsel used to be a fairly mundane, straightforward endeavor. Attach the document to an email and send it off. Or, to deliver a large volume of documents or documents of a very large size, just burn a CD or thumb drive and send it via overnight delivery. However, what used to be a simple process is now fraught with complexity and potentially serious consequences for you and your firm. Data privacy regulations with severe penalties for breach of confidential client data have upped the ante—plus, there's the very real threat to law firms of cyber-attacks targeting individual attorneys within the firm. ...

Would you work for you? Why or why not? It’s a great question to ask yourself—often—if you are “da boss” or supervise other people. It provides a quick self-audit and points to things you’d be wise to keep doing—or to stop doing, and sooner than later. Below are a few of the typical compliments and disgruntlements […]

If you are hard at work building your online presence, with a website, a blog (or two) and social media accounts, soon you'll find that managing the "back end" can make you a little, well, batty. Preferences. Security settings. Passwords. Comments! Gwynne Monahan, community manager at Clio, has a solution to the comments complexity at least: She manages them all for multiple sites with Livefyre. For today's Friday Five, she has five reasons you're going to love it. ...

There are about 23 different business processes in most law firms. They range from new client intake to check requests to conflicts checks. When there's a problem with one of them—maybe it takes too long or there are too many errors—believe it or not, it isn't always the underlying technology that is to blame. In the consulting world, we speak of the three-legged stool. Technology is one of the legs. Your people are another leg. But many stumble on the third leg: the process leg. A three-legged stool needs to be balanced; otherwise it will fall. In many cases, you can solve the problem using your existing technology and existing people by merely improving the process. ...

It may be among the toughest conversations you ever have to initiate. But when you think a colleague is in trouble—experiencing difficulties with drugs and alcohol or spiraling into a seemingly intractable depression, for example—it is worse, for both your friend and the firm, to avoid the issue. We’ve asked professionals in the know for advice on approaching a colleague, and offering constructive help and support when these delicate issues arise. ...

Unfortunately, most lawyers aren't particularly excited about the idea of networking. Even lawyers who've taken steps to get help with business development will object, inevitably, when it's time to test their networking ability. Two primary fears seem to be the basis for their lack of enthusiasm and their objections. So let's take a look at why those fears are unfounded. ...

No one takes their baby to a gynecologist for a routine checkup. No one goes to a cardiologist for an ankle sprain, or to a dentist when they have chest pains. So why, I ask, do distant relatives call me to draft prenuptial agreements when: (1) Who are you? (2) I had no idea you were even engaged, and (3) I am a litigator, not an estate planner. The problem with being a lawyer is having a family.