Legal Talk Network - Law News and Legal Topics

Are you creating self-defeating typography by using underlines, caps, and fonts that make your argument less inviting to your reader? Author and attorney Matthew Butterick shares key points from his book Typography for Lawyers on how to make your next brief or email easier to read, which helps your reader stay focused longer and reduces annoyance. Matthew believes that small positive mental shift could sway a decision in your favor. Once you recognize that you are a legal publisher, you’ll see why font matters. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For any plaintiff who's been injured or any young attorney just starting out in the field of tort law, it can be daunting to calculate what monetary damages–and nonmonetary damages like pain and suffering–they should be asking for if they win a civil trial or are evaluating a settlement offer. Estimating what the future would have looked like if an accident had never occurred can seem more like a thought experiment than a scientific process.But there is a science behind it, says Dr. Michael Shahnasarian, and he has written a book, The Valuation of Monetary Damages in Injury Cases: A Damages Expert's Perspective, to explain the methodology.Shahnasarian has a PhD in psychology, and he's focused his practice on vocational rehabilitation and life care planning. As an expert witness, he's participated in at least 5,000 cases, he tells Lee Rawles in this episode of the Modern Law Library podcast. The Valuation of Monetary Damages in Injury Cases walks through the forensic process he and others use to estimate what someone's earning potential might have been without an accident, as well as the amount of money it may take to cover the person's living and healthcare expenses in the future.In this episode, Shahnasarian offers advice to young lawyers interested in tort cases; gives his expert-witness opinion on how best to reach jurors with information without overwhelming them; and shares with listeners his core beliefs about the value and dignity of work.Listeners of this podcast can get a 20% discount on The Valuation of Monetary Damages in Injury Cases: A Damages Expert's Perspective by entering the code VMDCDEP22 at checkout at the ABA store. The discount code is valid until 8/31/2023. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Duc Nguyen, managing partner of digital forensics and cyber claims at United Litigation Discovery, talks about recent changes in cyber claims and what insurance carriers need to focus on regarding risk management. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Trial attorneys win and lose every day, and that roller coaster can be intellectually and emotionally exhausting. Learn how to become more resilient by processing quickly, letting go, and giving yourself permission to spend as much time on the positive as you did on the negative. What does that have to do with being a goldfish? Tune in and find out. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Conrad and Gyi take an early look at Clio’s foray into website design and the connection between lawyers and ramen noodles. Plus, some quick takeaways from the brand new 2022 Clio Legal Trends Report.-----Continuing its effort to be your law firm’s one-stop shop, Clio is now entering the website design and hosting arena. Is Clio’s new offering, which specializes in sites for lawyers and seamlessly integrates with the Clio universe, going to be the answer to getting your firm out there on the web? Will all its bells and whistles get you noticed, get you to the top of SEO rankings, and bring in clients? The guys share their appreciations and hesitations on Clio’s new service, and how it compares to website builders in general.And then, it’s time to get Econ nerdy. We all see what’s going on with the markets these days, and all feel the rising costs. Maybe you haven’t quite yet started swapping out your nice flank steak for a can of Spam and your linguine alle vongole for a bowl of ramen, but you’re feeling that grocery bill just a bit more. The guys get into how lawyers should be thinking about their pricing as buying power goes down and the demand for legal services, counterintuitively, goes up.Plus, important insights from the new, 2022, Clio Legal Trends Report. What are the most important things to a potential client? Survey says: you’ll have to listen to find out!The News: Updates from Clio Cloud Conference 2022 Gonzalez v. Google, the struggle over Section 230 and liability on the Internet. The Supremes may be poised to engage. Google business profiles are still getting penalized. Conference season is upon us, Crisp and Great Legal Marketing events are coming soon. AAJ Winter Convention 2023 is in February, and the ABA Techshow is in March. Justice For Me legal financing startup raises $10 million in funding. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tech tools can minimize tedious, routine legal work, allowing attorneys more time to dedicate to higher-level strategic tasks and their clients. Tech also enables unrepresented people to better navigate complex legal systems. This is how streamlining repetitive processes improves the efficiency of legal services organizations and promotes increased access to justice. Ransom Wydner, Vice President of Pro Bono and Social Impact at SixFifty Sam Flynn, Chief Operating Officer and Co-founder at Josef Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Acquisition, getting new clients “from contact to contract,” is vital to your success. So why are so many firms struggling at the most basic levels? Guest Adam Reiman, director of coaching and live events at Lawyer.com, explains.Signing a prospective client starts the instant you pick up the phone. Clients are won or lost in those critical first moments. If you’re waiting to respond to calls or putting people on hold, you may be bleeding contracts. Prospect interest drifts away in minutes, while the average law firm takes more than three days to return an initial call. Is that your firm?It’s not just getting prospects to call, it’s about converting them to clients. Reiman, says, “Treat your leads like Fabergé Eggs.” They are precious and fragile.Reiman, a leader in legal coaching and law firm development, helps firms efficiently manage leads and turn an inquiry into a signed, paying client.In this episode: The art of being “nice.” The caller is in a tough spot. Respond quickly and show empathy. The value of in person appointments and appointment reminders. Explaining why you’re the right lawyer. What makes you special. How much follow up contact is too much, and too little. The right time to explain your fee (and how to ask for the money). Bonus: Reiman urges firms to give him a call (602-828-4415) for a free “secret shopper” experience where he’ll call as a prospective client, then provide tips and areas for improvement. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Are you looking at your software as if it’s a partner in your firm?In this episode, Zack is joined again by Joyce Brafford, lawyer and practice management guru. They talk all-in-one practice management software vs integrators, and dive into the benefits of CosmoLex by ProfitSolv, a true all-in-one software.And for more about CosmoLex, Zack spoke with Erica Birstler at CosmoLex. Check out that conversation here.If today’s podcast resonates with you and you haven’t read The Small Firm Roadmap yet, get the first chapter right now for free! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What does ecommerce look like for lawyers?Can you be in ecommerce without a product-based business?Kathryn Smith is an ecommerce consultant based outside of Atlanta, GA. She helps entrepreneurs and small businesses launch and grow successful websites and ecommerce stores. Kathryn gives listeners actionable tips on: [1:25] How e-commerce applies to law firms and law firm websites [3:05] Website requirements for non product-based ecommerce [9:00] The mistakes people make when it comes to ecommerce [11:40] The best ecommerce platforms  [16:55] Kathryn’s book recommendation Resources mentioned in this episode:Girly Drinks by Mallory O'MearaConnect with Kathryn here: Instagram Twitter LinkedIn https://waltonbirch.com  Connect with me Instagram Pinterest Facebook Twitter Karin on Twitter Karin on LinkedIn Conroy Creative Counsel on Facebook https://conroycreativecounsel.com  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The votes are in (all two of ‘em!), and Dennis and Tom agree that Microsoft Teams wins the best collaboration software award by a landslide. It’s been awhile since the guys have highlighted Teams tips and tricks, so tune in for up-to-date, magical insights that can turn you into a Teams wizard in no time.Later, in keeping with the spooky season, Dennis and Tom creep through the Google product graveyard. The Big G is well known for snuffing out its own creations, much to the dismay of users, so the guys examine the whys and wherefores of these murders and whether you should hesitate to invest your time into new Google offerings.As always, stay tuned for the parting shots, that one tip, website, or observation you can use the second the podcast ends.Have a technology question for Dennis and Tom? Call their Tech Question Hotline at 720-441-6820 for answers to your most burning tech questions.Mentioned in This Episode:A Segment: Tips to Make You a Microsoft Teams Wizard The Lawyer’s Guide to Collaboration Tools & Technologies: Work From Home Edition Mike Tholfson on YouTube Microsoft Teams Adoption B Segment: The Google Graveyard Killed by GoogleParting Shots: 7 Mesh Router Mistakes to Avoid 2022 LTN Tech Survey Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices