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Inside Legal Blogs [By Jeff] Quit your job and sell your house. The blogosphere will provide all you need. It is time, once again, to pore over a week’s worth of scintillating news and gossip from our favorite law blogs.
The law is just like show business. To get
getting fired for it. For your edification, we’ve
Rule No. 8: He who puts up the most degrees
ahead, one must pander shamelessly to
consolidated Disassociate’s rules and re-
on his wall and deal toys in his office is the
their audience. That may not be the exact
produced them here.
least interesting.
message attorney Mark Bese of Leadership
for Lawyers is trying to get across, but he
Rule No. 1: If anyone at the firm asks how
Rule No. 9: Pay very close attention when a
does offer an analysis of how to cater to a jury.
you’re doing, simply reply “busy, really busy.”
colleague is giving you an assignment. Look
Generation X, those grungy 20-something
Then wipe your brow, yawn and walk away
into his eyes and nod your head furiously. Then
slackers, are now in their 30s. They’ve grown
quickly (as if in a terrible hurry).
just start laughing uncontrollably - if you can force tears, even better. No more assignments
up, and they want concise data presented with
from that guy!
a focus on traditional values. The blog also
Rule No. 2: On Fridays, don’t dress casually. A
mentions that Gen Xers, the former extreme
suit makes you look like a serious player and
sports enthusiasts, will generally side with
the chances of getting caught for leaving early
Rule No. 10: Mimic the mannerisms and
people who take risks, even ethical ones. The
are much slimmer.
demeanor of other lawyers at your firm. Doing
Generation Y crew, who I guess are the kids
so makes it much harder for people to tell that
of Gen Xers (shouldn’t they be too young to
Rule No. 3: Always keep your door closed and
be on juries?) are too techno-savvy to care
work with your light off. That way, no one will
about anything they can’t put on their i-Pods.
know when you are working from home for the
In a recent blog entry from Human Law, Justin
They crave hi-tech data. They also are more
day (or week).
Patten wonders if blogs could be utilized by
trusting of their government. That makes
you have no idea what you are doing.
law firms not just as a marketing tool or a
sense, they grew up under the omnipresent
Rule No. 4: Don’t smile too much on Fridays;
way of adding extra content to their website
glower of the Bush administration, so they
it screams, “I can handle more work.” Instead,
but as a way of making their operations more
trust their government more. Carolyn Elefant
look frustrated, loosen your tie and mess your
transparent to the public and keeping up with
of Inside Legal Opinions wonders where the
hair. 9 out of 10 weekend assignments will go
the latest business trends. Patten mentions
Baby Boomers fit in all this. Boomers are
to your neighbor, Smiley.
Microsoft’s decision to publicly test their version of Apple’s i-Pod on a weblog, as well
turning 60 and retiring at a rapid rate, freeing up more of them for jury duty. So how do they
Rule No. 5: Travel time is not billable, but if you
as the success of author Chris Anderson, who
fit into the puzzle? Bese doesn’t get that far. It
have to sit with someone from the office, that
published his novel chapter by chapter on
is interesting to note that as the kids get more
awkward conversation counts as ‘work’.
his blog and solicited feedback from readers on the Internet. Many notable law firms
savvy, so too do the attorneys who seek to steer their opinions.
Rule No. 6: Hazing the summer associates is
are already using blogs to increase public
fun.
awareness and to reach out to clients. Patten suggests taking it one step further.
Over the past few months, our friend at
Disassociate has been putting together a set of rules for newbie attorneys. The rules don’t just apply to first-years though. Anybody having trouble fitting in at a firm would be wise to heed Disassociate’s rules. These rules will also be useful to the overworked attorney who needs to lighten his or her workload without
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Rule No. 7: Carry a briefcase, the one with the loud snapping locks, but keep it empty. Open
“For example, could you see lawyers using
it as often as possible when people are around
blogs to help them create new terms
and close it quickly. Mumble sentences with
and conditions and billing policies? The
the words “hearing,” “judge” and “motion” as
lawyers would put them online and then the
you snap it shut. Leave early.
blogosphere could assess and scrutinize them.”
continued on back
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Were this to happen, firms might get even
you think about it. But many law bloggers
more competitive with their blogs, which
have cried foul and said that paying to build
brings us to our next controversy that has been
a network of visitors to your blog is cheating.
brewing on the blogosphere. It started with
Matthew Ingram of The Devil and Daniel
PayPerPost, a marketing website catering to bloggers. They promise to generate traffic to your blog and develop a cross-referral network for your site, all for a small fee. PayPerPost will pay other bloggers to write about your blog and link to you. Web surfers will never know the links to your blog were really subtle ads. It’s not much different than FoxNews when
Blogger says that PayPerPost isn’t the end of blogging as we know it, but it’s a dumb idea that could damage a blogger’s credibility. Techmeme takes it a step further and says that PayPerPost is polluting the blogosphere and is out to buy the soul of hapless bloggers. Rob Hyndman is more laid back about it. Hyndman doesn’t buy into the righteous indignation over
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PayPerPost. He admits that the idea sounds kind of crappy, but he says it’s not much different from the rest of the media, which was bought and sold a long time ago by advertisers. So next time you’re surfing the blogosphere, beware. The opinions you’re reading might be advertisements in disguise. In conclusion, new Coke Zero has all the great taste of Classic Coke with half the calories. Mmmmm... refreshing!