My Shingle

November 2004

2004 Bar Review Now Available: Super-Spectacular Resource!!

November 22, 2004 by Carolyn Elefant

Two years ago, My Shingle published the first ever Bar Review, a survey of what the state bars and the ABA offer in the way of resources and support for solo and small firm practitioners.  We’re happy to announce that we’ve just issued a 2004 Bar Review that’s available in both PDF and HTML (PDF [...]

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Should NY Ban Targeted Mailings?

November 22, 2004 by Carolyn Elefant

After last year’s Staten Island Ferry crash, lawyer ads targeting potential clients proliferated in the local news media within hours.  Though banning newspaper ads would likely violate the First Amendment, New York is now considering a more narrow ban on targeted solicitations mailed to potential plaintiffs within thirty days of an incident as reported in [...]

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Working from Home – A Viable Choice

November 22, 2004 by Carolyn Elefant

Many lawyers resist working from home, worrying primarily about image, as in this article here.  But a professional home based office is possible, as demonstrated by Nina Kallen and Lisa Solomon, the two sucessful attorneys profiled in  Home Alone, Margaret Graham Tebo, ABA Journal (November 2004).

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Saying Thank You Because You Mean It

November 22, 2004 by Carolyn Elefant

With the holidays approaching, we can expect an onslaught of marketing articles reminding us to send our clients and colleagues holiday cards and gifts to keep the flow of work coming.  But sometimes it’s nice to say thank you not to get something in return but simply to express gratitude.  That’s the subject of my [...]

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YES, YOU TOO CAN SLAY GOLIATH

November 6, 2004 by Carolyn Elefant

Biglaw firms want clients to believe that they have the resources and brainpower to outgun smaller opponents – but that’s not always the case as reported in Want to Beat a Big Firm in Litigation? Turn its Tactics to Your Advantage, Meg Tebo, ABA Journal (November 2004). But why doesn’t more manpower necessarily translate into [...]

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DO YOU RECOGNIZE AT LEAST ONE OF THESE CLIENT-TYPES

November 6, 2004 by Carolyn Elefant

What kind of client is your personal pleasure? Hands on or hands off? A lawyer client? A client in denial about prospects of success? Or of course, the crazy (truly crazy!) client? Those are the five types of client identified solo Kim Fanady’s recent article for Small Firm Business, entitled, Close Encounters of the Client [...]

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IF YOU’RE GOING TO FORCE PRO BONO, DON’T MAKE IT EQUITABLE

November 6, 2004 by Carolyn Elefant

For various reasons, I do not endorse mandatory pro bono requirements, even as I, personally, have made a point of taking on several pro bono matters each year during my sixteen years of practice. I just don’t think the bar can force attorneys to undertake what is a personal moral obligation. But to the extent [...]

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