Asked and Answered By John W. Olmstead, MBA, Ph.D, CMC Q. Our firm is a 14-attorney firm in Chicago. There are nine partners and five associates in the firm. Our practice is limited to insurance defense. I am one of the founders and senior partners in the firm and have been practicing for 35 years. We are having problems getting our associates to produce at the levels that we need for the firm to be profitable. We have an annual 1,800 billable hour requirement and several of our associates are not even close. We have a bonus system that pays associates a bonus based upon billable hours exceeding 1,800 billable hours. What are we doing wrong?

Many speakers warn about run-of-the-mill ethical concerns with technology, but only a select few understand the cutting-edge concerns that are shifting the practice of law and causing ethical headaches for sophisticated lawyers. Join Stuart Teicher in Chicago or via live webcast on April 20, 2018 as he explains both the expanding ethical pitfalls and the evolving ethical duties that lawyers face when using new technology. Attendees will learn about: The Dangers that Don’t Get Discussed. Learn about the paradigm shift that’s being caused by Wikileaks and Snowden, as well as the pitfalls from the LinkedIn/Microsoft merger;  Using Artificial Intelligence Safely…in Plain English. Every tech guru tells you that you need to understand artificial intelligence, but not a single one of them knows how it fits into the attorney ethics rules. Gain a better understanding of the ethical issues you may face with data mining, machine learning, automated tasks, and more (Rules 8.4, 5.3, 1.1) Phish-Hooked: The Ethical Implications of Getting Scammed Online. Whether it’s ransomware, bogus escrow agent arrangements, or fake disciplinary notices, lawyers need to be aware of the hustles being used to scam lawyers. This section helps clarify an attorney’s obligation when becoming a target of online trickery. (Bar Opinions from Alaska #2016-1, Ohio #2016-8, D.C. Bar #371). Twitter Traps You Didn’t Consider. The pressure to tweet is immense, even if you want to resist…and the ethical concerns with using the medium are growing. Don’t miss this discussion on the ethical implications of retweeting (Rule 4.1), the pending terrorism criminal case that could have ethics implications for lawyers, the triggering concerns of Rule 3.6; and more.

The 2018 ISBA High School Mock Trial Invitational, which is co-administered by the ISBA and the Illinois Trial Team of the University of Illinois, took place on March 24-25 at the University of Illinois College of Law in Champaign. First place went to the St. Charles North Mock Trial Team from St. Charles North High School. They will be competing at the National High School Mock Trials in Reno, Nevada in May. Pictured from left to right are Hon. Michael J. Chmiel, Standing Committee on Law Related Education for the Public Chair Kateah McMasters, and President Hon. Russell W. Hartigan (ret.).

The ISBA Young Lawyers Division hosted a free lunch and learn on Wednesday, March 28, at the Chicago Regional Office. The four panelists — Judy Conway, Stephanie Garces, Terrill Wilkins, and Natali Marquez-Ponce — gave a Q&A-style presentation covering their best tips and tricks for success at a solo practice or small firm.