Hammerle on… “RBG,” “Pope Francis: A Man of His Word”
Movie reviewer Robert Hammerle finds much to like in documentaries about Pope Francis and Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
Opinion
Articles
DTCI: Get ready to leave your heart in San Francisco at DRI in October!
I invite you all to join me in San Francisco for the DRI Annual Meeting! This event will take place October 17-21 at the beautiful San Francisco Marriott Marquis Hotel.
Federal Bar Update: Magistrate Judge Pryor makes impact
Since taking the bench in March, Magistrate Judge Doris Pryor has been immersed in the work of the court.
Succession Planning: Professional conduct rule may impede firm succession
Rule 1.17 of the Rules of Professional Conduct, which deals with the sale of a law practice, is a restraining force in law practice succession planning. There are good reasons for this rule, such as putting our clients’ interests before our own, but no other profession faces the restrictions an attorney has when selling a law practice.
Eye on the Profession: Nagging question for lawyers — “How can you do it all?”
For busy professionals who love what they do, there is a constant challenge. They simply feel that they don’t have time to live life and stay on top of their legal careers. They constantly are asking themselves and others, “How can you do it all?” One significant question that we often overlook is “What does ‘all’ mean?”
Technology Untangled: Google Maps Timeline incredibly detailed yet fallible
We are aware that our smartphones act as personal locator devices. Google gathers location data from Android smartphones through many methods. Recently I was reminded of how disturbingly detailed — and fallible — this tracking information can be.
Klein: IU McKinney faculty, students confront opioid challenge
Indiana University has made a major commitment to combatting the opioid epidemic through its Responding to the Addictions Crisis Grand Challenges Initiative. I am proud that the IU McKinney School of Law is playing a large role in this effort.
Hammerle on … “Disobedience,” “Deadpool 2”
“Disobedience” makes film reviewer Bob Hammerle recall Bogart & Bergman in “Casablanca,” while “Deadpool 2” makes him laugh out loud.
Raman: Congratulations on graduation, and welcome to the profession
It is hard to believe that nearly four years have passed since I walked across the stage, received my diploma, passed the bar exam and started practicing law at Lewis Wagner LLP. I wanted to provide new lawyers, especially those who just graduated from law school, with some tips that I believe are critical to hit the ground running.
Plugged In: Beware of buzzwords and implement the most beneficial technology
With so many emerging technologies, it can be difficult to know which solutions are the most beneficial to implement and which are just this year’s jargon that will ultimately result in financial waste.
Pappas: Why I don’t sign letters “Very truly yours”
Bill Hutchens taught me this lesson, along with the value of humor — in life and law. We recently lost Bill after a long battle with Parkinson’s disease (a condition with which, coincidentally, my father, also a lawyer, was afflicted).
Rosio: What you need to know about valuing closely held businesses
The valuation of closely held companies is a large and growing practice. However, most people are not aware of this valuation activity because the companies being valued are closely held and, thus, private in nature. Additionally, since closely held entities are typically smaller than publicly traded entities, fewer investors are affected by the results of such valuations.
Boldt: Trust, but clarify, when electing a client’s trustee and duties
Do your clients’ estate plans typically include a trust? If so, have some of those clients nominated an individual person to serve as trustee? If you answered “yes” to those questions, ask yourself if you could do the same to this one: Do those clients, or better yet those individual trustees, understand the fundamental duties and the breadth of the obligations they have agreed to undertake?
Babione: Manage employees’ use of “shadow IT” apps at work
In-house and outside counsel face many challenges managing company data. One significant challenge is employee use of software applications which are not part of the employer’s official information technology infrastructure. The use of technology outside the official IT structure (often called “shadow IT”) raises a variety of problems and potential costs for in-house counsel and others who deal with the organization’s data, such as outside litigation counsel.
McCauley: Treat cybersecurity as a risk factor in M&A due diligence
When it comes to due diligence in merger & acquisition transactions, cybersecurity should be a primary consideration for companies in all industries. Because what you don’t know about your target company could hurt you later.
Hammerle on… “Avengers: Infinity War,” “1945”
With “Avengers: Infinity War,” directors Anthony and Joe Russo have brought us a classic film that will wrap up the longstanding Avengers series. “1945” is a film that teaches all of us the importance of remembering the past. Without doing so, mankind cannot hope to eliminate its mistakes.
DTCI: What does work-life balance mean, and how do you find it?
We all know the variety and levels of stress associated with practicing law. There are constant demands on our time, intense pressures of performing well and obtaining good results for our clients, the assumption that we are all constantly available through technology, and our own self-driven motivators that led us to our chosen profession. But it is important to have the right amount of balance within your career and within your home life.
IJA: Is justice served — literally?
In 2010, three Columbia University researchers worked with the Israeli justice system and looked at over 1,000 rulings made in the courtroom, over almost a year, about probation and parole. The results showed, as blogger Alex Mayyasi wrote on the website Priceonomics, that “the judges’ decision-making ability was as lousy as a kindergartener’s focus right before a snack break.”
Bont: Taking a dramatic look at money laundering
Money laundering is transferring the proceeds of an unlawful activity by means and methods that are designed to conceal the nature or source of the money. 18 U.S.C. § 1956. The Bank Secrecy Act requires financial institutions in the United States to file a report for any deposit or withdrawal of more than $10,000. In evaluating liability for money laundering, there are two threshold issues to keep in mind.
Start Page: How I pre-bill my time to get the right things done each week
In the book “The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People,” Stephen Covey talks about the principle of beginning with the end of your life in mind. I suggest a smaller version of the concept. Ask yourself each week, “what do I want/need to accomplish this week?” Write down the items. As you look at the list, think of how you would bill your client for accomplishing that task.