tional user is only $99! These are blow-away prices.
As is clear, I like this product and believe it is a bargain at present price levels.
Paul Bernstein, Esq.
"A personal life--it's about time"
By Christopher J. Cummings
It's 1:00 in the morning, and I'm too tired to sleep. As I lay in bed tossing and turning, every commitment that I have made for the coming week bubbles to the surface, one at a time. Between work, Army Reserve, the local and state bar associations, church and my family, there are plenty of commitments. I will be awake, thinking, for hours. You'll notice that my family came last in the above list. In fact, none of the commitments that are keeping me awake involve my family. I have been too busy to let these concern me.
My wife and I have one child, a six-year-old daughter. In the back of my mind, I have this suspicion that we don't have more children because I am not home enough. One of the things that got me thinking tonight is a question my daughter asked my wife. Of course, I was not home to hear this because I was at an "important" web page design class at the local community college. When my wife asked my daughter if she wanted to play soccer this spring, my daughter asked my wife if she would be her coach. She didn't ask me. I wasn't home.
The bad news is that my priorities are frequently upside down. The good news is that I am still alive and can do something about it. I do not make this last comment lightly. I truly believe that if I keep going at my current pace, I will have a heart attack and either die or be forced to slow down well before my prime. I want my wife and daughter to enjoy me, not the proceeds of my life insurance policy. It's time to rearrange my priorities so that I am a husband and father first.
My daughter is sound asleep, but I'm going to have a surprise for her in the morning. I am gong to volunteer to be her coach. To do this, I must give up some of the many commitments that I have amassed over the years. I will be a better husband, father, and lawyer because of this.
Now that I've written this, I'm starting to feel sleepy. That's a good thing, because I've got to be well rested for soccer practice.
By Thomas J. Brannan
When we want results, we typically ask, "Who is in charge here"? If someone asked you that question, about your business or about your life, what would your answer be? There are a lot of possibilities, but I would guess the odds are good the answer would be your clients, your caseload, your law firm or maybe even technology, but the one thing or person not in charge is you! Does it have to be this way? More importantly, who or what should be in charge?
Life today is not simple as the days of old, though technology has assisted with our daily lives, it has also brought increased pressures because there no longer is a time lag between getting work in and getting work out. The expectation of many clients today is that the work will get out immediately. Pressures of the family also seem to be greater.... remember the days when the only activities your child or children might be involved in were Little League or Boy or Girl Scouts. Today, families are spending the better part of their lives going to soccer games--year round, and country wide, ball games almost every day of the week, and the list goes on. And the talk of many, "it's nuts," meaning their lives are out of control .... few probably really stop and reflect or ask, "Say, who is in charge here."
Professionally, each of us is faced with the question daily as to who is in charge, when we go to the office. Though not consciously, each of us answers the question as we start our daily agenda: our staff is in charge, our clients are in charge, or we are. Most of us would have to answer that, frankly, our clients are in charge. Why? Because we allow it. True, with the number of lawyers in society today, competition is sometimes keen, but many over react and take any business that walks in the front door, and also agree, without a lot of forethought, to meet the demands of the client. By accepting everything and everyone that walks in the office, control, our time and our lives, is in the hands of our clients. Most lawyers are well paid, but are we paid enough to turn our lives over to others?
Can we control our clients, and therefore, exercise more control over our office, our workload, and our lives? I submit we can, but it may require a change in our approach to our clientele. First, we need to establish a protocol for new clients or new work. Most significantly, at the initial interview or matter review, we need to understand the client's expectations, both as to results sought, the complexity of the matter, as well as the time frame. We must ask ourselves, can we meet this client's expectation, and is the matter such that we have the time to address this issue? Time spent at an initial conference may result in a long and lasting and fruitful relationship, but it may also circumvent a disaster for our client and us. Candor: we should make it clear to our client that we charge for telephone calls (so we don't subsequently spend 20 minutes of our time arguing with our client over our bill), we need to fully explain our fee agreement, explain the legal process that will likely ensue from our representation, and suggest the results that may be obtained....to exaggerate is to set ourselves up for an unhappy client, or a malpractice claim.
If proper care is taken on the advent of a new matter or client, we should be able to meet our client's needs and expectations, but also gain some control over our office and workload and most significantly, our daily life. As an example, by making it clear that all calls will be billed, this should cut down on unnecessary and frivolous telephone calls. (I understand of course that many phone calls may not be frivolous to our client, though they are to us, but if the client knows that a phone call will cost twenty or thirty dollars he or she may think twice about calling over something that "just occurred to them.")
If the initial client conference is sufficiently detailed, we may lay the ground work for the client to understand that we try to set aside certain times of the day to return phone calls, that many times an associate or a member of our staff may return a phone call or provide requested information, but that we are not "available" to see our client just because he or she happens to "drop in" without an appointment. Obviously, if our clients expectations are such, then we have started to manage our client, because now we are free to set aside a time of the day to return phone calls, we can delegate tasks to staff or associates, and we will be able to block out quality time for work that requires focus and concentration.
Understand, the forgoing also suggests that there will be potential clients who do not feel that we can meet their needs or demands....lucky us! Believe it or not, this is good. We have an opportunity, at the onset, to do then what we will want to do later... fire our client! Busy is not good unless we are meeting the needs and demands of our client and we are being fairly compensated for our endeavors. Pick our clients, and pick our work, then we are charge.
So we have the new client, or project...another crossroad. Now who is in charge? Is it the work? Chances are it is. Management of workload is difficult...it may almost be practice specific. However, some observations for all types of practices: consider incorporating case management software, create project or case calendars, create monthly, quarterly and annual work calendars, trying to block time m advance for the typical critical times in your practice (tax time, before depositions or trial).
Thirty years ago, I had the idea that technology, computers specifically, would greatly simplify things in the future. Understand, I am no Bill Gates, but it was seemingly clear to me that computers and technology would enhance and simplify our lives (but I still did not buy Microsoft in 1985). My foresight was partly correct....technology has certainly changed things, though I am not fully convinced that it has simplified our lives...or maybe even enhanced them, but it is here, here to stay, and only time will tell where it will take us. In the practice of law today, the use of technology is not important, it is an absolute.
I submit that today lawyers must use technology for research, for docket control, for calendar control, for document assembly, and for time and billing. For those who got interested in technology early on, when everything was DOS based, and software applications were limited, becoming acquainted and familiar with software was relatively simple. But today, with integrated software, from spreadsheets to presentation to database management and document assembly, it is not "relatively simple." Today, modern software takes the commitment of lawyers and their staffs. At a recent meeting of the Law Office Management and Economics (Standing Committe on) , two recognized "experts" in technology acknowledged that even they probably do not use or know how to use over 50% of the capabilities of the new software "Office Suites".... And these are experts. That certainly tells the rest of us where we stand. Time spent learning and training in new software and technology will not only return dividends in the form of happier clients, staff and better work product, but it will also allow each of us to gain a little better control.... So that maybe "we are in charge."
But to truly "be in charge," suggests they we must therefore be in charge of our law firm, which means that we need to manage it, instead of it managing us. Does your firm exist by default, or is it by design and planning. Many large firms today hire professional office managers or administrators, or a partner is selected and that partner's primary responsibility is to manage and operate the law firm. Though, hopefully, as lawyers we will always remember that we are here to serve the needs of society, we should not lose sight of the fact that a law practice and a law firm is a business. Businesses that are not well managed typically deliver inferior products or do not survive. I recently taught a course in "Business Organizations" for a junior college, and as a part of the course we covered mission statements, business plans and strategic planning. How many of us can honestly say that our office has a mission statement or business plan? This is what I mean by suggesting that many law firms operate by default, meaning that we don't really plan, we just go to the office each day, go through the daily routine and grind...and continue to exist, tomorrow, just as today and yesterday. To exercise control requires planning, and planning should include a recognition, even if not written, what the mission statement is, and what the business plan envisions or requires. Everyone needs stroking. Without a goal, objectives, a mission statement or business plan, about the only stroking a lawyer receives is the judgment or verdict; the too sparse "thank you," or the money derived from the practice. Accomplishment will be better felt and appreciated if it is in line with the mission of the office and its business plan. More importantly, with a strategic plan, a business plan, and a mission statement, a law firm and the attorneys within have direction, ergo a degree of control.
And where does all of this desire for control lead? Hopefully, it will lead to improved daily lives. By having a degree of control over clients, workload, and the office, there should be time to exercise dominion over our personal lives. Control should allow for time for work and time for play. I recently gave my daughter's hand in marriage.... Not being a philosopher, I did not know exactly what to say, to give her guidance, as she started her new life. Then, I recalled something I once read: "When you came in to this life, you were crying, and everyone around you was smiling. Lead your life so that when you leave it, you are smiling, and everyone around you is crying." Take Control.... for a better and more meaningful life.
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Thomas J. Brannan, Beardstown, IL is a partner in the Centennial Law Firm of McClure, Brannan & Hardwick
Law office policy on Internet and E-mail access
With the increasing use of Internet access and e-mail by law firms, it is important to establish appropriate uses and limits on these powerful communication tools. Anyone using the Internet by now, should be familiar with concerns about virus protection, security, and the potential abuses of Internet surfing. Recently, privacy concerns have become the focus of employment litigation based upon a claim of an employee's right of privacy. If employees are allowed access to use Internet services or e-mail, care must be taken to avoid any potential breach of computer network security, client confidentiality, or inappropriate use.
Before implementing such a policy, it is important to review the computer environment for each law firm. For example, a law firm operating a network, and having high-speed Internet access through the network's file server has different concerns from a law office where individual computers access the Internet via individual modems. In the case of computer networks having Internet access, greater security concerns arise due to the fact the network is likely to be connected to the Internet throughout the entire working day, if not 24 hours per day. In the case of individual computers accessing the Internet by individual modems, the concern is tying up telephone lines that might otherwise be used for incoming an outgoing telephone calls.
To assist law firms in establishing an Internet and e-mail policy, a draft memorandum is set out below. This memorandum is very generic and was based on an assumption that the law firm using it has provided high-speed Internet access to the law firm's computer network. It also assumes that the law firm allows some use of both the Internet and e-mail by all of its employees. Obviously, the easiest policy is to prohibit all personal use and to advise staff that there is no expectation of any privacy since personal use is prohibited. Each firm will have to make its own decision concerning that policy.
Issues that need to be reviewed before drafting a policy include consideration of the kind of access available for your law office, the number of users who may need access to the Internet or who will be given rights to send and receive e-mail, security, computer viruses and other system protection, privacy, confidentiality, and employee time management. Some thoughts on these topics are discussed below.
Bandwidth. One of the first considerations must be a review of the computer system available for Internet use. Smaller law offices will probably have access to the Internet by individual modems connected to each computer. One of the initial decisions to be made is how many telephone lines for the law office can be made available for this use. Remember that these individual modems might be used to transmit fax messages as well as Internet and e-mail access. In addition, use of those telephone lines might disrupt traditional telephone line access. It is important to make sure that there are a sufficient number of telephone lines available for telephone calls from clients and others.
For law firms who have a computer network that may be used for providing Internet access, a different set of considerations arises. In this configuration, consideration has probably been given to the use of high-speed Internet access through a dedicated 56K modem, an ISDN line, cable modem, DSL, or other dedicated access. Internet and e-mail users in the office need to be educated about the loss of access caused by excessive use, or inappropriate use of the Internet connection. Particular attention needs to be given to policies concerning on-line shopping, playing Internet radio stations, downloading large files and other uses that take away valuable bandwidth (the shared use of the high-speed access line). In some offices modems may be shared. Users need to be reminded that it is important to disconnect from the shared modem after using it in order to make the modem available to others.
Security. Security concerns also should receive some of the highest priority in setting Internet use policies. For offices using the high-speed connection technology, there is a need to limit access to persons having a legitimate need for use in the office. Probably no office will set up Internet access that is activated 24 hours per day through a network file server without some consultation from a network administrator or computer consultant. Advice from that technical support person should be requested in designing a policy for using Internet and e-mail access. Individuals within the law firm who are granted Internet access rights and who have Internet e-mail privileges will need to understand the need for keeping passwords private, and disconnecting from Internet connections when they are not needed in order to avoid the opportunity for some other person to intentionally, or accidentally have access to network directories or files that should remain restricted.
Virus protection. Computer viruses are a well-known problem. The common wisdom is that viruses are most often spread through use of the e-mail, or copying files from transferable media (like floppy disks). Users of Internet email need to be trained to recognize executable programs that may be attached to e-mail messages and to use the computer virus programs that should be available in the law office. Obviously, no use of e-mail should be allowed unless appropriate virus scanning software is properly installed and regularly used. The law office staff need to be reminded that there are many new forms of viruses being created, and the best protection against infection is to only use e-mail for communication with another trusted individual or business. Suspect e-mail messages including unsolicited commercial promotions need to be promptly deleted without opening attachments.
Legality. Please be certain that all uses of the computer and other office technology are legal and permitted under copyright, trademark, licensing and/or other applicable laws.
Confidentiality/privacy. Privacy concerns affect both the law office and the individual users. Each law office should already have policies in place about client confidentiality concerns. Those policies should be adapted for this new form of communication. Recent ethics decisions have generally accepted the use of e-mail in appropriate circumstances for client communications. Each firm will have to decide a whether to use the e-mail for any confidential communications, and to define the types of communications that would not be appropriate. There is room for some debate about the likelihood of interception of e-mail. This concern is probably no greater than should be considered with use of the fax machine. As with the fax machine, a user can never be sure whether or not the recipient may have left a computer on or may have inadequate security measures to protect privacy.
Employee privacy raises a different issue. Recently, there have been a number of claims litigated in court about employee privacy issues including use of the Internet access or e-mail capabilities at their place of business. The easiest policy to implement is a complete ban on any personal use of the Internet or e-mail. Staff needs to be told that privacy, for use of the Internet or e-mail in the office setting, cannot be guaranteed. In fact, there may be a policy that such use will be monitored. Network administrators and co-workers may easily be able to determine what Internet sites have been visited by a computer user. Email messages might be stored on the network file server to which a number of people may have access. If personal use is allowed at all, very careful and specific guidelines need to be adopted for it. Consequently, employees should refrain from any personal use for communications that should remain private.
Productivity. Finally, since the introduction of personal computers in the workplace, many businesses have experienced problems with employees who find computer use enjoyable, but engage in nonproductive uses. These include the ubiquitous games that are available for computers as well as the tempting fun of surfing the Internet. Office productivity may be harmed by the temptation to spend a few extra minutes from time to time in idle e-mail messages, shopping, or excessive browsing for information. Good employees will recognize the need to focus their attention on the tasks assigned to them. Others may need some reminder in a written policy. With this background consider adopting a written policy for your office For a general format only, consider the following example:
MEMORANDUM
TO: All office employees
RE: E-mail and Internet Services
We have provided as an office tool access to the Internet including access to an e-mail account in the name of the law office. Your use of these resources can be a great benefit to the office, but inappropriate use may be disruptive. Please review these policy guidelines and apply them to your use of these tools.
1. Internet and e-mail use in the office should be used to enhance office operations; personal use is not allowed without prior approval.
2. Security is a concern. It is never safe to download programs without your network administrator's supervision. Do not use the Internet to visit sites that may prove embarrassing to you or the office.
3. Virus protection cannot be over estimated. Unless you have specific authorization, do not download (or "copy to disk") any operating program. These include files ending in ".exe" but may take other forms. If you are authorized to download files, remember to run updated virus scanning software on the file before doing anything else.
4. Downloading computer programs or games, graphics and video segments, or music may violate copyright or other laws. Do not download anything without express permission to do so.
5. Privacy cannot be assured. Personal e-mail and use of the Internet should be reserved for home use. Your use of the Internet and your e-mail may be monitored or seen by others.
6. Pornographic files including pictures or text that may be offensive to others and ethnic jokes, commentary or other forms offensive material cannot be condoned for obvious reasons. Use of the Internet for any such unauthorized purposes will not be tolerated.
7. E-mail transmissions may be intercepted or read by others. Sensitive and confidential communications should be reserved for appointments and secure telephone calls. Clients should be cautioned on the appropriate use of e-mail.
8. Chain letters and widely distributed e-mail, especially that is not directly related to work assignments waste time and potentially cause other problems. Keep e-mail use directly work related.
If you have questions about anything in this Memo, please ask your supervisor.
Conclusion. The Internet and e-mail offer powerful tools for the law office. Use of these tools should be encouraged. Appropriate standards and compliance with all applicable laws for this form of communication needs to be in place. Use common sense and your knowledge of your equipment, your staff and your practice to implement the policy best suited to the operation.
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Carl Draper is a partner in the Springfield firm: Feldman, Wasser, Draper & Benson where he maintains a general civil practice and serves as the firm's network administrator.
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