chevron-down Created with Sketch Beta.

YourABA November 2017

 

Featured Articles

Career

In-house counsel survival guide

“If Paris and zombies need survival guides, then taking a job as an in-house counsel sure the heck does,” writes William E. Kruse in the introduction to “The Corporate Counsel Survival Guide.” In his breezy style, Kruse shares what’s he’s learned about transitioning from firm to in-house, corporate culture and working with outside counsel, among other things. Kruse, vice president, law and counsel, for Gallup, Inc. in Washington, D.C., also serves as the firm’s regulatory compliance officer. Prior to joining Gallup, he worked for a litigation firm in St. Louis. He received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Missouri–St. Louis, and his J.D. from Florida International University.

Business Development

Red flags and white whales: Beware of problem clients

Some years ago, never mind how long precisely, a man named Ahab appeared at my office asking if I would take over a personal injury matter for injuries resulting from an automobile accident. He walked with a limp and appealed to my sense of fair play and compassion and so I accepted the case, even though he brought it to me at the 11th hour before a hearing was scheduled after the previous lawyer had withdrawn from the representation.

Practice Management

Winning the talent war

It’s no surprise that the way we work—in every profession, including the law—has undergone a tremendous sea change in the last decade. And the changes aren’t over yet. Today, we don’t spend hours combing through bound reporters to find relevant cases; a few keystrokes on an online legal research system provides more answers than we could ever find in the stacks. We no longer laboriously type out draft after draft as we modify our arguments; instead, we cut and paste digitally and create new documents in moments. And the days of running to the court with hard-copy briefs are giving way to electronic filing.