Monthly Archives: January 2012

Entry-level, mid-career or seasoned professionals can always benefit from networking and career events. The Indiana University Alumni Association offers one in February that might be of interest to attorneys in transition.

Caroline Dowd-Higgins, IU Alumna BM ’89, MM ’95, will host “How to Make the Most of Your Current Job as You Plan for Your Career Future,” at 5:30 p.m., Thursday, Feb. 16 at Stahl Cowen.

During this seminar, Dowd-Higgins shares strategies to help you plan for your career future by networking in your organization, becoming your own marketing agent and creating a plan for success that meets your values. She gives you career secrets your boss will never tell you and advice you need to enjoy your work now and in the future. 
  
To register for the event, which costs $20 for IUAA members and $25 for nonmembers, visit: http://iuaa.imodules.com/s/1377/event.aspx?sid=1377&gid=2&pgid=873&cid=2223&ecid=2223&ciid=4222&crid=0

Desiree Moore is the president and founder of Greenhorn Legal LLC. Greenhorn Legal offers intensive practical skills training programs for law students and new lawyers as they transition from law school into their legal practices. Moore is also an adjunct professor at Loyola University Chicago School of Law and was an associate at the law firm of K&L Gates. She can be found on Twitter at @greenhornlegal.

Law school is, by definition, a professional school.  Still, if you are like me, you spent much of law school lounging around in sweatpants and socializing with law school classmates (and studying, obviously!).  As you transition from law school into your legal practice, you will be expected to have mastered professionalism and to project professionalism in all instances.  More importantly, your ability to act in a professional manner early in your career will define you – and will define the impressions you leave on the people around you.  

Whether you are interviewing for a legal position or you have begun your legal practice, here are four easy things you can do to ensure that you are perceived as a true professional:

1. Dress like a professional.  As simple as it may seem, your attire is an exceedingly important aspect of your professionalism.  This is the very first impression you make, before anything else.  For interviews, without exception, you must wear a suit.  Several days in advance of your interview, be sure your suit is clean and pressed (and that it fits you!).  Likewise, if your workplace observes a “business” dress code, or for any formal business occasions (for example, client meetings, court hearings, depositions, etc.), wear a suit. 

If your office observes a “business casual” dress code, this calls for something slightly less formal than a suit.  Still, your attire should be traditional and conservative.  Flashy, quirky or otherwise inappropriate attire is never well received in a professional environment.  Also, wear your clothes well.  Avoid wrinkles and tuck in your shirt.

If you dress the part of a lawyer and a professional, you will make meaningful first impressions and build your credibility from day one. 

2. Be mindful of your demeanor. Much like attire, mastering the proper demeanor in a professional environment will be central to your success.  In interviews and in your practice, take care to act in a formal, professional manner.  With this said, you also want to approach your office interactions in a relaxed, natural way.  Your demeanor should reflect that you are serious about your work but that you are also an open, friendly person.  If you can demonstrate by your demeanor that you are both of these things, your colleagues in the legal profession will respect you and want to get to know you.  Finally, as a new lawyer, you will be well served by expressing enthusiasm at the prospect of working on any case, deal or project that comes across your desk.  Enthusiastic lawyers are more pleasant to work with, and in turn get more work!       

3. Hone your interpersonal skills. Finding success in a professional environment depends in large part on capitalizing on our own personal strengths and minimizing our weak areas.  In a legal environment, in particular, where you are expected to work closely with colleagues and clients, honing your interpersonal skills is a must.  While not everyone has the same interpersonal qualities, there are a few rules to live by.  In all instances, be reasonable and even.  Do not display extreme emotions and do not take frustrations out on anyone (this includes your administrative assistant – the best way to get in trouble as a new lawyer is to treat staff in a disrespectful manner).  Ask your colleagues about their work and their interests.  Steer clear of office gossip or any office dynamics that you are not comfortable with.  Keep your personal drama out of the workplace, too. 

4. Master your practice. Finally, in an effort to demonstrate professionalism in a legal environment, it is important to master your legal practice.  Now, this is not something you can do right away, or all at once, but you should be working toward this every day.  As a recent law school graduate (and after having studied for the bar), your knowledge of the black letter law will never be better.  Capitalize on this and build on it.  Make yourself marketable (if interviewing) or indispensable (if you have already secured a job) in the early years of your practice by staying on top of the technical aspects of your job and showing growth from month to month and year to year.    

Follow these guidelines and – even if you have to work at it at first – you will project professionalism to your peers and superiors.  Over time, it will become second nature.  (And don’t worry – those sweatpants can get plenty of use on the weekends.)

J. Nick Augustine, J.D., is the principal of Pro Serve Public Relations, a PR firm for law, finance and small business professionals. Nick is experienced in law, business, entertainment, public relations and his Secured Solo Practice™ agency model. Nick enjoys sharing career growth, strategy and experience with legal job seekers and attorneys in transition.

Facebook’s new timeline feature offers some nice benefits but raises alerts for attorneys in flux in their careers. You might have a great job today but we all know the economy is still in recovery and this is an election year. If you end up polishing your shoes and putting your best foot forward, make sure your timeline represents your best employment interests.

The new timeline feature allows us to scroll back in time to share and learn about the people in our social networks. I think that the glimpse into someone’s past is a humanizing experience. A general rule of thumb: If you have to explain it you should, and if you make vague statements, other people will assume meaning based on their own schema.

Allow me to make a few assumptions. One third of Facebook users build their timeline to create a permanent record and electronic scrapbook. A second third of Facebook users are sure that everything shared on others’ timelines was a published for them, personally. The last third of users appreciate the reasonable expectation of formality and privacy on Facebook timelines.

There are new cases being argued about Facebook privacy. In a recent article I read about the perils of divorcing and having your timeline reproduced in discovery. I imagine there are decision makers operating in business with a wide range of social media experience. I think Facebook users intend on sharing information with others freely and comfortably; LinkedIn users appear to be more cautious about what’s shared on their “professional” profile. Some people incorporate their Twitter and Facebook into LinkedIn and there is no bright line test or standard.

There isn’t a certification page or box to click and swear your Facebook comments are true and correct on information and belief, so on and so forth. Most intelligent and socially adept social media users know to take Facebook with a grain of salt where the author’s intent seems obvious. Business users share content and comments with sincere business intent, and are likely to be viewed as more reliable.

While the laws on Facebook and admissibility develop, so do the expectations of accuracy by potential employers. Follow a few guidelines and you should be in good shape: (1) don’t lie; (2) be consistent; (3) qualify and disclaim if it seems relevant; (4) assume a variety of opinion among your “friends” on politics and religion; and (5) review and clean up your timeline to prevent unpleasant explanation.

J. Nick Augustine, J.D., is the principal of Pro Serve Public Relations, a PR firm for law, finance and small business professionals. Nick is experienced in law, business, entertainment, public relations and his Secured Solo Practice™ agency model. Nick enjoys sharing career growth, strategy and experience with legal job seekers and attorneys in transition.

Attorneys in transition are lucky to have the opportunity to learn what they don’t like so they have a better chance of enjoying law practice long-term. I remember first-year law professors advising us to try on many hats before picking the one that fit best.

I remember doing work at an insurance defense firm, early in law school. Later, I had the chance to work on the other side and learn how to litigate a plaintiff’s case. I think I learned more about insurance companies than I learned about evidence and trial practice. The long-term take away is knowledge.

First – at the defense firm – I sat at my desk for days on end, paging through deposition transcripts (low-tech late 90s) and hunting for pre-existing conditions, statutory violations or any other cognizable reason to stick the plaintiff with contributory negligence. I was encouraged to use any and all available resources to give my supervising attorney the support for our pleadings.

Second – at the plaintiffs’ firm – I sat in trial at the counsel table, watching a video-taped deposition of the physician expert, testifying as to soft tissue injuries. While waiting in recess after the close of the evidence, our expert, provided by the insurance company, explained how the computers and algorithms limited the discretion of claims adjusters and even the lawyers in settling cases.

Looking back I realize that the insurance defense firm was getting paid for every hour they spent and every resource I used. On the other hand, the plaintiffs’ firm lost big time when the verdict came back for specials but no pain and suffering – this meant no money for our injured plaintiff’s lawyer who spent countless hours and staff resources on a case that returned, what I was told, was an inconsistent verdict.

My experience in personal injury and defense taught me that the denial of claims on insurance policies and benefits generally is big business. At times it seems you need an act of God or Harry Potter to get these companies to pay. Who wants to do this for a living? Not me.

Prior to and after injury law, my main practice area was family law and domestic relations – the hourly billing suburban cash cow. Its great to be a paid gunman when the clients can afford it, and I submit that domestic litigation is good for the economy when the lawyers keep buying new cars and suits. The other side of the coin is the damage to the family, community and society generally.

Today, practicing public relations, I do more work in intellectual property, corporate and finance. Whenever these areas challenge me, I quickly remind myself of the alternatives. I urge you to try on many hats before picking the one that fit best.

Debra Pickett is president of Page 2 Communications (www.page2comm.com).  A former newspaper columnist and television commentator, Pickett offers consulting and training to law firms and lawyers who deal with the media.  Reach her at deb@page2comm.com.

In December, the Sarasota, Fla., courtroom of Senior Circuit Judge Nancy Donnellan saw yet another smart-phone equipped juror run up against the usual rules and expectations of courtroom decorum. 

 According to the Sarasota Herald-Tribune, after the first day of proceedings in a personal-injury lawsuit from a traffic accident case, Donnellan instructed the jurors “with the normal warning not to discuss the case with anyone and not to use the Internet to find more information about the case.”

 But one bored juror, surfing on his phone, decided to look up the people in the case on Facebook to see if he knew them.  He ended up sending a friend request to one of the defendants, who happened to be “an attractive young woman.”

After being admonished by the judge, he was dismissed from the jury.  Naturally, he quickly posted, “Score … I got dismissed!!” on his Facebook page.

The expectation that courtrooms – and legal proceedings generally – will somehow continue to exist in an Internet-free bubble is fading fast.  Reporters, jurors and interested members of the public routinely tweet, text and post at speeds far faster than a banging gavel. 

What to do, then, with the traditional sense of propriety that has kept attorneys and other legal professionals largely off of social media sites?

It is possible – even desirable, at this point – to live a Facebook-free life without being labeled a hopeless Luddite.  The site’s growth – the addition of new users – has been slowing in the U.S. and some recent studies show it losing ground as a venue for communication and networking.  Other tools, though, such as LinkedIn and Twitter, are demonstrating surprising staying power.  Missing out on the opportunities they present for marketing, coalition-building and information-sharing would be a real loss.

It might take a while for courthouse rules to catch up with the ubiquity of social media and there are sure to be more tense exchanges like the one in Sarasota to come.  But, eventually, judges, jurors, the media and the public will find a way to balance the desire for information (and the electronic means to transmit it) with the need for confidentiality and impartiality, just as they have with the advent of television cameras and laptop computers.

 Meanwhile, lawyers can make use of social media technology without running afoul of traditional expectations for confidentiality.  The Illinois Rules of Professional Conduct, Rule 3.6 [Trial Publicity] lays out specific guidelines for extrajudicial statements, noting exactly what information can be publicly shared without posing “a serious and imminent threat to the fairness of an adjudicative proceeding.”  Following this rule, attorneys are free to publish the claim being made in a matter, to share information already in a public record, to state that an investigation is in progress and/or to announce the scheduling or result of any step in litigation.

Attorneys can join social media and participate, ethically and effectively, in the robust public conversations it facilitates.

But they probably shouldn’t do it from their smart phones.  In court.

J. Nick Augustine, J.D., is the principal of Pro Serve Public Relations, a PR firm for law, finance and small business professionals. Nick is experienced in law, business, entertainment, public relations and his Secured Solo Practice™ agency model. Nick enjoys sharing career growth, strategy and experience with legal job seekers and attorneys in transition.

Many people say the best thing about the end of the year is a fresh start in the next. I saw an article today about New Year’s resolutions and how they often fail. There are a few habits you can adopt to help you reach your goals in 2012.

Making lists helps me learn and remember information. I like my lists because they help me see workflow in a mosaic representation. Why do we work so hard? We have lists of things to do. Even if making lists for your lists sounds funny, continue to organize your tasks and visualize your progress.

Reviewing event calendars helps me pre-identify events I don’t want to miss. All good networkers plan their next year during December. Don’t worry if you didn’t follow suit; take the first week in January to identify and plan to attend strategic events that enhance your brand and presence in your community.

Setting SMART goals helps me reach more goals. I will share more soon about SMARTER goals. As it is, the SMART theme focuses on specific, measurable, and the goals you can evaluate to better determine whether your action items move your closer to achieving your goals.

Marketing plans work when they are easy to manage. “Make a plan, work the plan” works when your plan goals are feasible. Time is money and we need to carefully spend our billable time. Allow yourself an hour every day for PR marketing. This will prove, over time, to be a best use of your resources.

Rewarding myself for achieving goals motivates me to keep promises to myself. Setting quarterly goals is a good idea because you can evaluate PR marketing efforts in three-month intervals. Share your ideas, events and content on a monthly basis so the people in your network know your practice and can send referrals.