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  • September 12, 2012
    Looking for a decedent's social security number? Try this

    Veteran ISBA member Paul Meints has a great tip for anyone looking for the social security number of someone who has been dead for a number of years. "[Y]ou might start by looking at ancestry.com," where you can do an SSN search, he writes in the latest ISBA Trusts and Estates newsletter, which is available to all section members.

    "You will have to subscribe to ancestry.com to obtain the SSN and related information of a decedent," he writes. "This site does have limitations regarding obtaining a SSN and you cannot obtain a SSN from this site for a person who died within the last 10 years." But he says, it's a place to start. You'll find it here.

    1 comment (Most recent September 13, 2012)
  • September 12, 2012 | Practice News
    Best Practice: Job description for a law firm bookkeeper

    Asked and Answered

    By John W. Olmstead, MBA, Ph.D, CMC

    Q. I am the owner of a five attorney firm in Chicago. Including staff we have a total of 13 people working at the firm. As we have grown our approach to handling billing and accounting has been piecemeal. We have a combination of several people handling various tasks including a couple of outsourced vendors as well. Frankly it is a mess. I want to restructure and consolidate all the tasks and responsibilities into one bookkeeper position. Do you have a job description that would help guide me in my search?

    A. Here is a job description that might help get your started.

    Position Summary

    The primary function of this position is to perform the billing, bookkeeping and accounting functions of the firm. This position requires an experienced and accomplished person with a strong bookkeeping and computer background. The position requires skills and experience in bookkeeping, accounting, law firm billing and QuickBooks software as well as Microsoft Office Products. The position requires experience in a law or other professional service firm environment.

    Reporting Relationship

    This position reports to the firm owner.

  • September 6, 2012
    Writing agreements clients can understand

    In the latest issue of ISBA's The Corporate Lawyer, Aurora lawyer Christine M. Kieta expresses a sentiment that would surely warm the heart of Jim Covington, ISBA's clear-writing authority: "[M]y favorite part of being an attorney is writing agreements that clients can understand."

    Kieta describes three strategies for making agreements more clear to lay readers. Among other things, she understands the importance of good document design, telling lawyers to "break up documents so that the reader can digest them in small portions. Expertly crafted point headings serve as lamps along a hallway giving light to each section in the contract." Read and heed her good advice.

  • September 5, 2012 | Practice News
    Best Practice: Selling your law firm

    Asked and Answered

    By John W. Olmstead, MBA, Ph.D, CMC

    Q. I am a sole practitioner in Bloomington, Illinois. My practice is a general practice and most of my clients are either individuals or small businesses. I have one legal assistant and one paralegal that work for me. I am 62 and am starting to think about what to do with my practice and what I need to be thinking about concerning selling my practice. I would be interested in your suggestions.

    A. I would start by asking yourself when you actually want to retire or quit. Do you really want to stop practicing law or do you want to work forever? Over two-thirds of the solo and small firm lawyers that I speak with advise me that they want to practice forever - maybe not full throttle - but on a continued but scaled back schedule. Review Rule 1.17 - Illinois Rules of Professional Conduct to insure that you understand the method and the restrictions involved in sale of a law practice. If you want to continuing practicing determine whether selling your law practice is your best option given Rule 1.17. Some of our clients are exploring other options including bringing in other attorneys and forming partnerships or merging with other firms.

    If you determine that selling the practice is the route you want to go here are a few ideas to begin readying it for sale:

  • August 30, 2012
    New cases every real-estate lawyer should know about

    Real-estate practitioners should be sure to read a trio of recent decisions on 1) the duty of title insurers, 2) the content of mortgage documents, and 3) the recording of deeds and mortgages. Read summaries of all three in the September Illinois Bar Journal.

  • August 29, 2012 | Practice News
    Best Practice: Keeping law firm clients happy

    Asked and Answered

    By John W. Olmstead, MBA, Ph.D, CMC

    Q. I am managing partner with a 12 attorney general practice firm in St. Louis. As part of our marketing program we recently completed an informal client survey and were surprised at some of the feedback. The feedback was less positive than expected. Our clients advised us that our services took longer than expected and fees were also higher than expected. We work hard for our clients and I don't see how we can improve turnaround or reduce legal fees. I would appreciate any thoughts that you have.

    A. Based upon client satisfaction surveys (telephone interviews) that we do for law firms we find that one of the biggest problems is that the attorneys are doing a poor job of managing client expectations. Your clients get frustrated when you promise one thing (timeline or fees) and the result is very different - especially when the work takes longer than promised or the fees are higher. Even though you don't structure it as a promise your clients take it that way. The key is to under promise and over deliver. I suspect that upon the initial client meeting you are under estimating the timeline and low balling the fee range. Reduce the promise - increase the - timeline and fee range and then shoot to deliver under that range. This will do wonders for improving the client relationship.

    Click here for our blog on client service

    Click here for our article on the topic

  • August 22, 2012 | Practice News
    Best Practice: Admitting new law firm partners

    Asked and Answered

    By John W. Olmstead, MBA, Ph.D, CMC

    Q. Our law firm is located in San Antonio, Texas. We have a total of 18 attorneys which includes me and two other equity owners that founded the firm and contributed capital, three equity partners that were made partner that did not contribute any capital, two non-equity partners, and 10 associates. The original three partners control the firm and make all of the decisions with little involvement or input from the others. They are not provided with financial statements or reports. The original three partners bring in virtually all of the business. We are faced with some hard decisions concerning partnership admission - non-equity to equity, associates to non equity, etc. Our compensation cost for attorneys is eating away at our earnings for attorneys that are worker bees and don't bring in any business. Your thoughts?

    A. You may want to ask yourselves whether you want employees or partners. It sounds like the other three equity partners are not part of the inner circle and are not really functioning as part of the partnership. What are the criteria for becoming an equity partner? Is client development part of those criteria? Should they contribute capital? If they are not adding value to the firm - growth - you are diluting the earnings pool and reducing the size of the pie for yourselves. Personally, I think in a firm your size criteria for becoming an equity partner should, among other things, include client development and a capital contribution. They should have some skin in the game, contribute capital, and signup for their share of the liabilities. I also believe they should then be included in the inner circle.

  • August 16, 2012
    Does your claim allege educational malpractice?

    If so, it's probably going nowhere, even if you don't call it by that name. So write Judge James Fitzgerald Smith and Julia Illman Maness in the latest Trial Briefs, newsletter of the ISBA Civil Practice & Procedure Section.

    "A claim for negligence against teachers and educational institutions for the quality of education received sounds in the tort of educational malpractice," they write. "This tort, also described as educational negligence, is not cognizable in Illinois."

    They go on to discuss the Illinois Appellate Court's recent ruling in Waugh v. Morgan Stanley and Co., Inc.. In Waugh, the plaintiff alleged that a flight instructor negligently trained a pilot. Read Smith's and Maness's analysis.

  • August 15, 2012 | Practice News
    Best Practice: Law firm management roles - What do I need to be good at?

    Asked and Answered

    By John W. Olmstead, MBA, Ph.D, CMC

    Q. I am the owner of a 12 attorney firm in Dallas. We have 26 people including attorneys and staff. I founded the firm 20 years ago. While we have an Accounting Manager - I am responsible for the management and direction of the firm. While we have done okay over the years - I often feel deficient as a manager and am not always sure that I am covering all of the bases. Is there such thing as management 101 for guys like me?

    A. Mention Management 101 and I think of the five functions of management. Each of these roles must be performed by someone in every law firm and business if it is to be successful. In a small firm such as yours you must perform each of these functions and be reasonably good at all of them.

    Here are the five functions:

  • August 9, 2012
    Telephone scammers threaten consumers using names of Illinois law firms

    Scammers claiming to be Illinois lawyers called people around the country this summer demanding immediate payment of bogus debts and threatening them with arrest. Find out more in the August Illinois Bar Journal.