Blawg's Blog by Bill Gratsch

1. In what capacity does your blog serve the legal community? I am a specialist in organizational development for law firms and law departments. I have an expertise in lawyer personalities, which in this industry has a major impact on how their organizations work. (The comment I usually hear from non-lawyers is “Isn’t lawyer personality” an oxymoron?” So you can see we are up against a difficult market perception.) 2. What can lawyers/firms learn from reading your blawg and/or accepting services from your other website(s)? My blog covers all sorts of personal dynamics issues—leadership, diversity, succession, morale, communication, compensation, retention, etc. Our firm’s services are customized to our clients and cover a broad range, including strategic planning, business development, risk management and marketing, in addition to all of my organizational development topics. 3. What makes your approach to practice management different from other legal consulting companies? We are lawyers who have been in the trenches. I practiced law on Wall Street and also in a smaller firm, and was also a co-General Counsel for a conglomerate in Europe, so I know the challenges that law firms and departments face. Many legal consultants are not lawyers, or if they are, never practiced much in these environments. We also have a fully stocked resource cabinet when it comes to determining what the best steps to take are. My familiarity with the behavioral science research generally and the data on lawyers specifically informs our approach in a more fundamental way than any other consulting firm. And that together with our experience makes us both quick to understand the issues and practical in delivering recommendations. 4. How does your expertise in lawyer personalities and organizational development aid the growth and development of the law firms Robin Rolfe Resources consults with? David Maester, a very-well respected OD consultant and author, and I used to have our differences because he claimed lawyers should follow the same advice that he gave to other professional services firms. I, on the other hand, contended that lawyers are really different. I felt somewhat vindicated when he published an article in the American Lawyer a couple of years ago saying that he conceded that law firms are different than other types of firms-- that what makes lawyers good at what they do also makes them harder to manage. And that is indeed the point. Understanding the personal dynamics issues that run through every firm is central to developing a plan for growth. You cannot see the path ahead unless you know where your are standing now. I can bring awareness to a firm as to what the issues are and how to move ahead. 5. Has practice management and legal consulting changed now that the internet has become such a large part of gaining clients? We certainly find that we are more accessible than we might be without the internet. I am often asked to speak and write because of information on my blog, and we are able to provide easy access to assessments and programming over the internet. 6. Do you think blawg's are important for lawyers and legal professionals to maintain? In what ways? I think that in this day and age an internet presence is a necessity to everyone, including lawyers and legal professionals. The beauty of a blog is that it allows you to easily customize your message, update it regularly and provide a more intimate experience for the reader than a website can. 7. What has blogging taught you about the legal profession along the way, and maybe even yourself? As to the legal profession, blogging on the people side of the practice has provided a pleasant surprise, in that I see there is an audience at least receptive to these concepts, concepts that have been utilized in other professions and corporations for decades, but that may sometimes require some courage to embrace in the legal industry. That has been gratifying to see that we as lawyers are concerned about the dysfunction that can occur and are willing to do something about it. As to myself, there is such a flow of information in our area of interest, particularly at this critical time in the evolution of the legal profession, that blogging makes me hone even more sharply those prioritizing and time management skills. 8. How has legal blogging in general changed since you first started and in what direction do you think it will it take in the future? What direction will your blawg in particular take down the road? I have had my blog for only a few years, but the world of blogging is already changing. I see improvements in the content and presentation of blogs generally, but also a proliferation of “navel-gazing” types as well, which we could probably use a few less of. In the future, I think blogging will offer the more fulsome version of connection and information that the growing popularity of venues like Twitter and other micro-blogs show people are interested in. Again, it’s a quasi-intimate experience in an increasingly solitary/alienated culture. In my blog specifically, I will be chronicling and evaluating the wave of innovation that is sure to engulf the legal profession over the next few years. 9. What is your favorite site to visit on the web? Youtube.com 10. What's the #1 internet sensation you were surprised caught fire on the web? Snuggies? The blankets with arms. Not just on the web but as a marketing venture generally—shows, I think, how people want to be comforted now.

Virginia lawyers Dan Frith and Lauren Ellerman have over 25 years of combined practice experience and are dedicated to the hard work necessary to bring skilled and experienced representation to their clients. Dan and Lauren blog frequently about medical and professional negligence cases, wrongful death claims, and nursing home abuse and neglect. Dan and I recently had the opportunity to chat about the intersection of personal injury law and the internet.

Q: In what capacity does your blawg serve for the legal community?

We have multiple blogs including Legal Medicine, Virginia Non-Compete, and Roanoke Personal Injury Lawyer at InjuryBoard. Lauren and I try to discuss important issues and concerns as they relate to these specific legal topics.  Some lawyers agree with what we have to say and some do not.

Q: Are potential clients and fellow lawyers more willing to discuss Medical Malpractice in a blawg format? Is medical malpractice a "hot" legal topic on blawgs?  

We get an amazing amount of traffic on all of our blogs but especially on Legal Medicine. It appears almost everyone has had a bad experience with a health care provider. 

Q: Do you feel more connected to the legal community thanks to your blawg? How so?

I feel more connected to the community as a whole, not just the legal community. It is my hope that we provide useful information to our readers. For example, on Legal Medicine we have written on issues to consider in selecting a nursing home for a loved one.

Q: Do you think blawg's are important for lawyers and legal professionals to maintain? In what ways?  

Lawyers have a great deal of information stored between their ears (some useful and some not).  Blogging is a way to share some of that information with the general public. 

Q: How has blogging changed since you first started and in what direction do you think it will it take in the future?

The biggest change I've witnessed is the incredible growth of legal blogs and the vast array of legal topics discussed.   

Q: What is your favorite site to visit on the web?  

I visit InjuryBoard daily along with Legal Blog Watch and PointofLaw.com

The stuffy old style of running a library has definitely changed. In order to keep up with today’s fast-paced lifestyle and technological innovations, law librarians have to continuously be on the cutting edge. The consequence of falling behind the times could land your small library in heavy debt and into closing. Of course, in the current economic climate, the slippery slope to bankruptcy is shorter than ever for libraries. Bonnie Shucha, the Head of Reference at the UW Law Library, recently answered a few of my questions about what law librarians in particular can do to run their libraries in the 21^st century and what it is like to host a blawg dedicated the art of being a librarian.

Q: In what capacity does your blawg serve the legal community?

WisBlawg serves as a current awareness and instructional tool for the legal community, particularly in Wisconsin.  I inform my readers about new or improved websites and databases which may improve their search experience; review resources and tools which may save them time or help them communicate more effectively; and share news and developments which may impact them professionally. It's my job as a law librarian to be aware of all these things. WisBlawg allows me to share that knowledge with the legal community.

Q: How do you personally keep up with all the technological advancements in research, library management, and the like as Head of Reference at University of Wisconsin?

I rely heavily on RSS feeds for current awareness.  I've subscribed to feeds not only for blogs, but also news sources, databases and search engines, etc.  And when a site doesn't have a feed, I create one of my own with PonyFish.  I also send email listserv messages to my RSS reader so it's one stop shopping for all my current awareness information.

Q: Do you feel more connected to the legal community thanks to your blawg? How so?

Definitely.  I've connected with so many people through WisBlawg - people that I never would have met otherwise.  I've formed a number of new acquaintances with readers who contact me about something I've written or ask me about some new resource.  And through the blog, I've been invited to speak at many meetings where I've met lots of interesting people.  Blogging has allowed me to step outside my own little world and connect with people whose perspectives and experiences differ from my own.

Q: Do you think blawg's are important for lawyers and legal professionals to maintain? In what ways?

Q: What's the #1 internet sensation you were surprised caught fire on the web?

Twitter. I admit that at first I didn't see much potential for a micro-blog like Twitter. I wondered how answering the question "What are you doing?" could be of any professional use.  But with all the interesting uses I've seen for Twitter, I've come to see the light.  Twitter is yet another tool for making connections, from taking part in a post-conference discussion to sharing interesting websites to scheduling a meet up in a town you'll be visiting.  As a long time blogger, I'm surprised I didn't see it before.

Here are a couple other successful and helpful Law Library Blawgs:

Library Technology Guides

Tame the Web

Professor Adam J. Levitin authored a post, Congress to Homeowners: Drop Dead, at Credit Slips which noted [a] draft of the bailout plan is out. And it contains nothing substantive for financially distressed homeowners.

And, after the vote, What Now? Life After the Bailout Bill - Doom, Gloom but Also Opportunity as Lawmakers Pick Up the Pieces.  ABC NEWS

Other recent posts across the blawgosphere:

Free Culture and DRM - Lessig Blog

The Yale Law Journal Pocket Part: The Estate Tax Fundamentals of Celebrity and Control - Concurring Opinions

Freddoso: Cantor: We Can Still Fix This - Bench Memos - National Review Online

Thelen Loses Key D.C. Partners to Pillsbury - The BLT: The Blog of Legal Times

"Bearing down on short sellers" - Point of Law

WSJ: Consumer Groups Push Tax Relief for Homeowners in Bailout - TaxProf Blog

With markets in turmoil, it is hard not to check the financial headlines throughout the day.  Beyond the headlines, I have been finding some informative reading among weblogs.  One to which I have subscribed is investor Carl Icahn's The Icahn Report.   Whether you agree with his views or not, Mr. Icahn has a long history in business and his posts are well-crafted. 

For those inclined to read further, some recent posts I have found particularly interesting:

Corporate Waste Brings this Nation Closer to the Brink

We Pay So Much For So Little

Response to WSJ Opinion Piece 'Why Carl Icahn Is Bad for Investors'

Absurdity of the Golden Parachute

With the continuing turmoil in the market, lawyers continue to post on a variety of related topics.  To wit, Thomas Gorman of Porter Wright has offered hist thoughts, via SEC Actions, on the recent moves by the Securities and Exchange Commission concerning short sales:

The SEC’s Bold Step Into The Markets Mandates Quick Follow Up Measures

SEC Modifies Its Emergency Short Sale Rules And Suggests They May Be Extended

 

Headlines across the blawgosphere this Monday morning, September 22, 2008:

Microsofts Patent Tax - Patent Prospector

Jureeka! - Legal Writing Prof Blog

Sexual Harassment Guide for Employees - Los Angeles Sexual Harassment Attorneys

Muslim Arbitration Tribunal sets up 5 Sharia courts in UK. - What About Clients?

Election Cartoons from Harpers Weekly - Virtual Library Cat's Eye View

AIG bailout and structured settlements. - The Settlement Channel

Labor Law Class Action Lawsuits Maintain Dominance Among New Class Action Filings In California State And Federal Courts In Heavy Week For New Class Action Cases - Class Action Defense Blog

Bipartisan Judicial Screening Panels?? - Adjunct Law Prof Blog

Law Firm Life as Treadmill? Not Just a Metaphor, Say Hello to the Treadmill Desk - Above the Law

THE LAWYER AND THE STRIPPER - Illinois Lawyer Blog

Lots of commentary on the happenings on Wall Street these days.   News about faltering insurance giant AIG is the latest hot topic. 

Interested?  Dive into the topic via any of the links noted:

AIG...US Government To The Rescue! Post Mortem - Structured Settlements 4Real

We Bought Ourselves an Insurance Company - Concurring Opinions

Whats the Law of the A.I.G. Loan? - Balkanization

On the $85 Billion AIG Loan - The Gavel

The Fed saves AIG - Tax Girl

Lehman/Merrill/AIG the Day After--What Crisis?! - Commercial Law

Board, with full support of Treasury Department, authorizes New York Fed to lend up to $85 billion to AIG - beSpacific

 

Law Firm Merger Mania: The Heller / Mayer Merger Is Off - Above the Law

UCLA fires up election blog featuring expert analysis of presidential campaign - idealawg

Jay Hein on Hiring Rights and the Future of the Faith-Based Initiative - Blog From The Capital

Patent Profile: Allele Biotech Announces Issuance of siRNA Patent - Patent Docs

Anti-Cybersquatting: The Problem of an Eminent Domain Name - Conglomerate

U.S. Wind Tops 20 Gigawatts - Sustainability Law Blog

Balancing the Pleading Equation - Civil Procedure Prof Blog

Bank of America Acquires Merrill Lynch - Investment Fraud Lawyer Blog

USPTO Issues Dual Memos on 112 Rejections - Two-Seventy-One Patent Blog

First Arrest for Baggy-Pants-Ordinance Violation - Lowering the Bar

For anyone interested in the topic of annual law school rankings, Professor Tom Bell recently posted the 2008 edition of his z-scores via this post, Z-Scores in Model of 2009 USN&WR Law School Rankings, at MoneyLaw. 

U.S. News & World Report publishes scores for each of the hundred or so schools that it ranks highest, and offers some of the data that goes into calculating those scores. To really understand how each of those schools fared relative to its peers, however, you need to know its z-score in each category of data that USN&WR measures. My model of the rankings aims to recreate those z-scores, and thus the rankings themselves, by duplicating both the data and the methodology that USN&WR uses.

As I did in 2005, 2006, and 2007, I here offer the z-scores used in my model of the USN&WR law school rankings. (Please see those earlier posts for fuller explanations of z-scores and why they matter).

Professor Bell has some interesting observations in his various posts on the subject, including:

Unsurprisingly, you'll find the largest numbers in the upper, left-hand corner of the chart. There lie the most heavily-weighted z-scores of the law schools that scored the highest in USN&WR's rankings. Consider, for instance, the .70 weighted z-scores enjoyed by Yale and Harvard under the "reputation among legal academics" category; those numbers nearly swamp the effect of other measures of those schools' performances, and have twice the impact of the peer reputation scores of schools ranked as close as 20th from the top.

This presentation of the data shows how very little influence many of the things that USN&WR measures have on its rankings. The weighted z-scores for Bar pass rates, for instance, vary between only .05 and -.03, with a whole lot of zeros filling that span. Bar passage rates evidently do not matter much to any school's USN&WR score.

To see his full rankings, observations and more, just click here Z-Scores in Model of 2009 USN&WR Law School Rankings.