Archive

A couple of months ago, I wrote a blog post about networking as an introvert, which the folks over at Law School Toolbox noticed and retweeted on several occasions. A few weeks after that, we got together and they asked if I would write a guest post and consider doing an interview for the podcast. […]

We have this purple plant sitting beside a west-facing window in our house. It only gets a couple hours of late-afternoon sunlight per day, and otherwise it just receives the ambient lighting available in the room. I gave it to my wife for Mother’s Day, so it’s been with us for a few months now. […]

In many law firms, there is a sharp line drawn between lawyers and staff (i.e., everyone else). There are rules about co-mingling. Significant differences in pay structures. Disparate expectations for hours worked. And there are often good reasons for some of these distinctions. But not uncommonly, there is also an unacceptable distinction between the way […]

My new article “Law Firms Are Hiring Your Qualities, Not Your Skills” has been published on Law School Toolbox. The article discusses the qualities and character traits important to law firms who are interviewing job candidates (whether summer clerks or new associates), rather than the particular skills and experiences the candidates are often fixated on […]

A while back an old friend called me, and the conversation went something like this: Me: Hey, man, how’s it going? It’s been a while. Friend: Yeah. Hey, I’ve got a question. Me: Alright. Let’s here it. [He explains his situation.] Me: I’m not licensed in your state. Friend: I know. Me: And I don’t […]

How to Get Hired Despite Not Networking for a Job For an introvert, the prospect of networking gives me the cold sweats. I have literally had nightmares about it. And the only thing worse is when your livelihood hangs in the balance on your ability to network. Small talk and innocuous chatter – I shutter […]

The short answer – ALL THE THINGS! A new crop of rising 3L’s will soon begin filling out bar applications. Some of you will have some minor indiscretions in your past. And you’ll be wondering – like I did – whether you should disclose it to your state bar’s character and fitness committee, because after […]

Chick-Fil-A has built itself into a giant in the fast-food industry. It didn’t happen overnight. And it didn’t transpire without adhering to certain core principles. Here are four ways that you can model your law practice after Chick-Fil-A and position yourself for greater success. 1. Commodity Here’s the thing about commodities. People either want or need […]

Portia Porter is the author of Can You Stiff Your Divorce Lawyer?: Tales of How Cunning Clients Can Get Free Legal Work, as Told by an Experienced Divorce Attorney. Her book details all the many ways that wily clients may, can, have, and will escape paying their legal bills. She answers the question posed as the title […]

Like many other professionals, there are plenty of lawyers who wonder if they should start a blog? And if so, to what end? I took the leap in June of 2016. I enjoy writing and had some ideas for  topics to write about where there appeared to be a gap in the market. But in […]