Sorry folks: no porn or leather this week. Instead, our weekly shout-out to the best law-related things on the Internet is a bit more tame, and some might say pragmatic. It’s office attire. And a guy kicked out of court for his attire, which mocked the judge’s ongoing ethics scandal. Plus, law graduates that can’t afford attire. And more! As always, if you have a suggestion for next week’s roundup, tweet me @PeacockEsq....
By some estimates, nearly 7,000 people fell victim to the News of the World phone hacking scandal, perhaps rightfully inciting a little paranoia amongst those who rely heavily on their voicemail boxes. But while most out there won’t suffer too badly if a rogue message is unleashed, as an attorney, you’d be wrong not to protect your voicemail. Between messages from clients, experts, and opposing counsel, an attorney’s inbox can contain a host of confidential and privileged information, all of which you’re ethically bound to protect to the best of your ability....
History repeats itself, or so they say. And it looks like it might be repeating itself with none other than Microsoft. Microsoft has been working on Windows RT, which is a version of Windows 8 made for ARM-based touch screen tablets and laptops. As ZDNet explains it, Windows RT has two interfaces: Metro and a Windows 7-style desktop. The desktop interface has been designed to run only Microsoft applications, including Internet Explorer....
By now you may have heard that Men’s Wearhouse Inc. has ousted Executive Chairman George Zimmer, the iconic face (and voice) of the suit-and-tie company he founded 40 years ago. Remember the gentleman with a smooth husky voice who coined the slogan, “You’re going to like the way you look. I guarantee it”? That’s him. The board didn’t give an explanation for the ouster, but Zimmer thinks it was because he expressed concerns over the direction the board was taking his company, reports San Francisco Bay Area’s KNTV....
We’ve written about the Food and Drug Administration’s eye on e-cigarettes before, but with new advertisements hitting television, and toting the benefits of “vaping” over puffing, calls for the FDA to step in and regulate the industry are reaching a fever pitch. USA Today describes one ad, where Stephen Doroff states, “It’s time we take our freedom back,” before listing places where men might like to smoke, but aren’t allowed to, such as basketball games or at a bar....
Advancements in technology have made electronic devices smaller, faster, and “smarter.” But that has also empowered a new generation of high-tech peeping Toms. In New York state, for example, cases involving unlawful surveillance via so-called “perv cams” — i.e., cell phones, pen cameras, or other recording devices — have almost doubled since last year, the New York Daily News reports. In addition, the accused peepers almost never take their cases to trial....
Law enforcement agencies across the country were sent spinning in January after the Supreme Court struck down warrantless GPS tracking as an unconstitutional practice. How would they follow criminal suspects discreetly and without an in-person tail? It seems this question has been answered pretty quickly. Police departments and federal agencies have readily embraced warrantless cell phone tracking as a viable alternative. Cell tower data allows investigators to pinpoint a suspect’s location whenever he makes or receives a mobile call....
You have to have an independent streak to start your own solo practice. But that doesn’t mean you have to be totally alone in the venture. More and more lawyers are taking advantage of legal incubators, programs that provide training, guidance, and even office space for lawyers bootstrapping their own practice. In exchange, participants must often commit to public interest work, or “low bono” practice. So, if you’re considering starting your own firm, should you look in to an incubation program first?...
With advances in personal technology coming faster than ever, the ways to upload and share client data have never been easier. But easy doesn’t always mean ethical for lawyers using free cloud computing and e-mail accounts. The options are endless for lawyers looking to streamline their office. Yahoo!, MSN, and even Facebook can give attorneys quick access to online cloud and e-mail services. Among the providers, Google’s services are one of the most popular....
You may have left the confines of a law firm but you are still a member of a team – and this week is a big week for corporate teams. Wednesday is Administrative Professionals Day. You forgot? No problem, we’ve got some tips for your here (just whatever you do, don’t delegate gift purchasing to your admin). Now that your admin is covered, now you’ve got to deal with the kids....
Business trips combine the best elements of vacation with the best elements of working. Wait, maybe they actually combine the worst of each of those things. 1. Join Every Frequency Program. Airlines, hotels, credit cards – they all offer frequency programs that reward you for mileage or spending. Airline tickets and hotel accommodations cost a lot of money, but that means they also reap the most rewards. Even if you have a corporate card, you should be able to join the card’s rewards program, meaning you get cash back, points, or whatever it is they offer (though you may not want to “abuse” the program)....
In case you weren’t aware, today is National Dictionary Day. We’ve been talking a lot about legal marketing and how solos and small practices can do it more effectively. But sometimes, there’s a tendency to get loaded down in jargon, which can put people off. 1. SEO. Sounds like: Something Executive Officer? What it is: An acronym for “search engine optimization.” By spreading certain key words throughout a Web page, the page’s ranking gets boosted when people search for those words in a search engine....
With Best Buy closeouts scheduled to hit 50 of the electronic retailer’s locations, attorneys looking to upgrade their law offices could be in for a score. “Could” is the operative word here. Savvy shoppers know that closeout sales usually yield the worst deals. In the case of Best Buy, most of the big ticket items (like TVs and laptops) are slated to be shipped to other locations. But that doesn’t mean it’s all bad....
If a cookie-cutter law practice sounds tempting to you, maybe you should consider another line of work – like baking. “Cookie cutter” lawyering is not supposed to sound alluring; it’s generally used in a pejorative way. It suggests a high-fructose, low benefit, no-brainer business model. Ah, but easy money smells so good. After all, why reinvent the wheel when it turns a profit so well? Here are some reasons that cookie cutter law practice is really a recipe for excess:...
Eric Sinrod is a partner in the San Francisco office of Duane Morris LLP (http://www.duanemorris.com) where he focuses on litigation matters of various types, including information technology and intellectual property disputes. His Web site is http://www.sinrodlaw.com and he can be reached at ejsinrod@duanemorris.com. To receive a weekly email link to Mr. Sinrod’s columns, please send an email to him with Subscribe in the Subject line. This column is prepared and published for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice....
FindLaw columnist Eric Sinrod writes regularly in this section on legal developments surrounding technology and the internet. Facebook has just brought to the fore its new service called Facebook Places that allows users to alert others to their physical location and that ultimately seeks to enable Facebook to draw upon local business advertisers. And as Facebook moves forward with Places, it has been confronted with concerns expressed by privacy advocates....
The new hotness in suing over the Affordable Care Act took a hit at the Eleventh Circuit today, with the court denying relief to Kawa Orthodontics in a dispute over the delay of the ACA’s employer mandate. Kawa Orthodontics, owned by Larry Kawa (a noted figure in the Republican Party), apparently spent a bunch of money on figuring out how to comply with the mandate. Then, wouldn’t you know it, the Treasury Department delayed enforcement of the employer mandate for another year, then another year....
Get ready for expanded overtime. In the upcoming month, the Department of Labor is expected to release new Fair Labor Standards Act rules which are expected to greatly expand the number of employees eligible for overtime. The FLSA requires that employees who work more than 40 hours a week be paid time and a half for any overtime. For decades, that overtime requirement has been applicable only for lower-paid employees. Under the new rules, the salary cap will go up, allowing millions of salaried workers to qualify for overtime for the first time....
Situational awareness — a term typically used by military, emergency services and air traffic control — refers to “being aware of one’s surroundings and identifying potential threats and dangerous situations.” Fred Krebs, an In-House Coach in Canada, believes the situational awareness concept should be adopted by every in-house counsel when it comes to technology. Cyber security. Jeff Brandt, the editor of Pinhawk, a daily law technology digest, identifies hacking as a “potential threat and dangerous situation” directly applicable to in-house counsel....
Robert Peoples is going to have to learn some respect. Down in the Fourth Circuit, the legal profession is still held in high regard. There is a certain decorum that is expected of all those who step foot in the hallowed halls of a mid-Atlantic courtroom. Though he was late again, he called the court and was excused. However, he became disruptive and disrespectful and was given one final warning....
