jay.reeves@ymail.com | 919-619-2441
Jay Reeves practiced law in North Carolina and South Carolina and is author of The Most Powerful Attorney in the World. He runs Your Law Life LLC, which helps lawyers and firms improve their well-being and create saner, more successful law lives. He is available for talks, presentations and confidential consultations.
Despite what you might have heard, the customer is not always right. Sometimes they’re wrong. Very wrong. But there’s a right way and a wrong way to correct a customer/client’s flawed thinking or behavior. “The phrase ‘the customer is always right’ was originally used in 19… Read More
If your website isn’t in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, you might be losing prospective clients. You’re also running a risk of being sued. The past two years have seen a record number of ADA lawsuits alleging inaccessibility of website and mobile apps against law firms and … Read More
If you show up for work one morning and find your office has been turned into a supply closet, it might be time to start looking for a new job. Ditto if your name has been whited-out of the letterhead, your office key no longer works because the locks have been changed, or you’ve been passed over for par… Read More
Breaking news from the Intellectual Property front: musician Ed Sheeran scores a big court win, while the Nirvana Nevermind baby swings and misses for the third time. The Grammy-winning Sheeran won an 11-day copyright battle in London over his smash hit “The Shape of You,” which was the biggest-sel… Read More
Did you know you can pay your Lawyers Mutual premium online? “One Time Pay” offers Lawyers Mutual insureds an easy and convenient way to view and pay their insurance bills online. Just go to the Lawyers Mutual website and click on "Payment Due? Make an online payment now.” You can pay wit… Read More
You don’t need a PR specialist, social media director or personal publicist to spread the news about the good things happening in your law practice. You can do it yourself. DIY public relations will save time and money, and it adds authenticity because you’re speaking in your own voice, not thro… Read More
Once there was a lawyer who froze. It happened at a bad moment – a terrible one, professionally speaking. He was standing before a room full of other lawyers giving a CLE presentation on the 10 Building Blocks of a Successful Law Practice. Within minutes of starting, an attendee asked an impossible question, and his brain shut down. Read More
If it seems as if the Google ranking for your law firm’s website tends to fluctuate wildly, you’re not imagining things. Google is constantly adjusting its search engine algorithm, and recent years have seen more tinkering than usual. In June and July of 2021, for instance, Google implemented a … Read More
Here’s some risk management advice for personal injury lawyers: think twice before making a demand for future pain and suffering on behalf of a client who died 10 months ago. You might wind up having to face the State Bar on disciplinary charges. That’s what happened to an attorney in Illinois, … Read More
The most frequent complaint clients have about their lawyer is not lack of competence or losing at trial. It’s poor communication. “[F]ailure to keep a client adequately informed is far and above the number one complaint clients have,” says Lawyers Mutual claims attorney Will Graebe. &ldqu… Read More
Are you too busy taking care of your current clients to devote sufficient time, resources and energy to attracting new ones? If so, you’re not alone. Lots of solo and small firm lawyers feel overwhelmed. The mere thought of adding another item to their daily to-do list is deflating. And yet, if you do… Read More
Missed deadlines were the leading cause of malpractice claims in 2021. Many claims involved blown statutes of limitation. Others involved missed discovery deadlines and lapsed summonses. That’s according to 2021 claims statistics from Lawyers Mutual. “In 2021, litigation errors constituted one-… Read More
Your worst nightmare has become reality: you discover your law firm database has been breached and sensitive information has been compromised. What’s the first thing you should do? If you had the foresight to prepare an Incident Response Plan – even if it’s just a single page of action ite… Read More
How would you define the phrase Thought Leadership? Would you include qualities like credibility, sincerity and authenticity? Intelligence, expertise and experience? And which comes first – the thinking or the leading? Those were the topics of discussion at the March 2022 meeting of the Leading Law Rou… Read More
Do you consider yourself a good crisis manager? Want to become a better one? Start by honing your communication skills. When the sky is falling, the ability to articulate a path to safety in a clear, calm and consistent manner is essential. Another key: be a good collaborator. “Crisis teams are like … Read More
The Supreme Court of North Carolina has adopted amendments to the North Carolina Business Court Rules. The Supreme Court’s order amending the rules was adopted on 15 June 2022 and is effective on 1 July 2022. Among other things, the Supreme Court’s order amends the rules related to formatting, sealed documents and protective orders, hearings and conduct, motions and briefs, and pretrial hearings. All interested persons are encouraged to read the Supreme Court’s order in its entirety.
On June 6, 2022, the US Supreme Court issued its opinion in Gallardo v. Marstiller, Sec’y of the Fla. Agency for Health Care, 2022 U.S. Lexis 2683, and held that the Medicaid Act permits States to seek reimbursement from settlement payments allocated for future medical care. The full opinion can be read here.