Tax Implications of Productizing Legal Services

Converting legal services into products like self-help books and videos, assessment tools, apps or chatbots invariably raises the same perennial issues for lawyers. Some lawyers obsess about the ethics of commoditization such as whether a product sold nationally might place a lawyer in violation of unauthorized practice of law (UPL) prohibitions or give rise to…

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The Founding Fathers and the Future of Law

This past week, a rather vigorous Twitter debate over whether ethics regulators should characterize and regulate benign lawyer matching platforms as for-profit referral organizations was ultimately shut down with cries for “collaboration” and let’s all work together kumbaya-style to find a system that works for everyone and promotes access-to-justice besides.  Leaving aside whether it’s realistic…

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Is It Time to Pivot Your Practice?

Many of today’s most recent Internet successes – like Uber or AirBnB started out differently from what they’ve become. Uber’s original intent was to operate an on-demand limousine service for business travelers, but today, has morphed into a ride sharing platform used by consumers. Air BnB began as a way to help budget-conscious travelers find a room…

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Why It’s Time for Lawyers to Take A Second Look at Self-Scheduling Tools for Clients

Six years ago, I questioned why self-scheduling options for clients hadn’t been as successful for the legal professions as for other industries. I came up with a couple of theories: scheduling platforms that weren’t quite ready for prime-time and inadequate information on lawyers’ websites about the potential cost of an initial phone or in-person consultation.…

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Celebrate #GivingTuesday: Give or Serve

According to Wikipedia,Giving Tuesday : refers to the Tuesday after U.S. Thanksgiving in the United States. It is a movement to create an international day of giving at the beginning of the Christmas and holiday season.  Giving Tuesday was started in 2012 by the 92nd Street Y and the United Nations Foundation as a response to commercialization and consumerism in the post-Thanksgiving season (Black…

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Four Actions to Take Before the End of the Year

This week’s theme is “Annuals: Four Actions That Your Law Firm Should Take before the End of the Year.”  These actions reflect a mix of business and pleasure; profit and pro-bono. No matter which of these you choose to implement and no matter what kind of year you’ve had so far, all of these measures…

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PowerHour No. 4: Be A Statistic

Penning a blog post or article is a common suggestion for using an extra hour of time. It’s not a bad idea either if you have a good idea for a post that will gain some traction or that can be republished at a popular site.  Unfortunately, with so much content created on a daily…

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