Tips and Articles that Work for You
Lawyers are supposed to practice law, right? But all too often, attorneys find themselves spending more and more time managing the business aspects of their practices instead of spending that time practicing law. And you can’t bill a client for the time you spend on administrative tasks and managing your practice.
The ACBA Practice Management Center is design to offer you tips, articles and other resources designed to help you run your practice more efficiently … free up more time for you to practice law.
Articles
Financial Management
- Solving the law firm compensation conundrum (Lawyers Journal, June 2, 2023)
- ‘Realizing’ profit from your associate attorneys (Lawyers Journal, March 10, 2023)
- Effective solutions to small law firm billing issues (Lawyers Journal, Dec. 2, 2022)
- Money for nothing? Best practices for referral and fee splitting agreements (Lawyers Journal, Nov. 4, 2022)
- The attorney blueprint to the perfect accounting system (Lawyers Journal, Aug. 26, 2022)
- Calculating investment risk in retirement (Lawyers Journal, July 29, 2022)
- How a cash balance plan can help business owners boost retirement savings (Lawyers Journal, July 15, 2022)
- Seven most common trust account mistakes and how to avoid them (Lawyers Journal, June 17, 2022)
- An easier method to reduce your unpaid bills (Lawyers Journal, Apr. 8, 2022)
- Thinking about starting a 401k for your firm? Ten tips to keep in mind (Lawyers Journal, Feb. 25, 2022)
- Five ways lawyers can improve accounts receivable collections (Lawyers Journal, Jan. 28, 2022)
- Resources to help HR meet the changing needs of organizations (Lawyers Journal, Dec. 17, 2021)
- Eleven ways to protect your business from payment fraud (Lawyers Journal, Nov. 5, 2021)
- Thinking of setting up a 401k for your firm? Six tips to keep in mind (Lawyers Journal, Sept. 24, 2021)
- Do you conduct an annual financial checkup for your law firm? (Lawyers Journal, Aug. 27, 2021)
- Credit card mythbusting: Four reasons law firms still resist online payments (Lawyers Journal, May 22, 2021)
- Seize your budget’s powerful potential (Lawyers Journal, April 9, 2021)
- Law firm billing – It can be simpler (Lawyers Journal, Feb. 26, 2021)
- Do you trust yourself with trust accounting? (Lawyers Journal, Jan. 29, 2021)
- How to develop a rockstar team (Lawyers Journal, Sept. 11, 2020)
- When is the best time to prepare for a disaster? (Lawyers Journal, Aug. 14, 2020)
- The no-fail formula for knowing who to hire when (Lawyers Journal, July 31, 2020)
- How lawyers are optimizing cash flow and workflow (Lawyers Journal, July 17, 2020)
- Avoid being sued when collecting legal fees (Lawyers Journal, June 19, 2020)
- The profit potential of paralegals (Lawyers Journal, June 5, 2020)
- What is contemporaneous time entry worth to your law firm? (Lawyers Journal, March 13, 2020)
- Forecasting – A tool for managing financial uncertainty (Lawyers Journal, Nov. 8, 2019)
- Power Position: The six financial reports your law firm needs monthly (Lawyers Journal, Aug. 16, 2019)
Hybrid Workplace and COVID Response
- State of downtown Pittsburgh: Must-know trends and market fundamentals to make sound real estate decisions (Lawyers Journal, Feb. 24, 2023)
- Remote work is changing the employment landscape (Lawyers Journal, May 6, 2022)
- Part 3: A look at COVID response in Pittsburgh law firms (Lawyers Journal, April 8, 2022)
- Part 2: A look at COVID response in Pittsburgh law firms (Lawyers Journal, March 25, 2022)
- A look at COVID response in Pittsburgh law firms (Lawyers Journal, March 11, 2022)
- 3 tips to help your firm make the most of its return to the office (Lawyers Journal, Sept. 10, 2021)
Insurance and Liability
- Protection protocol: Appropriately managing and responding to legal hold notices (Lawyers Journal, Feb. 10, 2023)
- Life insurance for today’s young professionals (Lawyers Journal, Feb 11, 2022)
- CNA professional liability fact sheet: Family law (Lawyers Journal, Oct. 25, 2019)
- Preventing misconduct and reducing liability risk in organizations (Lawyers Journal, Oct. 11, 2019)
Marketing and Client Relations
- Why law firms should adopt a campaign-driven marketing approach (Lawyers Journal, April 21, 2023)
- Why attorneys need a personal brand (Lawyers Journal, March 24, 2023)
- Law firm branding: Is it time to consider modernizing your firm’s brand? (Lawyers Journal, Aug. 12, 2022)
- Public relations and law firms: Does a media mention hold the same weight it once did? (Lawyers Journal, June 3, 2022)
- Improve your intake: Ten steps to seal the deal (Lawyers Journal, Dec. 3, 2021)
- Selecting and working with forensic consultants: Optimizing benefits and minimizing problems (Lawyers Journal, Nov. 19, 2021)
- How to differentiate your firm from your competitors (Lawyers Journal, Jan. 31, 2020)
- Your real brand may not be what you think (Lawyers Journal, Jan. 17, 2020)
- Limited scope representation: The importance of drafting detailed retainer agreements (Lawyers Journal, July 5, 2019)
Solo and Small Firm Strategies
- Four tips for a lawyer changing practice areas (Lawyers Journal, May 5, 2023)
- Effective solutions to small law firm billing issues (Lawyers Journal, Dec. 2, 2022)
- Small law firm innovations come from the most unlikely places (Lawyers Journal, Dec. 31, 2021)
- From here to there: Elements of an effective screen when onboarding a lateral hire (Lawyers Journal, Aug. 13, 2021)
- Making online reviews work for your firm (Lawyers Journal, March 26, 2021)
- Accelerating the drive to work smarter (Lawyers Journal, Jan. 15, 2021)
- Former ABA President discusses burdens of running a law firm (Lawyers Journal, Dec. 6, 2019)
- You’ve decided to go out on your own. Now what? (Lawyers Journal, June 21, 2019)
Technology and IT
- Third party vendors and your practice (Lawyers Journal, May 19, 2023)
- Why you should be using LPM software (Lawyers Journal, Jan. 27, 2023)
- Why you should be using a legal practice management software (Lawyers Journal, Oct. 21, 2022)
- The importance of using multi-factor authentication tools (Lawyers Journal, Oct. 7, 2022)
- Verizon releases its highly anticipated 15th annual Data Breach Investigations Report (Lawyers Journal, Sept. 9, 2022)
- Tips to prevent skyrocketing costs related to social engineering fraud (Lawyers Journal, Jan. 14, 2022)
- The advantage of better technology in a small law firm (Lawyers Journal, Oct. 22, 2021)
- Fortifying the firm: How to confront digital threats to the modern law firm (Lawyers Journal, Oct. 8, 2021)
- Microsoft Teams – How to smartly use a powerful collaboration tool (Lawyers Journal, Jan. 1, 2021)
- Working remotely: Three tips for law firm success (Lawyers Journal, May 8, 2020)
- Understanding data analytics can improve your efficiency (Lawyers Journal, Feb. 14, 2020)
- How website chat helps lawyers win more clients with fewer interruptions (Lawyers Journal, Jan. 3, 2020)
- Can an engagement letter protect you from cyber-related liability? (Lawyers Journal, Sept. 27, 2019)
- Profitability measurement tool (Lawyers Journal, July 19, 2019)
- A.I.-assisted legal research is here (and it’s probably cheaper than what you’re paying now) (Lawyers Journal, June 7, 2019)
Time Management and Efficiency
- Get HR ready for the challenges ahead (Lawyers Journal, Dec. 30, 2022)
- You missed a deadline? How to avoid that nightmare (Lawyers Journal, May 20, 2022)
- You’ve decided to go out on your own. Now what? (Lawyers Journal, April 22, 2022)
- Short tips and tools in arbitration (Lawyers Journal, July 30, 2021)
- How attorneys get more done in less time (Lawyers Journal, March 12, 2021)
- Simpler ways to improve partner on-time meeting attendance and time entry (Lawyers Journal, April 24, 2020)
- Formula 168: How lawyers create the life they want (Lawyers Journal, Dec. 20, 2019)
- Time management challenge solo practices must overcome (Lawyers Journal, Aug. 30, 2019)
- The three tools law firms need to survive and thrive (Lawyers Journal, Aug. 2, 2019)