Using Adobe Acrobat in Your Practice

I love Adobe Acrobat. I don't know why more law schools don't offer an Adobe Acrobat/technology training class (oh wait, they're not interested in providing practical skills), because of its necessity in everyday work.

I can honestly say that next to PracticeMaster, Acrobat 9 is my most used program.

Many law firms struggle trying to go "paperless." I've been paperless since the opening of my law firm, and haven't missed those opportunities to scramble through reams of paper in search of that elusive document.

Ernie Svenson is the "Acrobat Ace." I'm sure somewhere on his body he as "I [Heart] Acrobat" tattooed. Needless to say, if you're not reading his insights on his PDF for Lawyers blog, you're missing out. 

Ernie first introduced me to many of the subtle nuances of Acrobat, including my all-time favorite, digital signatures.

The add-in is simple, and provides an excellent method for signing a document without ever lifting a pen. I commonly use this stamp when I want to fax (I use internet faxing) or email a document.

My second-favorite Acrobat tool is the redaction function. I've witnessed far too many "old schoolers" mark production documents with black pens or sticky tabs before copying them and redacting the information (or worse, sending the document with the black markout to me - I can still see the information). This is a terribly time consuming process, and more importantly, it's often ineffective.

Acrobat contains a redaction function that allows you to select the offending text and press a simple key. You can change the color (my favorite is "none") to match the paper/background. When printed, the document loses its redacted information.

If you're not using Acrobat, you're missing out on a great tool. If you don't know how to use Acrobat, get a copy and start playing around. There are numerous websites that discuss Acrobat and its features. Acrobat is the standard for lawyers, and therefore, every new attorney should have an intimate grasp on the "how-tos."

P.S. Once again, nobody paid me to endorse these products or Ernie, although I'd gladly accept all cashier's checks or money orders sent to...

The Law School Application

It's almost that time of year again when the young, aspiring, Type-A personalities begin setting their sights on law school admission. 

Most of the planners took their June LSAT, in anticipation for the December early applications. Many plotted through the summer examining their chances of admission based on their prospective scores and the LSAC's charts. Many also used the time to work on the puffery known as the personal statement.

Yes, I remember it quite well. Although I don't recall exactly what idiotic, self-serving fluff I added (I'm sure I talked about my Eagle Scout award, and my "academic adversity"), I know, somewhere in some dank admissions office, someone had to read it. I apologize profusely to those admissions officers.

The ABA Journal has an article focusing on some of the common errors despised by Yale Law School associate dean of admissions Asha Rangappa. Although I don't recall being any one of the 3 mentioned (perhaps I was the trivial disappointment), certainly nobody likes any of them.

As a side note, don't 1 and 3 eventually become the "gunners"?

So, if you're planning on applying to law school, be conscious about your personal statement. There seems to be one unifying aspect about personal statements: be original.

P.S. You may also want to read this Technolawyer Blog post.

More on Getting "Googled"

The Google Small Business blog has two great posts about using Google Places to build your marketing. I suggest you read them, especially in light of the fact they come from the search engine god itself:

Building your web presence with Google Sites and Google Places

How to Run, Get Online, and Promote Your Business with Google Tools

Remember, I'm intensely satisfied with what Google has done for my law firm website and marketing.

More on Google Places

I Love, Love, Love Google Places. I think it's a fantastic concept, and for me, reaps a lot of benefits.

GP is easily my best investment, for the cheapest price. Tom Kane, author of the Legal Marketing Blog, agrees.

In his most recent post, Tom discusses why he believes that Google Places (he calls it Google Maps) is the place to be. He also, which I think is great, links to a couple other "how-to" posts by Tom O'Leary. These are excellent pieces for beginners. 

The thing I love most is that the "free-factor" gives you the powerful marketing tools your law firm needs, without having to spend the enormous dollars. More precisely, Google Places puts your law firm where it needs to be, and instantly gives you a viable, searchable, findable, web presence.

Getting "Searched"

In the world of blogging, SEO, and Google, content is king. You cannot expect a wide range of searches, hits, and site visits, without constant Google content.

The problem though, is not just any content will work. What I'm learning (because we the Google search algorithm is such a secret) is that you must tailor your content to your audience, but also include enough key components that will allow the Google robots and spiders to "feast."

Recently, I had a guest post on my blog. I thought that this would be an excellent way for me to drive some business to my firm (referring it to the guest), and tap into a potential alternative market. It didn't work out that way. In fact, I haven't had a single inquiry/search result for the keywords I specified. That's disheartening, but very enlightening for me.

Here's what I learned:

1. The searchable content must include key word phrases, but also some generic words too. This is important because Google wants to see the variety. Google wants to see that you used FBI and Federal Bureau of Investigation together, and not just the acronym. This type of usage "tricks" the robots and spiders into to believing your relevancy.
2. You must have fresh content. You cannot expect that 1 post about social security law or medical malpractice will bring in those clients. Similarly, you cannot expect the search bots to associate the "value" of your site with that single post. You must have constant, recurring posts on the subject. Again, this shows the search bots that your firm is relevant and current.
3. Outside links are valuable. Don't just hog all the glory of your own "brilliance." Give plenty of credit to others by showing them love. Outside links to other sites show the search engines that you care about what's going on in the greater population. Google is all about "power to the masses." So why shouldn't their search engine function the same way? Would you expect Google to add "value" your side by placing you at number 1, if you weren't giving things away to other? Add links to other articles.

I think if you'll take a few minutes to truly think about the type of content you're giving your clients and potential clients, you'll find drastic ways to change it up. Remember, it's not so much about what your write, as how you write it.

I'd be interested in hearing your thoughts. Please add your comments.

Why You Need to Know Tech

The Law Librarian Blog links to a new study performed by the New York Law Journal, which ranks legal tech companies. I don't know about the applicability of most systems, as none of the systems I used even received a ranking.

However, I do know that technology in law firms is getting more important. For law students, knowledge about, and hands-on experience with a variety of systems is key.

I hire law students to come help me in my office. I think it's beneficial for them, and me. Their experience with technology was somewhat similar to mine during law school - absolute zero (check out this rant post about technology). Sadly, law schools don't prepare you for the harsh reality that you're going to have to work with technology in order to succeed.

Here are some questions to accurately gauge your law-tech knowledge:

1. What is practice management/case management software? Do you know and understand what this term means, and how law firms use the various programs? 
2. Can you name some practice management/case management systems? 
3. What is the difference between using practice management/case management systems and Windows/Mac folders?
4. Do you know what a server is, and how it functions in a workplace environment?
5. Do you know what a network is?
6. Do you know how to save files to a server versus your system's hard-drive?
7. What is the required method for submitting documents to (most) federal court?
8. Do you know how to remove metadata from a document in Microsoft Word? I don't use WordPerfect, but I understand that program automatically (or nearly) eliminates the metadata.
9. Do you know how to use styles, tables, and other formatting techniques to process your documents?
10. Do you know how to use your word processor's comment/change tracking features to collaborate?
11. Do you know how to remove metadata from an Adobe PDF?
12. Er...Do you know how to create a PDF document?
13. Do you know how to create a PDF "package" of documents to send to other people?
14. Can you use Acrobat's redact features to remove information from a document?
15. Do you know how to send a fax? Do you know that you still need to dial long distance (i.e. add country code plus area code) when sending a long-distance fax?
16. Do you know how to send an email?
17. Do you know how to attach a file to the document?
18. Do you know how to burn a CD?
19. Do you know how to use social media?
20. What are some of the popular note-taking programs?
21. Do you know how to research case law without LexisNexis or Westlaw passwords?
22. Do you know if your state publishes cases and court dockets on a centralized system? FYI, Oklahoma has OSCN that offers Oklahoma cases and court dockets.
23. Do you know how to use your state's online case systems?
24. Do you know how to backup your system?
25. Do you know how to use the internet for more than checking Facebook and playing games?

As you can see, the number of possible, and simple, tech questions could continue. The fact though, is that law students need to start preparing themselves to deal with these types of programs.

One of the easiest ways is to actually purchase the program, and use it. Many companies offer discounts for students. These prices are for full versions of the program. Note, there are some restrictions on using the program, so check the licensing agreement. Some schools freely distribute the programs to their students under their educational licensing agreements with the manufacturers. This could save you hundreds of dollars.

My hope is that you'll take your educational experience to the next level. Law school gives you the academic information you'll need, but you're going to need to rely on yourself for the techno-know-how.

Google Places

I don't market my law firm anywhere else but on the internet. Sure, I have the obligatory white pages listing I get when I installed my office line, but that's so indescribably boring that it's hardly worth mentioning.

What has been the true "make it, or break it" marketing maven is my firm and personal listing on Google. I've discussed the benefits of Google, and how my listings on Google influence the types of cases I want to develop. When I ask people how they got my information, "the internet" or "Google" are the two most common responses.

Well, now Jay Fleischman has delved into helping you create and utilize Google Places to your marketing advantage. Jay has two posts, here and here, which effectively and succinctly describe what Google Places is, and how to take advantage of the Google behemoth, all for free.

One of the keys that Jay suggests, which I think is the money quote, is get a separate Google account. I didn't do this when I started my firm's marketing scheme, and frankly, it didn't even cross my mind. Now however, the separate account would be nice. The problem I've realized is that have your marketing connected to your private account will create headaches in the future, i.e., what if you want to sell your business? Your public marketing efforts are intricately tied to your private account. It's unseverable without fully transferring my private Google account. The easiest thing to rectify this problem: get a Google apps account for $50 per year. 

Other than that small glitch, I love (as I've gloated before) seeing my names in the 1 and 2 spots on the Google search page. Even more thrilling is that my names come before the BigLaw firms who have mucho denaro to market with.

Influence of Blogging

Kevin O'Keefe, author of Real Lawyers Have Blogs, turned me on to a great survey that in-house counsel use to rank the importance/competence of outside counsel to hire.

Kevin notes that from those surveyed, 27% noted they used blogs as one method for vetting potential hires. His article continues to highlight the importance of blogging, its usefulness, and its influence in the future. Kevin even makes this profound comment, which I whole-heartedly agree with:

Ask any lawyer who publishes a good topic centric blog and they'll tell you that their speaking opportunities have increased dramatically with blogging. Blogging lawyers are also likely to tell you of their blog posts being re-published as articles and of increasing requests for them to write articles.

However, one of the things I think Kevin missed (perhaps it's because his blog is focused on getting lawyers blogging), is result number 6, "Twitter feeds from lawyers." This ranked in at 22%. I think, like blogging, Twitter is an effective way to get your message out, in short bursts. Although admittedly, Twitter provides less of a useful marketing scheme than blogging, the Twitter feed is a mechanism to show others that you have some personality, besides being a lawyer.

If you're not blogging, I encourage you to immediately start. It's easy, educational, and can be a good source for new business.

Would You Trust a Law Professor to Represent You

I had many good law professors in school. I also had many bad ones. I don't necessarily think they were bad in the sense they didn't know their material. Rather, like this article posted by the Law Librarians shows, the professors often focused too much on the minute theory, and not enough on the practical application.

I tend to agree with Mr. Newton's criticisms of law schools, since I generally believe that most law schools fail to adequately prepare their students for legal work. I believe far too often, too many students have to learn "lawyering" in the "school of hard knocks." Moreover, I think the law schools' focus on academia, versus practicum, does an even greater disservice to the students in leading them to believe that the grades will catapult them to greatness. The truth is, even the brightest star dims in the sunshine.

Many students I see, I suspect because of the B.S. they're fed in law school, believe that they're commitment to academics is more important than their law work involvement. For instance, I recently sought to hire a part-time law clerk from my alma mater (you may want to check out an earlier post regarding a similar experience). I solicited, and received, a number of qualified resumes. 

The problem was, I saw a great number of "silver spoon" candidates who demanded I accommodate particular school schedules, routines, etc., when I hired them. Some seemed to expect this favorable treatment because of some high grade or recognition in law school, despite the fact they lacked any notable legal experience. In fact, one applicant went so far as to say that they were available to work only Friday and Saturday - I thought only BigLaw lawyers worked Saturdays or Sundays if they didn't have to?

I took two jobs in school, which I think benefited me tremendously, in both experience and with practical lawyering skills. I worked for free, as a pro bono volunteer, then I worked for a solo practitioner. The first firm taught me the meaning of doing justice, which led me to reconsider my decision to become "not a lawyer." 

At my second job, I saw how hard work, dedication, and common sense, can make a skilled attorney. The firm expected me to work a regular schedule (meaning be there when the other guys/gals are), and to dedicate the time necessary to close cases, and ultimately make money for the firm. Honestly, during the last year of law school, I dedicated more time to my job than to my studies. What I recognized was that actually doing the stuff I'm learning about, was more important than learning about stuff I could be doing.

The problem is, many law students (again, I think because of the schools) believe their lives are paved in BigLaw. The truth though, is that many BigLaw dreams end up in tattered shards of unemployment, or ill-equipped solo practitioners, who struggle to survive.

Paperless Office

There's a couple of really great articles out there about improving your law office with a move to digital files.

Jim Calloway, Director of the Oklahoma Bar Association Management Assistance Program, has a great article this month discussing the importance of using digital files.

My firm went digital from day one, and with the advice of several people at Solosez, I ditched the actual paper copies to the files as well.

The greatest benefits have been increased productivity and efficiency. As Jim suggests, I no longer rummage through the paper file looking for that letter or medical report. Everything is on my digital system, and available to all of my staff.

I use a simple naming and sorting system that I think is easy to remember and use. My biggest rule is if it isn't scanned, it doesn't exist or it never happened.

I purchased a fairly inexpensive Dell multifunction printer/scanner, which runs multiple functions, saving space and money. There's a lot of hype about the ScanSnap scanners, but I haven't tried them.

One of the hardest things for me to appreciate was that no matter what you tell yourself, you don't need the file. My biggest hangup was that I would "need" the file for court. That simply isn't true, or is limited to a few instances. However, in the 6 months since my move, I have never needed the entire file. For hearings, I print out the document(s) I need to refer to, and head out. Sure, arguably I'm "wasting" more paper, but I think I have comfort knowing that the ultimate waste is for my own benefit.

I would encourage you to get past the "need" for the physical copy, and move to the digital age.