Archive for the ‘Law Tips’ Category

Five Indispensable Tips for Law Students and New Lawyers

Wednesday, February 9th, 2011

1.  Learn to use legal technology now. I know you have a far better understanding of technology than your professors and future bosses do.  Use that to your advantage.  Mastering these technologies will enhance your productivity as a law student and give you a leg up on your classmates when you enter the workforce.

Get a Tablet PC. If you are shopping for a laptop, the tablet form factor is the only way to go.  It is impossible to overestimate the leap in productivity you will experience with a Tablet PC.  I take all of my notes (in handwriting that is searchable and convertible to text) on myToshiba M205 and am quickly making the yellow legal pad disappear from my desk.  Some great tablet-focused resources are here, here, andhere.  If you have a Mac, good for you.  I wish I’d bought Macs when I started my firm.  However, in the Windows environment, the Tablet is as good as it gets.

Keep your stuff all in one (electronic) place. FranklinCovey PlanPlus or Agilix GoBinder are both programs built on the same platform.  The first is an elegant incorporation of the Franklin Covey system, and the second is geared towards students.  The calendering and to-do management of both of the programs is first-rate.  Both have free trials and work well on both the TabletPC and regular windows notebooks.

Save time and keystrokes. Use Activewords. Buzz Bruggeman, who is blogging through the hurricane, created this utility with some other really smart people.  Download it.  Check out this weblog, and take the time to learn the software.  Trust me on this one.

Learn to organize your case. The Casemap group of programs, and most particularly, NoteMap.  If you are a litigator to be, you absolutely must try these programs and learn them.  Download them for a free trial, schedule a free demo with one of the tremendous salespersons, and use the program in your trial or pre-trial class.  Your school should get at least one free license, if they don’t have one already.  One small part of the suite is Notemap,  a little outling program that far exceeds anything I’ve ever used for outling and note taking.  You can pick up a free license  of Notemap from Dennis Kennedy’s site.

Use a brainstorming/mindmapping tool daily. The best on the market is MindManager Pro, but it is a bit pricey (but especially worth it if you use a Tablet PC).  A great (and free ) alternative is FreeMind.  You will not find a better method for organizing your ideas and brainstorming sessions.  Both programs also work great for organizing your thoughts before you write that big brief or law review article.

Use the software lawyers use. With the exception of Casemap, not a lot of lawyers use the software I have listed.  A lot of lawyers do use legal-specific practice management software like PCLaw, Timematters, Amicus Attorney, and others.  Download a trial version, try managing a fictional case, and keep track of every six minutes of your day for a few weeks.

 

2.  Learn how most lawyers work. Sixty percent (or more) of lawyers work in a small firm environment.  Odds are, you will too someday.  Go work for a sole practitioner (even just a few hours per week).  Seeing the other side of law practice will give you valuable insights into how most lawyers work, and help you determine if small firm life is a viable alternative to the big dollars/long hours/no life that often accompanies working in a big firm.

3. Learn Time Management. I’m not just talking about skipping Oprah to read for tomorrow’s civil procedure class, I’m talking about true system-based time management.  David Allen’s system is great, and the Franklin Covey system also works well.  Get over your procrastination habit now, or it will kill you in law practice.  Some good time management-related blogs are here, here, here, and here.

4. Learn the business. Law is a profession, and law is a business.  In law school, you generally get one class on ethics and none on law practice management (and certainly none on marketing).   For the thousands (hundreds of thousands?) you’ll pay to become a lawyer, the fact that you’ll get no instruction on how to be a lawyer is absolutely shameful.  Since this is the self-study portion of your curriculum, I’d suggest the following:

Read these five books:
Clients for Life Creating Customer Evangelists Firm of the Future Million Dollar Consulting The Seven Day Weekend

Visit these six blogs regularly (or add their RSS feeds to your aggregator):
Gaping Void
Sandbox Wisdom
Seth’s Blog
the [non]billable hour
The Occupational Adventure
Worthwhile

5.  Don’t be an Asshole. Nobody likes the student who always volunteers, and tries to show how smart he or she is.  We called those students  gunners.   Believe me, if they don’t like you in law school, they won’t like in law practice.  There was a student in my law school class who constantly bragged about herself, her job, and her grades.  She would constantly put others down in an off-handed way.  If I saw her today, and told her I was just appointed by the Pope to personally find his successor, she’d respond by telling me she was asked first, and turned down the job because the money wasn’t half of what she’s making now.  Do you know how many cases other lawyers have referred to her?  I’m guessing zero.  Your reputation as a lawyer begins now.  So don’t screw it up.

 

Tips for Surviving Public Speaking

Monday, June 28th, 2010

Some would have you believe that all law students are born with the gift of the gab. If only! Although many baby lawyers are already amazing orators, the rest of us get a bit anxious when it comes to class presentations, mooting competitions and practice bail applications. Here are some tips to ease the pain.

1. Practice makes perfect. If you know the material, you’ll feel more confident about what you’re saying. If you can, find some friends or family to be your practice audience. Rehearse your timing and practice pausing and breathing.  If you’re using any visual aids, such as PowerPoint slides, be sure to incorporate these into your practice presentation.

Good organisation is essential in this regard. You need to finish researching and writing your speech far enough in advance to allow yourself the time to practice. On one occasion I finished writing my speech on the day of the presentation and barely had time to re-read what I’d written, let alone practice saying it aloud. All I can say is that it was a less than stellar presentation.

2. Dress to impress. Find out what’s expected of you. Some tutors require students to wear corporate dress for presentations and practice court applications. Be sure to dress comfortably (or as comfortably as a suit and tie allows) and avoid accessories that may distract you.

3. Be organised. Get there early and have everything for your speech ready to go. If you run into the classroom late and flustered, it will be hard to get over these nerves in time for your presentation.

4. Delivery of a speech is just as important as the content. If your presentation is uninteresting or difficult to understand, your audience will get very little out of it. Vary your tone (monotone = boring), keep to a good pace and speak up so the people at the back of the room can hear you.

Body language is also important. Don’t slouch (standing tall makes it easier to breathe), and avoid leaning on the podium or swaying. Pay attention to your hands. Gestures are helpful, but hands in pockets or playing with your necklace are a bad look.

5. Make eye contact. It shows confidence and helps to engage your audience. It also shows that you know the material.

6. Relax. Slow down, pause, breathe and smile (if you can). Doing this will make for a better presentation and will ensure that in your nervousness you don’t fall short of the time limit. Pausing at important points will help your audience to take in the more crucial pieces of information.

7. If you make a mistake, don’t freak out. If it’s minor, the audience probably hasn’t noticed. If the error is obvious, calmly correct it and then move on.

If you hate public speaking, don’t stress that you’ll never be a great courtroom lawyer. Many law students who were average speakers at uni have gone on to become fantastic advocates. Be patient. Give it time and practice. Chances are you won’t feel like Dennis Denuto forever.

Tips for Entrepreneurs: Hiring Employees in California

Sunday, May 2nd, 2010

Congratulations!  Your business is expanding, work is pouring in and you think it’s time to hire someone to help you handle it all.  When it’s time to hire your first employee, it’s important to do everything “by the book” instead of “under the table.”  Here’s a quick list of some of the important considerations and requirements for hiring employees:

1. Paying the STATE taxes and registering with the California Employment Development Department (EDD). This will assign you an EDD employer account number, also called a State Employer Identification Number (SEIN). You’ll start filling out forms and filing returns that report all employees, paying state payroll taxes, and reporting total wages paid and taxes due for each quarter. Each form and tax has its own due dates and deadlines. It is the employer’s responsibility to report all wages paid to employees, and then pay all applicable taxes on the employee’s wages. Detailed info can be found here.

2. Paying the FEDERAL taxes. You will fill out paperwork and get assigned an Employer Identification Number (EIN). Similarly to the state taxes, the IRS will require you to report all employees and wages paid, and then pay taxes accordingly. You must issue W-2’s to all employees, which they will use when they report their income to the IRS. The IRS has detailed info for small business owners here.

3. Classifying your employees. People who you pay compensation to may be classified as “independent contractors” or “employees,” and employees may further be categorized as “exempt” or “non-exempt.” Each of these classifications has different tax ramifications for the employee and the employer, so it’s important to educate yourself. The classifications also correspond to different requirements for paying wages and overtime. We’ve written about misclassification here, but more detailed information can be found here.

4. Paying your employees and supervising hours worked. There are both state and federal minimum wage requirements which must be observed. Moreover, there are requirements about overtime and break periods. More details on these major federal laws can be found here.

5. Obtaining Workers’ Compensation Insurance. In California, even if you only have one employee, you are required to obtain workers’ compensation insurance. This type of coverage protects both employees and employers. If the employee gets an on-the-job injury or illness, he or she receives medical treatment and benefits and the employer receives protection from a lawsuit over those illnesses and injuries. Read more information on workers’ compensation here.

6. Considering confidentiality agreements. If your employee is granted access to any confidential material or “trade secrets,” it would be wise to have them sign a confidentiality agreement upon hiring. We’ve written extensively on this topic on the blog- be sure to check out this article onconfidentiality agreements and this article on trade secrets.