Law Firm Culture

The other day, Oriella, one of the young legal secretaries, wore these sandal-type shoes with long leather straps wrapping up to mid-calf. I thought they looked pretty, and a little sexy, and remarked on them to one of the older partners. His ...

Why do so many law firms protect their jerks — and what can you do when you've had enough of bad behavior?

When I began consulting, it was my plan to focus on working with corporations. But one of the first calls I received was from the managing partner of one of the international accounting firms. When I said I wasn’t an accountant, he replied, “You ...

Turbulence in the legal profession, and the business world itself, make these difficult and unusual times. The loss or consolidation of so many venerable law firms has altered the competitive landscape for firms of all sizes. It’s likely, for ...

There's a scene in the movie "Men in Black" when Will Smith's character tries unsuccessfully to get the attention of his bosses, and finally succeeds when he bellows “Hey, Old Guys!” That's a familiar scene around my firm. No, I don't mean we ...

I spend a fair amount of time watching my nephews and niece, ages six, four and two, respectively. They tend to cycle through the kids’ shows, but there’s one they keep going back to, time and again: The Wonder Pets. I know. At ...

Some years back, I worked in an office where the boss was obsessive about how callers were greeted on the phone. Then a new receptionist was hired who just could not get the phrasing to his liking—no matter how hard she tried or how many ...

Could you stand to add little more melody to your daily life? Well, if you aren’t already taking advantage of the very wide world of Internet music to modulate your mood and power your productivity, then it’s time you learned a few dance ...

Another U.S. baby boomer turns 50 every 8.5 seconds. And if you run the math, it’s also the case that baby boomers are turning 60 at the rate of 1 every 7 seconds. Yes—you in the back there, hiding your issue of Rolling Stone behind the Wall ...

At Attorney at Work, we propose that 2011 is the year to explore kindness as a universal business principle. Acts of kindness not only bind clients and colleagues to you, they can be the key to improving employee (and practice) performance. ...