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  September 2009  |  e-Newsletter In This Issue ABA Journal Names Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law One of the 25 Greatest Legal TV Shows Feature Article: Beyond Strengths and Weaknesses Cartoon: Stu's Views Cartoon: Courtoons Tax Haiku from Taxgirl Videos of the Month: School Daze 1 and 2 Cartoon: Lawtoons Song of the Month: Fifty Ways to Get Through Law School Cartoon: Law and Disorder Cartoon: Juris Comic Litination: Merger Creates Longest Firm Name in U.S. History ABA Journal Names Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law One of the 25 Greatest Legal TV Shows In its August issue, the ABA Journal featured the 25 Greatest Legal TV Shows. Firmly ensconced at number 16 is a show that we're quite fond of: Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law. Here's the ABA Journal's take on the show: In one of the more bizarre and self-referential productions ever, Gary Cole was featured in this animated spin-off of several shows as a former superhero who has retired to practice law. He specialized in settling disputes between Hanna-Barbera cartoon characters, past and present. Talk about a boutique practice. TRIVIA: Birdman's boss, Phil Ken Sebben, is a reference to Birdman's boss in the original Birdman series, Birdman and the Galaxy Trio. We carry all three seasons of Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law in our Games and Books department. Volume 1 and Volume 3 are available separately; they are also available as part of a box set, along with Volume 2. (According to our distributor, Volume 2 is currently not available separately.) Each DVD features 13 episodes, plus tons of Special Features. Each volume is packaged in a textured slipcase that recalls a well-worn hornbook. For episode guides and a complete listing of the Special Features included in each volume, check out our Harvey Birdman product pages. Feature Article: Beyond Strengths and Weaknesses by Julie A. Fleming Last week I spoke with a client who was struggling with his business development activity. Nate (as usual, the name and identifying details have been changed to protect his privacy) had experienced great success in converting acquaintances who heard him talk about the kind of matters he handles into clients, and he decided that if speaking casually to small groups works well, speaking formally to large groups would deliver even better results. As it turns out, though Nate is a spellbinding speaker in small, informal groups, something happens when he steps onto a stage. Nate transforms from an assured, confident, knowledgeable lawyer who can chat at length about his clients' legal issues and possible solutions into a stiff academician who says "therefore" and "whereof" entirely too much. He becomes (I hate to say it, but I've seen it firsthand) dull. When he speaks to large groups, nothing good comes of it. The audience gets restless, and no one calls Nate for help afterward. This isnt news to Nate. I gently broached the subject after I saw him speak, and before I got very far, he beat me to the punch—sort of: "I know, I know, I was a terrible speaker last time. But I've figured it out, and the crowd next week is a new group of people, and this time, I’m going to impress them!" Nate recognizes that speaking to large groups is not his strength, and yet he continues to use that approach, thinking each time that he'll finally nail the presentation. The problem is that we tend to talk about strengths and weaknesses as if a weakness is just an undeveloped strength. Not so. Sometimes, a weakness is an inability, pure and simple, that can be corrected only by bringing in assistance from another resource. Here's what I explained to Nate (with thanks to Don Blohowiak, a coaching colleague who shared this useful framework): Potential refers to your native capabilities than can be (but have not yet been) developed. Strengths refer to the capabilities that you execute competently to masterfully. Limitations refer to the capabilities that you have in short supply. Some limitations can be developed, and others will require replacement from another source. Absences refer to the capabilities that you simply don't have. There is no shame in lacking capabilities. No one has all of the capabilities possible. Instead, the task is to find someone whose capabilities are complementary to your absences. (If, for instance, you are leading a client service team and complex accounting is an important part of the matter, if you lack masterful accounting skills, you must find someone who can bring that competency to the team.) Weaknesses refer to the capabilities that you pretend to have but cannot actually execute. Using this model, Nate's speaking to a large audience is a weakness (as he recognized) but because he pretended that he could correct it, the weakness could not be eliminated. Nate was failing at business development because he was leading from a weakness and pretending it was a strength. Review your business development plan, your professional development plan, your career strategy plan—any plan at all that reflects your goals—and ask these questions: What are my strengths? How are my strengths reflected in my plan? How can I develop my potential so I can deploy those capabilities in my plan? What weaknesses am I denying? Do my priorities coincide with my strengths? If, like Nate, you lead from weakness, you will produce only frustration. Spend some time in honest self-reflection and look for opportunities to shift what you're doing based on your natural and developed capabilities. And, if (like Nate) you find that you've been pretending that you are developing your weaknesses, stop pretending. Shift your approach. Julie A Fleming, J.D., A.C.C. provides attorney development coaching and consulting to law firm associates and partners, focusing on topics such as leadership, client, and professional development; career strategy; and work/life integration. A certified leadership coach (Georgetown University), Julie publishes the weekly email newsletter Leadership Matters for Lawyers and posts often on the Life at the Bar Blog. Learn more at www.LifeAtTheBar.com or by contacting Julie by telephone at 800.758.6214 or by email to jfb@lifeatthebar.com. If constantly feeling overwhelmed is keeping you from being happy as a lawyer, join Julie Fleming and The Billable Hour Company partner Lisa Solomon for a May 21 teleseminar about the Five Foundations of Time Mastery for Lawyers. Cartoon: Stu's Views by Stu Rees   ©Stu Rees. All rights reserved.   Did you know that Stu licenses his artwork for use in newsletters, presentations, print publications and on websites? He even offers special rates for student and teacher use. You can also purchase original artwork and custom prints (framed or unframed) from Stu. Timesheet readers get 15% off all licensing orders, original artwork and custom prints (use coupon code BILLHOUR). Click here for information on licensing or purchasing Failure to Disclose, other discovery cartoons, or any of the hundreds of images Stu offers. For more information on original artwork and custom prints, click here. Cartoon: Courtoons   Courtoons are the creation of David Mills, an Ohio appellate lawyer who works with litigants and law firms involved in civil and criminal cases in federal courts across the country. Visit David's law firm website at www.MillsFederalAppeals.com Tax Haiku by Taxgirl (a/k/a Kelly Phillips Erb) Estate tax repeal. It's not going to happen. Empty Treasury. Section 1-6-2 You allow me to expense I think I love you. Re the UBS settlement: It's done, Switzerland. No more banking secrecy. Now you just have cheese. Taxgirl (a/k/a Kelly Phillips Erb) is a tax lawyer in Philadelphia, PA who loves to write and talk tax. She blogs about her passion at www.Taxgirl.com and presents on tax topics around the country. She writes a monthly tax column for The Legal Intelligencer, the oldest law journal in the US, and is working on a book about the history of tax. Videos of the Month: School Daze 1 and 2 This month we have a two-fer for you. First, Billable Hour Company friend and occasional Timesheet contributor Sean Carter shares his views about a lawyer who was denied admission to the New York Bar because of the amount of debt he had amassed. Then, Stuart Teicher, Sean's partner in Two Lawyers in a Pod[cast], shares his opposing opinion:     To watch more hilarious law-related videos from around the web, join us at The Video Venue! Lawtoons by Suzan Charlton, Esq.   click here to enlarge (large file; please be patient) ©Suzan Charlton. All rights reserved.   Suzan Charlton is a professional cartoonist who is rumored to practice insurance coverage law as a hobby for a major Washington D.C. law firm. Her cartoons cover a wide range of law-related topics, from law school grades to law firm romance. Song of the Month: Fifty Ways to Get Through Law School by Bob Noone & the Well Hung Jury   . Available on Wingtips Optional "The trouble is not inside your head," she did explain "You can get through your first year with very little pain" She said "I'd like to help you keep your sanity maintained There must be fifty ways to get through law school" I don't usually go around giving free advice But you say you’ve been in school a week and only have slept twice So heed what I'm about to say 'cause it's worth double the price There must be fifty ways to get through law school Fifty ways to get through law school Buy the Casenotes briefs, Chief Read the Nutshell, Mel No library, Larry If you're gonna stay free Hit the speed, Reid Any time you feel the need A little Prozac, Jack And just lay back Property is a cinch with your Legalines Sum and Substance in Civ Pro can save you half the time Go to Contracts once a week and never fall behind There must be fifty ways to get through law school Now son don't you know that life is more than Torts Your future lies way beyond a dimly-lit court So before the final lesson let us have a little snort There must be at least fifty ways to get through law school Fifty ways to get through law school Buy the Casenotes briefs, Chief Read the Nutshell, Mel No library, Larry If you're gonna stay free Hit the speed, Reid Any time you feel the need A little Prozac, Jack And just lay back Just one of the hilarious songs on Cartoon: Law and Disorder by Paul Brennan   Juris Comic To view Juris Comic, click here Litination: Merger Creates Longest Firm Name in U.S. History by Court Jester It is well known around Wheeling, West Virginia that defense attorney Martin Glasscart will fight each and every one of his cases to the bitter end. Consistent with this practice, Mr. Glasscart's favorite defense tactic is to slow down an inevitable loss through discovery and the more confusing he makes his interrogatories or his discovery responses the better. In a move that is certain to send rumblings through the legal community, New York City law firms Kittredge, Milbank, Johnson, Carter, Steiner & Jones LLP and Smith, Peters, Milton, Green, Greene & Neumann LLP have merged to create the longest named law firm in United States history. The new firm of Kittredge, Smith, Milbank, Peters, Johnson, Milton, Carter, Green, Steiner, Greene, Jones & Neumann LLP will total a combined 9,485 lawyers spanning the globe from New York City to Bangladesh. Chairman of the newly created firm, Martin Milbank says he is not worried about having a firm with such a long name. "Seriously, I think people are tired of not knowing who is really in charge when dealing with a law firm," remarked Milbank. "With all of the names listed on our letterhead, our clients will finally know where the buck stops." When pressed about how that logic would apply to the six names in the firm's title that belong to now deceased partners, Milbanks brushed aside such criticism with a dismissive, "that's neither here nor there." The new firm's website, http://www.ksmpjmcgsgjn.com, is also breaking boundaries as far as how firms market themselves on the web. In an era where law firms are trending toward shorter names and hence shorter web addresses, Kittredge, Smith, Milbank, Peters, Johnson, Milton, Carter, Green, Steiner, Greene, Jones & Neumann LLP is marching to the beat of its own drum. This, however, is not sitting well with new associate Lauren Epcott who is frustrated at how hard it will be to get friends and relatives to get to her firm's website. "Honestly, when I tried telling my Mom where she could go online to see my picture and biography on the firm's website, it was a nightmare," complained Epcott. "My Mom literally asked me to start over three times, and one time when I was right in the middle of listing out our web address our cell phone connection cut out." Lauren also remarked that her new business card is so full of names that it's impossible to write her personal cellphone number on it when she's handing it out at bars. "Since the merger, I haven't had one guy call me back after giving out my number at a bar. I think it's because of how small of a space I have to write anything on my business card." Epcott remarked sadly. "When we were just Smith, Peters, Milton, Green, Greene & Neumann LLP I was hooking up like twice a week—this is miserable." Also frustrated with the merger is firm receptionist Betty Kunkle. Saying "Hello, this is Kittredge, Smith, Milbank, Peters, Johnson, Milton, Carter, Green, Steiner, Greene, Jones & Neumann LLP, how may I direct your call isn't a walk in the park," said Kunkle. "I mean I used to have our firm's name down without a problem, but now every time I answer the phone I'm leaving out at least one name," said Kunkle. In fact, Kunkle admits that sometimes she just doesn't say the firm's name when she answers the phone. "I know it's not professional and all that, but sometimes my mouth just hurts saying all of those names," admitted a defeated Kunkle. The recent merger flies in the face of the recent move by Kipler, Davis, Whitler & Penny P.C. which recently changed its firm name to the symbol "!". Bill Kipler, managing partner at "!" claimed, "our new name shows our commitment to reducing our clients' costs; just think how many billable hours are saved no longer typing out our entire name on pleadings, letters, etc." This is a change from the move "!" made two years ago when it started calling itself "the law firm formerly known as Kipler, Davis, Whitler & Penny." Such a move truly back-fired as most of the firm's clients thought the firm had ceased operations. What all of these changes mean nobody really knows. One thing is clear, according to Martin Milbank and the lawyers at KSMPJMCGSGJN LLP, "the practice of law will always be more than a bunch of name calling." Or will it . . . ? Court Jester is a member of the Litination who believes that the practice of law requires a sense of humor. His goal is to provide an entertaining diversion from the regularly scheduled billable hour or law school seminar. He provides fake legal news and links to real headlines at www.Litination.com. His hope is that one or the other will provide you with a laugh in an often unnecessarily stressful day.

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  August 25th, 2009 at 9:55 pm

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