Law Practice Management Archives | Page 3 of 12

6 03, 2013

How to Properly Shorten Client Meetings That Drag On

2019-03-11T21:19:59+00:00By Debra L. Bruce, JD, PCC.|2 Comments

In my last post, I wrote about how to recognize bad clients before you make the mistake of taking on the representation. Among the responses I received, there was a request to discuss how to deal with basically good clients with a few unappealing behaviors. These are clients you want to keep, but you just wish that it was a little easier to deal with them in some respect. In this post I’ll make some suggestions on how to wrap up meetings with clients who take up too much of your time. […]

12 02, 2013

Picking the Wrong Clients? You Can’t Blame the Wreck on the Train

2019-03-20T22:20:16+00:00By Debra L. Bruce, JD, PCC.|2 Comments

Lyrics from the song: “You Can’t Blame the Wreck on the Train” by Terri Sharp:

“When the gates are all down
And the signals are flashing
And the whistle is screaming in vain,
And you stay on the tracks, ignoring the facts
Well then, you can’t blame the wreck on the train.”

Almost all lawyers have rued their decision to take on some client, and with hindsight can recognize the warning signs that they disregarded. Many of us learned our lessons the hard way, but you don’t have to. Well…you probably will learn the hard way that a difficult client can cause you a lot more harm than the lost fees you wind up writing off. But after one such experience, if you ignore these warning signs, then you can’t blame the wreck on the train. […]

10 01, 2013

Keep a Success Journal to Be a Happier and More Productive Lawyer

2019-03-11T21:41:57+00:00By Debra L. Bruce, JD, PCC.|2 Comments

It’s that “rubber-meets-the-road” time of year again. When solos start closing out the books on their law practices for the year, it spurs them to look back and take a little personal inventory. Some law firms and law departments ask their lawyers to summarize their accomplishments in connection with their annual performance review. I ask my clients to scrutinize their successes and their disappointments for the year that is ending, before setting their goals for the year to come.

As I assist lawyers with these processes, I notice that, although they may remember their shortcomings and disappointments with all the gory detail of a train wreck, they often forget significant achievements from the first half of the year. They also forget the heartfelt note of appreciation they received from a client four months ago and the midnight oil they burned for weeks to meet an important deadline. Sometimes when they master a skill or change a habit, the new behavior becomes so natural that they don’t count it as an achievement. They forget the awkwardness of their first attempts and how daunting the hurdle initially seemed.

[…]

19 11, 2012

How to Give Thanks to the People Around You

2019-03-11T21:46:30+00:00By Debra L. Bruce, JD, PCC.|3 Comments

“Karyn, thank you for working so steadily from the time you arrive at our office to when you leave. Your dedication demonstrates that I can trust you to play fairly with me. Trust is important to me, and it is a relief and a time-saver not to have any concerns about your attitude.” That’s a message I want to convey to my assistant in this month dedicated to expressing gratitude. I know she’ll receive this message, because she’ll publish this blog post for me. I’m hoping she’ll relish having the world (or at least this corner of it) know something that I appreciate about her.

I’ve written previously that studies have found various ways that expressing gratitude can enrich your life and increase your enjoyment of your law practice. I wrote about the value of acknowledging a job well done, which is a form of expressing gratitude, and how to give an effective acknowledgment. I’ve also written about the importance of demonstrating your appreciation to referral sources. Are you starting to get the message that I think having an “attitude of gratitude” is important? […]

6 11, 2012

Cultivating the Courage to Ask for Business – Part 1

2019-04-01T20:52:45+00:00By Debra L. Bruce, JD, PCC.|3 Comments

This is Part 1 of a 3 part series in which Debra L. Bruce talks to attorneys about less painful and more effective ways to ask for business from potential clients.

Many lawyers, both men and women, blanch at the thought of having to ask for business, and I don’t blame them. In my opinion, it’s often a mistake, and it should be scary to do something clumsy or annoying. Common advice about “asking for the business” may drive sales in low risk transactions, but drive away potential clients with complex and risky issues.

Nevertheless, lawyers do need to develop business, and expressing your interest in working with someone can make a difference. How do you drum up the courage to do that? In short, it’s a lot less scary if you have laid the right groundwork beforehand. To help illustrate what potential clients want to hear from lawyers, I did an informal survey of a number of in-house counsel about how they like to be approached for business. My thoughts and their responses are intermingled in this article. […]

25 10, 2012

How to Send Invoices that Clients are Happy to Pay

2019-04-01T20:54:04+00:00By Debra L. Bruce, JD, PCC.|2 Comments

Introducing Guest Blogger Jeremie Fortenberry –

Guest Blogs on: How to Send Invoices that Clients are Happy to Pay Jeramie Fortenberry is the founder of Fortenberry Legal, a law firm that helps clients from across the United States with estate planning and probate matters. He writes about trusts, estates, and tax planning at the Probate Lawyer blog.

Billing makes me uncomfortable. When I first started practicing law (at that time with a big firm), I felt sheepish to even broach the topic with clients. It seemed uncouth to start talking about money right when I was in the process of establishing what I hoped to be a lasting relationship. Because of my reluctance to discuss fees on the front end, I relied on my engagement letter to set expectations regarding pricing. My hourly rate was buried somewhere in the letter, along with information about how time was computed and how often I would invoice. That, I thought, should be enough to deal with the uncomfortable issue of how I would be paid for my services. […]

5 09, 2012

Systematize to Optimize Your Legal Practice – Part 1: Why?

2019-04-01T20:57:54+00:00By Debra L. Bruce, JD, PCC.|Comments Off on Systematize to Optimize Your Legal Practice – Part 1: Why?

In this issue of “Raising the Bar“, Debra L. Bruce presents the first of a three-part series addressing the creation of law office systems for increased efficiency, improved quality control and cost reductions. As a bonus, systems help lawyers to focus on and enjoy their law practice more.

Image credit: thingamajiggs / 123RF Stock Photo

Why Law Office Systems Matter
Increased competition, downward pressures on fees, and elevated client expectations require lawyers today to respond faster while maintaining high quality. Law firms and individual attorneys need structural aids to improve productivity and assist in quality control. Systems let lawyers spend more of their time on the high level, challenging work they enjoy most. […]

22 05, 2012

Sample Partnership Agreement Provisions Respecting Compensation – Appendix A (Part 7 of 7)

2019-03-20T21:00:29+00:00By Debra L. Bruce, JD, PCC.|3 Comments

This is the Appendix A mentioned in the previous seven articles discussing structures that law firms tend to adopt for partner compensation. In Part 1 we discussed the Monarch structure, in Part 2 the Parity structure, in Part 3 the Executive Committee Monarchy, in Part 4 the regular Lock Step, in Part 5 the Modified Lock Step, and in part Part 6 the Eat What You Kill structure. Appendix A provides an example of some partnership agreement language in a Modified Lock Step compensation system.

APPENDIX A
to Partnership Compensation Plans

Selected Provisions Of
Agreement Of Limited Liability Partnership
Of
A & B, L.L.P.
[Not Intended As A Complete Partnership Agreement]

This AGREEMENT OF LIMITED LIABILITY PARTNERSHIP of A & B, L.L.P. is entered into to be effective as of the __ day of ___, 200_,

by and among A (“A”) and B (“B”) (collectively, the “Partners”) pursuant to the provisions of the [State] [Partnership Law], and according to the terms and conditions set forth herein.

NOW, THEREFORE, THE PARTIES AGREE AS FOLLOWS: […]

21 05, 2012

Partner Compensation Plans – The Eat What You Kill, EWYK (Part 6 of 7)

2019-03-11T22:21:00+00:00By Debra L. Bruce, JD, PCC.|2 Comments

This is the 6th article in a series of 7 discussing structures that law firms tend to adopt for partner compensation. In Part 1 we discussed the Monarch structure, in Part 2 the Parity structure, in Part 3 the Executive Committee Monarchy, in Part 4 the regular Lock Step, and in Part 5 the Modified Lock Step.

Eat What You Kill (EWYK)

Description
Each lawyer’s compensation is based on the revenues she generates. Usually there is some kind of formula that attempts to account for overhead, and then distributes all remaining profits to the lawyers based on their collections. In some systems a flat dollar amount is determined for overhead per lawyer, by dividing up the sum of fixed and predictable expenses, such as rent and shared staff salaries. Everything the lawyer bills and collects in excess of the fixed overhead figure gets paid to that lawyer after subtracting certain firm expenses directly associated with that lawyer such as business development expenses, retirement plan contributions, and salaries of staff or associates who work mostly for that attorney. In that model the firm is more akin to an office sharing arrangement than a partnership.

A variation of the EWYK model does provide for sharing of risk. The firm’s profits are determined, and distributed in accordance with a formula that averages the collected revenues attributable to a partner over multiple years (usually two to four). The averaging slightly shaves off peaks in income, to provide support from partners on the upside of […]

18 05, 2012

Partner Compensation Plans – The Modified Lock Step (Part 5 of 7)

2019-06-25T16:27:46+00:00By Debra L. Bruce, JD, PCC.|2 Comments

This is the 5th article in a series of 7 discussing structures that law firms tend to adopt for partner compensation. In Part 1 we discussed the Monarch structure, in Part 2 the Parity structure, in Part 3 the Executive Committee Monarchy, and in Part 4 the regular Lock Step.

Modified Lock Step

Description
Many firms have modified the lock step model to allow a committee to subjectively reward or punish behavior. The modification helps the firm to encourage essential behaviors such as business development, high productivity, recruiting, training and mentoring associates, management, and client relationship maintenance. It also provides the flexibility to bring underperforming partners into line, without having to completely expel a partner.

Some of the modifications may include the ability to promote a partner to a higher level earlier than the other classmate partners, or demote a partner to a lower level. There may also be a “slush fund” for allocating bonuses to reward desired behavior. Appendix A to this article (which will appear in Part 7 of the seven-part series) contains an example of provisions that might be included in a modified lock step compensation plan. The author extends her gratitude to Bill McDonald, a partner at Thompson & Knight LLP, whose practice includes advice on law firm formation, for the provisions included in Appendix A.

In Appendix A, the agreement provides for seven lock step levels, but permits the management committee to assign each partner to the appropriate level […]

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