Tag: lawfirmmanagement

Categories
Mental Health and Work/Life Balance

To All the Law Students Who I have Loved (or Just Liked a Bit)

Pregnant woman, man, and two children.
Photo by Luana Freitas at Pexels.

I write a lot about work/life balance, mental health, and the pursuit of things other than money in the legal profession.

My wife (and lawyer) Maureen McKay has laughed at me about this (among other things.) She has said, “Murray, if any of the young people who you counsel to pursue a balanced lifestyle were to have applied to your firm back when you were hiring Associates and talked about working reasonable hours and reserving evenings and weekends for their families, you would not have hired them.”

She’s right. But, in my defense, it’s complicated.

Read more about why it is complicated “To All the Law Students Who I have Loved (or Just Liked a Bit)”
Categories
People I Met Practicing Law

Law Firm Primer For Articling Students and New Associates – Part Eight: The Chief Marketing Officer

People mingling at a bar.
Photo by Helena Lopes at Pixels.

Those of you who have been following this series know that I said that Part Seven was the final article in the series. It turns out that I lied.

The purpose of the series is to set out the questions which Articling Students and new Associates should figure out about their firms when deciding whether to stay there over the long-term.

This time it is about the Chief Marketing Officer (“CMO”).

read more about the chief marketing officer “Law Firm Primer For Articling Students and New Associates – Part Eight: The Chief Marketing Officer”
Categories
Retirement

Reap What You Sow

Farmer planting rice.
Photo by Rattasat at Pexels.

Hey law firms!  Have you given much thought to your partners approaching retirement, and calculated what their retirement may cost you? 

read more about how much it is costing your firm to handle retirement badly “Reap What You Sow”
Categories
Law Firm Management

Reading Between The Lines

Man in front of computer screen which says that his services are no longer required.
Photo by Ron Lach at Pexels.

At my law firm, we had great human resources management. It was so good that information was hard to come by. In fact, it was just about impossible to get any really good gossip out of management until it had made its way down to the partners, after which it became more readily available.

Since we had some really smart people at our firm (as well as a few who were not so smart), it should not be surprising that we had to compensate for the lack of information flow by learning to read between the lines.

read more about human resources in lawfirms “Reading Between The Lines”
Categories
Firm Culture

A Sweeter World?

An older woman and younger man sitting together and drinking wine.
Photo by Ron Lach at Pexels.

I was speaking to a university student the other day who I will call Lara.  Lara told me that she occasionally has a super nice dinner at her friend Kim’s expense.

It seems that sometimes Kim meets a Sugar Daddy who treats her to a nice meal at a fine restaurant. Kim is just a little bit nervous about meeting strange men for dinner, so she has Lara come to the restaurant, sit at a nearby table, and keep an eye on her.

read more about loneliness “A Sweeter World?”
Categories
Retirement

Math at the End of Days

A caution sign with the word "End" against a background of palm trees and an evening sky.
Photo by Ana Arantes at Pexels.

Let’s say that Michael is a partner at his firm.  He stays for many years and builds up a substantial client base.

And while we are making things up, let’s assume that Michael has been a team player and introduced his clients to his Partners and Associates, so as Mike comes close to retirement age, much of his work is being done by other Partners, Associates and Law Clerks.

read more about attitudes of partners upon retirement “Math at the End of Days”
Categories
Legal Tech

Somebody Hates Chat GPT

A computer screen displaying the words "Introducing Chat GPT."
Photo by Hatice Baran at Pexels.

The more seditious and outrageous stuff that I write usually originates in my own tiny little brain. 

Occasionally the creative spark comes from another lawyer. This is one of those times. 

This particular lawyer sent me a rant about Chat GPT which I have edited slightly. For context, this lawyer’s firm loves Chat GPT, and this particular lawyer does not, but they have to pretend that they do so as not to anger the Partner Gods. They would rather go uncredited because they don’t want to be fired.

Read a rant about chat Gpt. “Somebody Hates Chat GPT”
Categories
People I Met Practicing Law

Law Firm Primer For Articling Students and New Associates – Part Seven: The Supervising Lawyer

A lawyer looking at a book while standing over another lawyer who is seated at his desk.
Photo by Sora Shimazak at Pexels.

This is the last in a series about the questions which Articling Students and new Associates should figure out about their firms when deciding whether to stay there over the long-term.

This time, I will speak about supervising lawyers (“SL”).

read more about your supervisor – the key to whether you love or hate your job “Law Firm Primer For Articling Students and New Associates – Part Seven: The Supervising Lawyer”
Categories
Law Firm Management

Grilled Cheese, Please

Grilled cheese sandwich on a board with avocado and fries in the background.
Photo by Ahmed Rabea at Pexels.

There is a restaurant in Lakefield, Ontario called the Canoe & Paddle. On their regular menu is a panini called the “Ultimate Grilled Cheese” which comes with smoked bacon, cheddar, asiago, tomato, and garlic butter.

On their Kids & Seniors menu they offer a grilled cheese sandwich for which the ingredients are listed as “white loaf, cheddar.” They call this the “Grilled Cheese Please.”

read more about clear communication in law firms “Grilled Cheese, Please”
Categories
People I Met Practicing Law

Law Firm Primer For Articling Students and New Associates – Part Five: The Chief Financial Officer

Man sitting at desk working with a laptop and a calculator.
Photo by RDNE Stock project at Pexels.

This is the fifth in a series about questions that Articling Students and new Associates should consider when trying to size up their new firm.

This time I will address the most senior person in charge of the money. In your firm, this person could be called any of the following:  Chief Financial Officer (“CFO”), Controller, Accounting Manager, Accountant or Bookkeeper.

read more about the people watching the money in law firms “Law Firm Primer For Articling Students and New Associates – Part Five: The Chief Financial Officer”