Dec. 18, 2019 – Keeping track of managing a law office isn’t an easy task.
Thankfully, there’s Practice411™ – the State Bar of Wisconsin’s law office management assistance program available to all members as a member benefit. Practice 411 offers free, individualized assistance on practice management.
Please consider joining Practice411’s elist if you haven’t yet. The elist connects you with peers and those knowledgeable on practice management. Joining is easy, and its free to sign up – visit the elist’s webpage.
Here’s the “Top 20” tips on the Practice411 Elist during 2019. And if you are looking for even more tips, take a look at last year's article, too.
Protecting Privacy in Apps
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Phone Location Sharing: Does your phone carrier sell access to your location data? Check out a Vice news article that shows what services can be used to find your phone’s location. If you would like to know which apps and devices are tracking your location, and how to turn off tracking features, review “How to Stop Apps from Tracking Your Location.”
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Social Engineering: Be cautious when posting personal activities on social media. CNN and Fast Company articles reveal how easily hackers can steal information based upon social media posts.
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Software Vulnerabilities: Stay current on bugs that appear in software and discontinue use until the bugs are addressed.
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Multi-factor Authentication Flaws: This article, “Why Phone Numbers Stink As Identity Proof” discusses issues with companies that use your phone number for authentication and provides suggestions to help you reduce your use of a mobile phone number as an authenticator.
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Privacy Protections: “Seven Privacy Protections to Put Into Place Now” details privacy protections that you can put into place on your mobile devices, software, and incorporate into your daily use of technology.
Christopher C. Shattuck, Univ. of La Verne College of Law 2009, M.B.A. U.W.-Oshkosh 2015, is manager of Practice411™, the State Bar’s law practice assistance program. If you have questions about the business aspects of your practice, call (800) 957-4670.
Marketing
Technology Investments and Upgrades
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Technology Investments: In regards to practice management tools usage, according to the ABA Techreport 2019, solo firms reported usage of 28 percent, small firms with 2-9 attorneys reported usage of 43%, and firms with 10-49 attorneys reported usage of 33 percent.
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End of Support for Windows 7: According to the article,” Now That Your Windows 7 Is Dying ...,” Microsoft will end support for Windows 7 on Jan. 14, 2020. The end of support announcement is not new, but serves as a reminder that your firm should be planning for its eventual end.
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Windows 10: Looking to upgrade your Windows 7 to Windows 10? Microsoft’s website allows you to compare the different versions of Windows 10. If you regularly update Windows, you can help reduce operating system performance issues. You’ll also want to ensure your new laptop has sufficient capabilities to support the system requirements for installing Windows 10. There are additional articles that also discuss the benefits of upgrading to Windows 10 (“8 Reasons Why Your Business Should Upgrade to Windows 10 Now” & “Why you should upgrade to Windows 10”).
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Switching to the Cloud: “Remain on Firm Servers, or Leap into the Cloud?” provides a great roadmap for determining whether to switch to the cloud. If you are considering the switch, you should also review Wisconsin Formal Ethics Opinion EF-15-01: Ethical Obligations of Attorneys Using Cloud Computing.
Practice Management
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Fee Agreements: Give your firm a checkup and ensure you are properly using fee agreements by reviewing “Fee Agreements: Answers to Nagging Questions & Recipe for Effective Engagement Agreements.”
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Starting a Practice: “Choosing a Limited Liability Entity” is a must read article for attorneys considering starting their own practice or converting their existing practice to a new or different limited liability entity. Tax consequences are presented clearly in three tables, as well as registration requirements.
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Supervising Employees: “Taking Care of Business: Supervising Nonlawyer Employees” serves as a great reminder that, “[a] Wisconsin lawyer has a duty to supervise nonlawyer employees of the law firm and can be disciplined for failing to take appropriate action when overseeing the handling of funds by office employees.” Do not think it can happen to you? Review the scams targeting lawyers below.
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Measuring Tech Competence: “So you think you know tech? Law firms do a check of their associates” details how one firm assesses the technology competence of new associates. Associates are tested within their first week at the firm and those with high scores on the pre-assessment do not have to take a technology training program. As the article mentions, it’s also a good idea to consider ongoing testing of staff to ensure systems are being utilized properly and efficiently.
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Phishing Quiz: “Lawyers: Take the Google Phishing Quiz” describes a free quiz that will help you and your employees better identify phishing attempts. You can enter a fake username and email address to take the quiz. After you enter your name and email address, the quiz will then provide different examples and ask you to determine whether the email is phishing or legitimate. After that, the quiz will explain the answer for each result.
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Scams Targeting Lawyers: “Protip: Pay Clients, Not Scammers” & “Associate Wired $2.5M to Client Impersonator” articles provide background information on the scams targeting trust accounts. For information regarding scams in Wisconsin and tips on avoiding scams, review “Scams are Gaining in Sophistication: Are You Protected?”
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Scams Targeting Consumers: Have you ever heard of Fuze Cards? According to “Secret Service: Theft Rings Turn to Fuze Cards,” the U.S. Secret Service issued an alert that organized theft rings were using Fuze Cards, which can display different credit card numbers, for thefts across the country.
Practice411: Solutions to Your Practice Management Challenges
Get solutions to your practice management issues, including questions on:
- Trust accounts: learn to establish and maintain them properly
- Computer hardware and office equipment: get advice on purchases
- Emerging software: sort through billing, accounting, and practice management software
- Personnel matters: gain insights on hiring and training staff
- Marketing: increase your client base with cost-effective services
For personalized practice management help, email org cshattuck wisbar Christopher Shattuck, the State Bar's law practice assistance manager, or give him a call at (800) 957-4670.
Join the Practice411 Elist
On the Practice411 elist, you can share information, ask questions, learn from questions posted by list members, and connect with your peers when tackling all areas of practice management, including technology, human resources, client relations, increasing your client base, and more.
To join, visit the Practice411 elist webpage on WisBar.org.