Asked and Answered

By John W. Olmstead, MBA, Ph.D, CMC

Q. I am the owner of a 12 attorney firm in Dallas. We have 26 people including attorneys and staff. I founded the firm 20 years ago. While we have an Accounting Manager - I am responsible for the management and direction of the firm. While we have done okay over the years - I often feel deficient as a manager and am not always sure that I am covering all of the bases. Is there such thing as management 101 for guys like me?

A. Mention Management 101 and I think of the five functions of management. Each of these roles must be performed by someone in every law firm and business if it is to be successful. In a small firm such as yours you must perform each of these functions and be reasonably good at all of them.

Here are the five functions:

The law school experience tends to program lawyers to think cases and nothing but cases, but more and more it’s statutes and administrative rules where the action is. In Illinois, the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules (JCAR) publishes the weekly Flinn Report that is a summary of the rules being proposed by State agencies. It is a PDF usually four to ten pages long.

The Flinn Report allows interested persons or parties an opportunity to give written comments on the proposed rules before they are accepted and published. These rules can significantly affect some of your practices.

It’s not a bad idea to skim the weekly Flinn Report much as you would skim case summaries in ISBA’s E-Clips or in the advance sheets.

Background information on JCAR and the link for the Flinn Report are  here.

The Illinois State Bar Association's Young Lawyers Division is kicking off its Professional Development Luncheons (PDLs) with a session titled “Getting Your Foot in the Door.” The program will be on Wednesday, Sept. 12 at noon at the Chicago Regional Office, 20 S. Clark Ste. 900.

The four part series is aimed at teaching law students and young attorneys practical steps in advancing their career. The first luncheon program features three esteemed panelists who will discuss how to get your first job or new job in the legal profession whether you are interested in working at a small firm, large firm, or for the government.

• Gina DeBoni, Managing Partner, Romannucci Blandin
• Pat Driscoll, Head of Civil Actions Bureau, Cook County State’s Attorney
• Tom Fahey, Managing Partner, Ungaretti Harris, LLP

Cost: $10 includes lunch (If you require a specific dietary lunch, contact Janet Sosin)

Registration required by Sept. 7 at http://www.isba.org/sections/yld/pdl/09-12-2012

No MCLE credit is available for this program.

For general inquiries, please contact Matt Coleman at mcoleman@ridgeassoc.com; Jessica Durkin at jessica@mdr-law.com; or Heather Pfeffer, at heather.pfeffer@gmail.com.

The Fall Semester of Fred Lane's ISBA Trial Technique Institute begins Sept. 4 at the ISBA's Chicago Regional Office. Listen to Fred discuss the class and find out more below the video.

More information is available at www.isba.org/cle/trial

Register online at www.isba.org/cle/trial/registration

The Illinois State Bar Association's 8th Annual Solo & Small Firm Conference returns to Chicagoland Sept. 13-15 at the Westin Northwest Chicago in Itasca. Register by Aug. 20 for the Early Bird discount -- a savings of $75. Earn up to 15 hours of MCLE credit, including all 6 hours of PMCLE credit.

Top 10 Reasons To Attend This Year’s Conference

1. Networking with like-minded peers from across the state!
2. Crowd favorite program Gizmos & Gadgets returns
3. Basic and advanced Fastcase legal research training
4. New location in Itasca, just northwest of Chicago
5. Individual counseling on how to market your firm
6. Mobile Device App to put Conference info you need at your fingertips
7. Comedians-at-Law at Friday night social event
8. Plenary speaker Todd Winegar's Trials of the Century Overview program
9. New 4th track of programming – Practice Fundamentals
10. 15 HRS MCLE/ 6 HRS PMCLE credit available

Learn more and register today at www.isba.org/soloconference

ISBA Immediate Past President John G. Locallo has been named to the Executive Council of the National Conference of Bar Presidents (NCBP).

The NCBP was founded in 1950 to provide information and training to state and local bar association leaders. Included among its many distinguished past presidents are former ABA Presidents Chesterfield Smith, Leonard Janofsky, George Bushnell, Bill Paul and Steven Zak, as well as current ABA President, Laurel G. Bellows.

The current organizational members of NCBP include state and local bars from 53 states and territories. The Executive Council consists of recent bar presidents who want to share their experiences and perspectives with current bar leaders.

The NCBP provides high-quality programming to current bar leaders at two meetings held each year contemporaneously with the annual and midyear meetings of the ABA.

For more information, click on: http://www.ncbp.org/index.cfm

Our panel of leading appellate attorneys review Thursday's Illinois Supreme Court opinions in the Civil cases Jane Doe-3 v. McLean County Unit District No. 5 Board of Directors and Santiago v. E.W. Bliss Company.

Jane Doe-3 v. McLean County Unit District No. 5 Board of Directors

By Karen Kies DeGrand, Donohue Brown Mathewson & Smyth LLC

Chicago attorney Laurel G. Bellows was sworn-in this week as the new president of the American Bar Association. Bellows, a principal of The Bellows Law Group, P.C. in Chicago, represents executives in the United States and internationally.

She has several areas of focus for the coming year. One is to call attention to human trafficking in the United States. She has has been authorized by the ABA Board of Governors to create a Task Force on Human Trafficking in the United States that will develop a range of anti-trafficking projects and coordinate efforts with other groups on the issue. A second priority is to look at cybersecurity and the roles that private business and government have to keep our nation secure from cyber attacks. Bellows also will appoint task forces on gender equity and another on civil trials. She also will continue the call for increased funding of the court system in the U.S.

A graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and Loyola University School of Law, Bellows has practiced law for more than 30 years.  She practices law with her husband, Joel, in Chicago. They have four children and four grandchildren.