Jay Reeves

Looking for a theme for your next law firm retreat that’s unique, fun and might take your practice to the next level? How about throwing a Fixathon, where everyone brings one idea for solving an office problem or improving an office process. The team uses its collective energy and creativity to tackle ea… Read More

To create a law firm that even Aristotle would admire, you can start by making sure your office is psychologically safe. This has nothing to do with political correctness or snowflakes, and everything to do with trust and teamwork. Studies show that the number one factor in creating a successful team is not w… Read More

It’s ethically permissible for a lawyer to access information that is publicly available on someone’s social media site, whether the person is represented by counsel or not. But if you visit too often – or poke around too aggressively – you might find yourself in violation of Rule 4.4, … Read More

Is your cyber response team trained, fully staffed and ready to swing into action if needed? If your answer to that question was – “Cyber response team? What cyber response team?” – deduct one risk management point. If, on the other hand, you have at least a rough idea of who you’… Read More

You can make your phone calls more productive – and even add hours to your workday – by using the power of the Hard Stop. This is in contrast to the all-too-familiar Soft Stop, where supposedly quick conversations drag on for hours, staff meetings take all morning, and our precious time vanishes ri… Read More

The next time you stand up to speak in court or elsewhere, don’t be so rehearsed that you leave no room for improvisation. Trying to memorize every word could spell disaster if you get thrown off your script – which you likely will. That’s one nugget of advice from Ruth Kinloch, a writer, bl… Read More

Even though an attorney’s name was listed on her husband’s law office letterhead, she can’t be held liable for his alleged malpractice when there was no actual partnership agreement, a federal appeals court has ruled. The plaintiff failed to establish a partnership by estoppel, the court said… Read More

If you’re not getting much bang from your blog, maybe you’re not posting often enough. Firms that publish 16 or more posts per month got more than triple the traffic than firms publishing four or less a month. Or maybe the problem is you’re publishing the wrong kind of posts. The best posts … Read More

For new NCBA president LeAnn Neese Brown, it’s all about roots and wings. The Chapel Hill attorney was installed in June as the 125th president of the NC Bar Association. She previously served on the NCBA Board of Governors as well as on numerous committees, and she chaired three practice sections. She i… Read More

A look at how trying to add more hours to the day is not the best use of your time. Read More

As if you didn’t already have enough to worry about with cybersecurity, now we learn that Google Calendar might be a minefield and Flash video player could be a ticking bomb. More than 1.5 billion people who use Google Calendar are potential victims of an ongoing phishing scam. “Scammers send a ca… Read More

Missed deadlines only happen to bad lawyers, right? Wrong. Even the best of attorneys can miss an important date or deadline. It happens because the attorney is stressed, distracted, or too busy. It happens because the calendaring system is inadequate. And sometimes, it just happens. “The most frequent … Read More

If you’re relying solely on your email spam filter to ward off phishing attacks, you’re making a mistake. That’s true even if your filter blocks the overwhelming majority of dangerous messages. “It may seem acceptable that your spam filter stops 97 percent of the phishing attacks direc… Read More

If you’re thinking about offering a prize to anyone who likes you on Facebook, better think again. You might be asking for a State Bar grievance. The State Bar ethics committee has proposed an opinion that says a law firm can’t offer an incentive for people to engage with its social media account.… Read More

Documentation is not just a good idea – it might prevent a complaint to the State Bar or a lawsuit for malpractice. This starts with the first contact with a prospect, perhaps before you’ve even accepted the case or opened a file. Document the nature of the problem, what was discussed, and what if … Read More