2006 Tip of the Week Archive

For the Week Beginning December 25, 2006
Capturing All Your Billable Time
Holidays are tough when it comes to timekeeping. You may have received many non-business phone calls that you just couldn't capture all of the time. It happens and we just have to accept that. But, here are a few ideas to capture as much time as possible:

Capture your time as you spend it;
Keep paper with you to capture time when you are not in the office;
When you get back to the office, put your time in immediately;
Use a code system as shorthand so you do not have to write out full details but you can still put details in your computer;
Make sure you spend a few minutes at the end of every day capturing your time.

There you have it. A few tips to help you make sure you bill all of your time!

For the Week Beginning December 18, 2006
Start NOW and Save Later
It's always advisable to build in tax-saving strategies well before April 16. By starting now, you can give yourself enough time to make informed decisions and take the appropriate actions. Below are deductions taxpayers often overlook:

Non-cash contributions to a charity (backed by a receipt to substantiate the gift)
Using your car in connection with charitable work (14 cents a mile)
Health insurance premiums if you are self-employed
Out-of-pocket costs if you moved for work-related reasons
Education expenses if the schooling was necessary to maintain or improve your skills
Premiums on long-term care insurance

Check with your tax professional, as there are specifics that must be taken into account.

For the Week Beginning December 11, 2006
The "Sandwich" Generation
Although Law Practice Management isn't in the financial planning business, having a plan can relieve some of the difficulties "sandwich" families might run into down the road. If you're raising your own family and possibly on the verge of caring for elderly parents at the same time, there is information out there to help you with this challenge. If you'd like a copy of an easy-to-understand, general article on this subject (written by a respected investment entity) please contact Pamela Myers at pam@gabar.org or 404-526-8621. (The article is for informational purposes only. Any references to companies or products are not intended as product endorsements.)

For the Week Beginning December 4, 2006
The New Federal Rules of Civil Procedure: Obligations For Email
The FRCP is so important because it affects every business, organization, and person who may ever be involved in a federal court case. Such cases include lawsuits that cross state lines, actions by the Internal Revenue Service, violation of federal compliance regulations (such as HIPAA and Sarbanes-Oxley), immigration cases and more.

There are no exceptions for company size or non-profit status. It is difficult to think of a single U.S. entity that could not feel the effects.

Call or email Kim Henry (404-527-8772 or kim@gabar.org) for an article and books available for loan on this subject.

For the Week Beginning November 27, 2006
Increase Your Billable Hours with Staff Training
To create more billable hours without actually working more hours, think about transferring nonbillable work to your staff. There are obvious tasks that are easily transferable: inputting time, completing administrative forms, making travel arrangements, etc. But so many times, you'll keep doing the nonbillable work ourselves because 'it only takes a minute and it would take twice as long to train someone else to do it.' Is that really the most efficient use of your valuable time?

Taking the extra time to train a staff member to do a task is actually the most time-efficient activity to generate more billable hours. Once staff is trained to take on nonbillable tasks and they know your goal of transferring more nonbillable work to them, they start thinking of even more activities they can take on that you probably haven't discovered. Let them know that you want their suggestions to help you in this goal. Let them stretch their capabilities and take on more nonbillable work, leaving you to do what you want to do - practice law.

For the Week Beginning November 20, 2006
Gear Guide for MAC Users
There are new MAC gadgets available that are cooler than winter weather! Since there are 52 items in 11 categories, I can't list them here. However, give us a call and we'll get the information to you. Telephone Kim Henry at 404-527-8772 to get this article!

For the Week Beginning November 13, 2006
Clearly Communicate Your Expectations
How do you know if you're effectively delivering a clear, consistent message? Ask!!! Because people tend to soften difficult answers, you may want someone else to ask for you. That might be your firm administrator, a younger partner, or perhaps an outside consultant. Ellen Freedman has recently written an article concerning miscommunications, their cost, and how to avoid them, in a new article entitled Communicate Your Expectations Clearly. Contact us for a copy of the article at 404-527-8772.

For the Week Beginning October 6, 2006
Laptop Safety, Revisited
With the holidays looming, a lot of us will be traveling and taking our laptops with us. It cannot be stressed enough that laptops are the number one item lost or stolen at airports and very high on the list of hotel thefts. You may not be able to prevent hardware theft, but you can avoid information theft. If your laptop isn't configured with biometrics or a removable hard drive, the easiest way to protect your data is to encrypt your laptop's hard disk. There are software programs out there that enable you to create a virtual encrypted disk. You can then encrypt all or portions of your drive. Some software packages are SafeHouse (www.pcdynamics.com/SafeHouse) ($79.99) and PGP Whole Disk Encryption (www.pgp.com) ($119.00 including basic maintenance.)

Don't be afraid of encryption software. Get it, test it, and if you need it, use it.

For the Week Beginning October 30, 2006
Casemaker Training Offered at Bar Center Nov. 16 & 30
SIGN UP NOW to learn how to effectively use and navigate the Georgia Casemaker library. Classes are scheduled at the Bar Center on both Nov. 16 and again on Nov. 30, from 10 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. and from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. Classes are gratis to SBG members and their staff, but each session is limited to 10 attendees on a first-come, first-served basis. Parking is gratis only for attorneys. Download, fill out and fax the registration form to Kim Henry at 404-287-8394 by 12 p.m. the day before the class is scheduled. If you have additional questions, please e-mail Jodi McKenzie at jodi@gabar.org or call 404-526-8618.

For the Week Beginning October 23, 2006
Play Google Jeopardy!® for better Web searches
The next time you use the Google search engine (www.google.com), put your query in the form of a question or an answer. For example: "What is the capital of Alaska?" or "The capital of Alaska is." Be sure to use quotation marks. This method can narrow your search results significantly; plus, it's fun!

For the Week Beginning October 16, 2006
Identity Theft -- Don't be a Victim
Identity theft should be taken seriously. Some experts say that one out of every 30 people in this country will have their identity stolen. The average damage is $6,000. If that wouldn't be a shocker to your budget, think about the 40 hours it takes the average person to make things right again. For college students just entering the workforce and attorneys looking to change jobs, secure a loan, or buy a home: identity theft can cause additional problems during a job search or financial transaction. Undetected errors on credit reports could raise flags with potential employers or lenders. To reduce the risk of this happening to you, consider the following advice:

1. Be vigilant about your mail. Use secure US Postal Service drop boxes to send mail. Shred all junk mail and bank, credit card and other financial statements before discarding.
2. Safeguard private financial statements and personal identification such as social security cards, drivers' licenses and birth certificates.
3. Check your credit report regularly (once a year should do the trick). You can request one free copy a year at www.annualcreditreport.com. You can decide whether or not you want your credit score and/or your debt analysis ($7.95 and $5.95, respectively).
4. Be careful where and how you use personal and financial information over the Internet.

For the Week Beginning October 9, 2006
Inserting the copyright symbol in MS Word
The copyright symbol is quite common in many types of documents. Here's several quick ways you can add the symbol to your document. (This tip works with MS Word 97, 2002 and 2003.)

There are a number of special symbols that are often used in the course of creating a document. One common symbol is the copyright mark, which is a small letter C surrounded by a circle. Copyright marks are easy to add to your document, assuming you are using a version of Word that has AutoCorrect and that it hasn't been turned off or modified. If this is the case, you should be able to type a lowercase C surrounded by parentheses--as in (c)--and Word will automatically change the three characters to a copyright mark.

If you have AutoCorrect turned off, there are a number of other ways you can insert a copyright mark. If you use the keyboard a lot, you can simply press Ctrl+Alt+C. If you prefer to use the mouse, you can follow these steps:

1. Choose Symbol from the Insert menu. Word displays the Symbol dialog box.
2. Make sure the Special Characters tab is selected. (Click here to see a related figure.)
3. Choose Copyright from the list of available characters.
4. Click on OK.

For the Week Beginning October 2, 2006
Quickly Zooming Fonts for Easier Reading
Need a bigger font for easier reading of a document or a webpage? Hold down the control key and use the scroll wheel on your mouse to easily enlarge the text, zooming in. This works with True Type fonts, so it will work most of the time.

For the Week Beginning September 25, 2006
Color Coding Within Client Files
You can make locating your own work product within a client file easier by simply using colored paper when printing the file copies of these documents.

You can use one color, such as yellow, for memorandums and notes and another for the copies of correspondence you send, such as pink or blue. Some law firms load their fax machines with one color so that incoming faxes and confirmations are color-coded. You can purchase reams of colored copy paper at your office supply store. Select colors that make sense to you and your staff. Do not go overboard and try to color coordinate every document -- remember less is more.

For the Week Beginning September 18, 2006
E-Mail Receipts
Lots of lawyers and their staff never use return receipts for e-mails because they generally are not that useful as evidence in court. But when e-mailing important, time-sensitive documents to clients or other lawyers, it can be helpful for you to know they received the document. Spam filters are one of many reasons an e-mail may not be received, but no "bounce message" is returned to you. Show your clients you care that they received a document and save yourself the aggravation of calling someone just to see if they got your e-mail by using the return receipt option.

For the Week Beginning September 11, 2006
WiFi vs. Cellular Access
There is a lot of hype about the availability of WiFi, but the fact is that there is not enough coverage, free or otherwise, to count on it being there in a pinch. If you have to be mobile and you have to be connected, either spend the money for a cellular broadband card for your PC or spend the time learning how to use your cell phone as a cellular modem. Depending on the phone type and the capabilities of PC you have you may require a cable to connect to your PC or you may be able to connect via Bluetooth. It will not be as fast as WiFi but you will get a signal where no WiFi is available.

For the Week Beginning September 5, 2006
A/R Aging Priorities Tip
Once a month you should take a financial snapshot of your practice. The main purpose of this exercise is to give you a clear picture, on a monthly basis, of where your money is. This snapshot should tell you how much money is going out and how much is coming in. An important part of the money 'coming in' is actually what should have come in, but hasn't yet. This is the accounts receivable (A/R) aging report. This report shows unpaid accounts, their amounts and how old they are. Any collection efforts should look at the largest amounts first. If you are going to spend 30 minutes dealing with an unpaid account, do it on one worth $1000 instead of one worth $10.

For the Week Beginning August 28, 2006
Download Books Free on Google Book Search
You can now access new, and free, downloadable versions of some of the world's greatest books on Google Book Search. These books are out of copyright and have become public domain material. You can search and read these books on Google Book Search like always, but now they can also be downloaded and printed to enjoy at your own pace.

For the Week Beginning August 21, 2006
USB Flash Drives: Use with Care
USB flash drives, sometimes called jump drives, have become very popular with lawyers. What lawyer wouldn't be interested in being able to carry thousands of documents in his pocket? They are very convenient for the lawyer on the go. The problem is that they are so small that they are easy to lose. Therefore you need to take care with any documents containing confidential client communications on them. You may password protect those document, use a zipping utility to compress them while adding a password or maybe just buy a more expensive flash drive with encryption software as a part of the package. Keeping the flash drive on your key ring makes loss less likely as well.

For the Week Beginning August 14, 2006
The shoemaker's children....
are running around barefoot. Another analogy could be that the attorney's has an outdated Last Will & Testament. Looking over your Will every few years, or when family circumstances change is very important. An old Will may not include important people that you'd want to care for.

For the Week Beginning August 7, 2006
Put It In Writing!!!
Remember that clients are often under considerable stress (from their legal problems) the first time they visit a lawyer. Your explanation of your fees and costs may be a model of clarity, but it may not sink in. Give your explanation in writing as well as verbally. If a lot of money is at stake (in the eyes of the client), allow the client time to think it over before committing to your fees. Clients who "buy in" to a fee agreement are more likely to abide by it. Then take the initiative to periodically discuss the amount of fees throughout your representation. If at any given point the fee does not comport with the client's expectations, resolve the situation as soon as possible--don't let it fester until the attorney/client relationship is irreparably damaged.

For the Week Beginning July 31, 2006
Wipe Cell Phone Data Before Discarding Them
All cell phones have a certain level of data on them at a given time. The newer, more sophisticated phones will have significant amounts of user information on them. And lawyers may even have client information on their phones. So when it's time to upgrade to a new phone, make sure that your information is removed from your old phone before you toss it. This is a good security practice in general, but given the ethical duties of lawyers, it is an especially good idea for you. Check out www.WirelessRecycling.com for instructions on how to clear data from many types of cell phones. Click on the "Phone Data Eraser" link, enter your Manufacturer and Model information and follow the instructions.

For the Week Beginning July 24, 2006
Generating Cash Flow More Quickly
Having a cut-off date for your billing cycle a few days before the end of the month can generate quicker cash flow than sending your bills out after the first of the month when everyone has already paid 'this month's bills.'

For the Week Beginning July 17, 2006
Building Your Practice
Networking Strategies to Expand Your Contacts
Here are three ways to expand your networking efforts to increase your business:

1. Host a social gathering. Invite friends, colleagues and business acquaintances to periodic social gatherings. The party could be at your office or a local restaurant. You might even rent out a health club for an evening. One small firm in Minneapolis has a "beach" party each summer, inviting several hundred people in the legal and business community. Business is booming.

2. Call people in the news. When you read newspaper or magazine articles of interest to your practice, circle the names of the individuals who are quoted in the articles. Call the ones who you would like to get to know. Use their quote as an icebreaker. Then ask a follow-up question to keep the conversation moving. If things go well, you can add them to your contact list.

3. Volunteer to be the secretary or scribe. When you are newly active in an organization, it is sometimes hard to get to know other members. When you attend a function, volunteer to take notes of the meeting or write an article about the event for the organization's newsletter. You then have a good reason to call the other members and introduce yourself while preparing the minutes or article.

For the Week Beginning July 10, 2006
Law Practice Management Resource Library
We just got in a selection of new titles. Checkout continues to be on a first-come, first-served basis. Here's a list of what's new:

Discovery Revolution, The (E-Discovery Amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure)
E-Learning for Law Firms (By now, you've most likely heard about this concept and, more than likely, you've already e-learned something. This little book will explain the benefits of this emerging and ever more innovative knowledge-building tool.)
Electronic Evidence and Discovery: What Every Lawyer Should Know (You already know that technology has created an entirely new source of evidence -- electronic evidence. De-mystify e-evidence and place yourself on the brink of cutting-edge electronic discovery and computer forensics technology.)
Electronic Evidence: Law and Practice (This book explores the range of evidentiary problems encountered from discovery to trial, and their solutions.)

Check it out!

For the Week Beginning July 3, 2006
Pay Your Clients a Visit!
Occasionally meeting a client at their office or other "home" turf instead of your office is an empowering gesture that clients really appreciate. There is an easy, one-step way to help you get to your client's "home" turf. If you need directions and if you use Outlook, open the client's contact information screen. Highlight the client's home or business address using the down arrow under the address button. Then click the yellow road sign on the contact screen toolbar. Your web browser will automatically take you to Expedia.com and a map to the client's address.

For the Week Beginning June 26, 2006
Could Online Phone Calls Be In Your Future?
Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP or VOIP) is easy, available and inexpensive. Here's how it works. VoIP had its beginnings in the IT departments of corporations wanting to pinch pennies. It's now available to you as a consumer. VoIP startups are promising inexpensive (or free) calls to anywhere in the world. Add wireless networking and you can have voice over Wi-Fi. This technology is making conventional phone companies nervous. Currently, an amazing 10 percent of all calls are transmitted with VoIP, and folks like us are signing up every day. There are over 500 VoIP providers in the U.S. Take a look at www.voipproviderslist.com. If you'd like articles on this subject, please contact Kim Henry at 404-527-8772 or kim@gabar.org.

For the Week Beginning June 19, 2006
Give Your Computer Mouse a Rest
When surfing on the Internet, you'll find you frequently need to jump up to the Address bar to type in a new website address or "URL." You can, or course, use your mouse to do this. But there's another (and some say faster) way to jump to the Address bar without your fingers leaving the keyboard. In both Internet Explorer and Firefox browsers, simply press ALT+D. This moves the cursor to the Address bar and highlights the current URL. Just start typing in the new URL and it will appear (replacing the current one). Hit Enter when you are done. If you just want to edit the current URL, press ALT+D, then hit the END key to keep the current URL displayed. Then you can use the cursor keys to move through and edit the URL.

For the Week Beginning June 12, 2006
Beware of Phishing
Phishing is the act of sending an e-mail that leads consumers to counterfeit websites designed to trick recipients into divulging financial data such as credit card numbers, account usernames, passwords and social security numbers. The email appears to come from banking institutions, charities, PayPal, e-Bay, etc. Possibly, the most diabolical phishing expeditions were carried out during last year's devastating hurricane season people actually mimicking the Red Cross' relief efforts. You should NEVER divulge personal or financial information to web pages received in an email.

For the Week Beginning June 5, 2006
Avoiding a Common Outlook e-mistake
It is especially important for lawyers (and staff) to avoid one of the most common e-mail mistakes: sending an e-mail to the wrong recipient. In Microsoft Outlook, when you type a recipient's name in the To box of a message, the AutoComplete feature lists the names of possible recipients, including contacts that you deleted or didn't intentionally save. To circumvent this feature, begin by typing the name in the To box of a message. When the AutoComplete list appears, press the DOWN ARROW key to select the address of the deleted contact and press the DELETE key to remove the entry from Outlook's cache.

For the Week Beginning May 29, 2006
Last in a Series for Improving Your Bottom Line
Let your staff share the wealth from expense reduction.
If you encourage your staff to watch paper costs, not waste electricity, control supplies, etc., you may or may not get results. But what if you said instead, "Here are our current supply costs. If we can reduce them, you'll get 25% of what we saved." That way, you save money; your staff makes money; everybody's happy. Try it!

For the Week Beginning May 22, 2006
Tenth in a Series for Improving Your Bottom Line
If you charge expenses back to your clients, be thorough and accurate.
Attach copy monitoring cards to your copier, and use them. (Many will produce an electronic report that you can dump directly into your billing system.) Consider using a long distance service that will let you enter a client code and send you a monthly report of calls by client. Usually, asking employees to manually log calls or manually review fax printouts and telephone bills doesn't work terribly well, since it's a substantial drain on the time of already busy people. If you can, try to automate this process; you will get far more accurate results.

For the Week Beginning May 15, 2006
Ninth in a Series for Improving Your Bottom Line
Use separate credit cards for business and personal use
Interest on cards used in business should be deductible. If you're forced to put a big-ticket item for your office on a credit card, at least don't swallow the interest and annual fees. Having separate cards also makes it more likely that you will delegate the required accounting of expenses to a staff person. Manyany attorneys do not record charged expenses because they don't want anyone else to see their credit card statements.

For the Week Beginning May 8, 2006
Eighth in A Series for Improving Your Bottom Line
Prepare a budget
Would you ever tell a secretary that her pay should be whatever is left over after expenses are paid? Many sole practitioners pay their own salaries that way, instead of budgeting a minimum salary level and then paying themselves an annual or quarterly bonus if revenue is higher than anticipated. What's worse, they don't have a sense of whether the expenses are where they should be, because they haven't budgeted either desired income or anticipated expenses. Inexpensive accounting programs like Quicken have easy-to-use budgeting features that make planning simple and fun.

For the Week Beginning May 1, 2006
Seventh in a Series for Improving Your Bottom Line
Deposit checks immediately
If you have an interest-bearing checking account, get those deposits inside as fast as your feet can carry you. With interest rates at their current level, you won't get rich quickly this way, but over the long term, the interest will add up. Investigate your options for business accounts: you may be able to move your money from a low-interest checking account to other higher yield accounts. For example, if you have a payroll account from which you only write a few checks, you may be able to use a limited check writing money market account at a higher rate of interest.

For the Week Beginning April 24, 2006
Sixth in a Series for Improving Your Bottom Line
Don't permit yourself to continue working for clients who haven't paid
Do we really need to go over why this is bad business? Yet many lawyers persist in believing that people who have made no attempt to pay, or have lied about their ability to pay, or have prevaricated about when they're going to pay, are going to suddenly turn into good clients. They aren't, and what is worse, they will refer more people just like them to you.

For the Week Beginning April 17, 2006
Fifth in a Series for Improving Your Bottom Line
Increase retainer size -- especially if your turnover ratio is poor
What all this means essentially is "stop floating loans to your clients." If your retainer is exhausted and you send out a bill, it may be 60 days before you receive payment from the client. Consider that you've done the work anywhere from one to four weeks before the bill is printed and delivered, and you will realize that the time period between when you've done the work and when you're paid can be as much as three months. This holds true even for what you consider good clients. During that three months, the client has received interest-free legal work. Why operate like that? When a retainer begins to get low, ask the client to replenish so that there's always a positive retainer balance.

For the Week Beginning April 10, 2006
Apple, Intel and Windows XP
On April 5, 2006, Apple introduced Boot Camp, public beta software that enables Intel-based Macs to run Windows XP. Available as a download, Boot Camp allows users with a Microsoft Windows XP installation disc to install Windows XP on an Intel-based Mac, and once installation is complete, users can restart their computer to run either Mac OS X or Windows XP. Boot Camp will be a feature in "Leopard," Apple's next major release of Mac OS X, that will be previewed at Apple's Worldwide Developer Conference in August.

Although Apple has no desire or plan to sell or support Windows, many customers have expressed an interest in running Windows on Apple's hardware now that they use Intel processors.

For the Week Beginning April 4, 2006
Fourth in a Series for Improving Your Bottom Line
Keep good records!
How can you take a deduction if your recordkeeping is so poor that you can't sort your office rent payment from the check you wrote to the cat-sitter? Many sole practitioners start out by having one checkbook for both personal and business expenses, reasoning that it's all coming from the same source and going to the same place eventually. This is a sure way to lose money, so keep meticulous records and make sure that your personal and business records are always separate, no matter how little money your law practice makes.

For the Week Beginning March 27, 2006
Third in a Series for Improving Your Bottom Line
Understand tax regulations - learn your allowable deductions and your reporting requirements
Don't let a fear of the tax man prevent you from taking what you are legitimately entitled to. And don't count on your accountant to figure things out for you. He or she may not understand what goes on in a law firm enough to translate your terminology into "accountingese". And remember that an accountant's main function is to properly account for what is already there; although he or she may make some good suggestions about minimizing expenses or maximizing profitability in the future, your accountant isn't there to plan your future. That is up to you.

For the Week Beginning March 20, 2006
Second in a Series for Improving Your Bottom Line
Record Your Time
Studies have shown that attorneys who keep detailed time records recover 50-100% more time than those who guess or try to reconstruct their time from their desk calendars. A good short-term experiment: for one month, force yourself to record everything you do and meticulously post what can be billed to clients. (Record everything -- you don't have to bill it if you don't want to, but you do want to keep track of everything that could be billed.) At the end of the month, compare what you've billed with previous months. If you're like the vast majority of lawyers out there, you'll be very pleasantly surprised at the difference. P.S. If you are a contingency-based attorney, you shouldn't exempt yourself from recording your time. How will you know if your fee is a good one unless you know how much time it took you to produce the result? A $15,000 fee for a matter that took 100 hours of your time is a much better result than a $15,000 fee for a matter that took 200.

For the Week Beginning March 13, 2006
First in a Series for Improving Your Bottom Line
Collect Outstanding Bills

Have you seen the Dilbert comic strip where Wally gives the manager employee input? Cynically, he suggests using #4 instead of #2 pencils to save money, because he believes that only inconsequential and useless suggestions are ever adopted by management. Sad to say, many law firms, when they try to cut costs, adopt these same penny-wise but pound-foolish techniques, ignoring things that could really improve the bottom line. Everybody wants to save money, so here is the first in a laundry list of things that can really make a difference to the small law firm. Some of these are obvious -- the trick is making yourself do them -- while there will be others you may not have thought of.

Collecting outstanding bills (accounts receivable) will have a greater impact on your bottom line than almost all attempts at expense reduction. Forget finding a new paper supplier or a cheaper secretary; pursue your accounts receivable first. Consider this: if you bill $200,000 a year and collect 85%, which is not uncommon, you've received $170,000. If you can nudge this 85% to 90%, you've made an extra $10,000 without doing any more legal work at all.

We have a great book by Jay Foonberg in our Resource Library called How to Draft Bills Clients Rush to Pay. Give us a call at 404-527-8772 if you'd like to borrow a copy.

For the Week Beginning March 6, 2006
Be Prepared for Initial Consultations
Review prospective client information before the first meeting with the potential client. You may save valuable time by assessing whether the case/client is one you'd want to take on.

For the Week Beginning February 27, 2006
Computer Use Policy

Personal-use policies can help protect law firms from liability problems as well as the problems of lost productivity and wasted resources. Explain to all employees the appropriate use of firm computers both inside and outside the office. This information should be a segment of a comprehensive, written office policy and procedures manual. Please give us a call at 404-527-8772, if you'd like to borrow a sample guide from our Resource Library.

For the Week Beginning February 20, 2006
Tax Deductions for Your Clients

Most professional services and costs are tax deductible, including legal fees. Your clients will appreciate your letting them know this. A good way to keep them informed is to have a line automatically print on your billing statements. Something as simple as "These legal fees may be tax deductible -- please keep this invoice with your tax papers." will do the job.

For the Week Beginning February 13, 2006
Working Towards Effective Case Management
When you get a new case do something with it immediately, no matter how small -- begin anywhere -- but do something. It can be as simple as making a file folder and putting a note in it. The final deadline may be far in the future, but doing something with it "right now" can be helpful. When the time comes to devote more effort to the case, you will effectively be running toward completion, not "just starting." Don't forget to put some reminders in your electronic tickler. These reminders can be invaluable in staying on top of the case and minimizing the anxiety of missed deadlines or filings.

For the Week Beginning January 30, 2006

Transitioning into Law Practice Program

Most weeks, we post a tip to help you with your practice. This week we're asking experienced lawyers to sign up as mentors. The core of your State Bar of Georgia's Transitioning into Law Practice Program is to match beginning lawyers, after admission to the Bar, with a mentor during their first year of practice. If you are an experienced lawyer equipped to teach the practical skills, seasoned judgment, and sensitivity to ethical and professionalism values necessary to practice law in a highly competent manner, please contact Doug Ashworth, Director at tilp@gabar.org or visit their site at www.gabar.org/programs/transition_into_law_practice_program/.

For the Week Beginning January 23, 2006
The Mouse is Your Friend...
Are you learning a new software application or program and seem stuck, right clicking your mouse might help. You might find some shortcuts to very useful parts of the application. This is also a quick way to execute everyday functions, such as cutting and pasting. If the right-mouse menu doesn't have what you need, you can click out of the right menu by executing a normal left-mouse click.

For the Week Beginning January 16, 2006
Say it isn't so.....
We all know a deleted computer file can be recovered. If you thought you were safe because you shred... think again. New computer technology is being used to piece together shredded documents! Shredded paper is scanned, and then computer programs reassemble the documents electronically. Even cross-shredded documents can be reconstructed. The price is steep: from $2000 up to $10,000 for fewer than 100 pages. If you want more information, look up ChurchStreet Technologies.

For the Week Beginning January 9, 2006
Portable Programs on a USB Drive
Are you a fan of mobile computing? Until now, pocket-friendly USB drives have been handy for carrying data. A company called U3 is currently marketing a new technology that allows a drive to store and, when plugged in to ANY PC (having U3-compliant applications), securely run those applications without leaving a trace of data on the host computer. Check it out at www.u3.com

Condensed from an article authored by Michael S. Lasky in the December 2005 issue of PC World magazine, page 30.

For the Week Beginning January 2, 2006
Key Hiring Trends to Watch in 2006
Although this is not a legal industry-specific survey, our experience is that it is representative of trends in the legal industry as well.

Career Builder.com and America Online interviewed more than 1,300 hiring managers nationwide that has revealed some interesting trends for 2006.

The survey, entitled Key Hiring Trends to Watch in 2006, reveals that companies plan to offer higher starting salaries for new employees, raise compensation levels for existing employees, provide more flexible work arrangements, shorten hiring cycles, diversify their staffs and rehire retirees.

If you'd like to read the survey, it's available at www.techweb.com/showPressRelease.jhtml?articleID=X412521

Tip of the Week (All tips featured here are provided by the State Bar of Georgia's Law Practice Management Program and the Practice Management Advisors Committee of the ABA Law Practice Management Section. The tips are not meant as legal advice, nor binding on the State Bar of Georgia or the ABA.)