Popular Articles from the CPM ICYMI Newsletter (November 2024 – May 2025)
Every week subscribers receive the ICYMI enewsletter from the NCBA Center for Practice Management. The newsletter highlights tips, tools, trends, and techniques to help your law practice. The following are a few popular links from the past issues of the newsletter.
Lawyer Flat Fees or Hourly Billing? The Pros and Cons (11/8/2024)
Ruth Carter, writing for Attorney at Work, outlines the pros and cons for alternative fee arrangements. The NC opinion on use of artificial intelligence suggests “Rather than billing on an hourly basis, Lawyer may consider billing clients a flat fee for the drafting of documents—even when using AI to assist in drafting—provided the flat fee charged is not clearly excessive and the client consents to the billing structure.” It is time to start considering your options if you haven’t already done so.
3 Simple Steps for Freeing Up Gmail Storage Space in Minutes (11/15/2024)
Google looks at total space used across your Gmail, Docs, Photos, and other storage in the free accounts. What seems like a very generous 15 GB can quickly be used up, leaving you with the dreaded “account storage is full” banner. This article illustrates three ways to quickly delete email that is taking up space unnecessarily.
Avoiding Client Trust Account Scams (11/22/2024)
Every year lawyers are targets of scam emails involving client trust accounts. This article reconstructs one such deceit to help you understand what to look out for and how not to fall for the scam.
AT&T to Retire Traditional Landlines by 2029 (Except in This State) (12/6/2024)
This seems like a long way away, but in four years AT&T plans to retire old school copper networks as it prioritizes more modern and far faster fiber networks. Unless you are in California it is time to consider your alternatives if you are still using POTS (Plain Old Telephone Service). Here is some guidance if you are looking at alternatives.
The Risks of Using Dropbox for Client Files (12/13/2024)
From Nicole Black’s Daily Record column, this Indiana Supreme Cout reprimand serves as a reminder that lawyers need to understand permissions in Dropbox. Really, this applies to any web-based file repository, but once again Dropbox is blamed for inadvertent disclosure (h/t Lucian Pera and Trisha Rich). The fact pattern here is extremely specific , as the client who accessed the files in Dropbox was a former non-attorney assistant of the firm. This is also a reminder to have a checklist for departing employees to make sure that you remove access to firm assets.
Seniors: How Do You Motivate Juniors to Take Ownership? (1/3/2025)
This BigLaw Reddit thread starts with the question “how do I motivate 1st and 2nd year associates to do anything other than be task robots with no motivation to move the deal along, follow up on emails to opposing counsel, etc.?” If you are feeling frustrated with an apparent lack of motivation in your new associates you will want to read this thread. It may be a lack of guidance, instruction, mentorship, and communication from you.
Why I Switched from Time Blocking to Task Batching (and Haven’t Looked Back) (1/10/2025)
In the never-ending pursuit of a better way to manage time, this author has switched to task batching. Task batching makes sense because it reduces “switching costs”, or the negative impact on performance that results from multi-tasking. It also helps reduce the stress of trying to neatly fit an activity in a time block, when inevitably the time allotted is not enough to finish. Task batching helps you prioritize what you want to do, versus when in the day you have allotted time to do it.
49 Tips for the New Lawyer (1/17/2025)
Merrilyn Astin Tarlton has compiled 49 tips for new lawyers, complete with links to articles to expand on some of the important but simple reminders. Some of these deserve to be printed out, framed and hung on your office wall. The tips may have a focus on the new lawyer but offer good advice for lawyers at any stage in their career.
If You’re Ready for a New Beginning, Start Small (1/24/2025)
This excellent article elaborates on how to make meaningful changes with small steps. The key is getting started on the change by breaking tasks into very small actions. Author Nora Riva Bergman elaborates on this process with concrete examples. This is a quick read, and you probably already know what you should be doing, but let this help remind you to put knowledge into practice.
Law Firm Website Design Trends (1/31/2025)
Yes, there are trends in website design. Even if you paid someone a lot of money for a design five years ago it is probably outdated today. Some of the trends are to avoid elements that slow download times, like scrolling carousels. Some suggestions in this article aren’t really design trends, but good nonetheless, like focusing the content and language on the visitor and not the firm.
Archaic Language in Legal Documents | Please Stop! (2/14/2025)
Whereas, this article investigates the contextual purpose of archaic language in contracts;
Whereas, there are more modern ways to express the same intent and structure to a contract;
Now, therefore, you should read this article to see suggested alternatives to archaic language.
Shut the Mac Up: 6 Ways to Quickly Lock Your Mac (2/14/2025)
You are only going to step away from your desk for a moment. Except that moment stretches to an hour. Get in the habit of locking your computer screen when you step away from your workspace. In Windows, the easiest way is to click the Windows key + L. In Mac, you have a lot of options. This article discusses the pros and cons of those options.
This Google Tool Can Help Hide Your Personal Info from Search (2/28/2025)
Lifehacker discusses a Google tool designed to help users hide their personal information from search results, offering a practical solution for privacy concerns. The Google Search Help page provides instructions on how to find and remove personal contact information from Google Search results.
Stop the Madness: How to Block Spam Calls and Robocalls (3/7/2025)
This article from PC Magazine offers practical tips and tools for blocking spam calls and robocalls. It includes recommendations for apps and services that can help reduce unwanted calls and improve phone security.
“Of Counsel” Relationships Properly Understood (3/21/2025)
Mark Scruggs from Lawyers Mutual NC clarifies the concept of “Of Counsel” relationships in law firms. This article outlines the roles and responsibilities associated with these relationships and provides guidance on how to establish them properly.
Hidden Costs of Law Firm Technology: Are You Wasting Money? (3/28/2025)
Danielle DavisRoe writing for Attorney at Work explores the often-overlooked expenses associated with law firm technology. This insightful read helps attorneys identify and mitigate hidden costs, ensuring their tech investments are both effective and economical.
How to Add Different Page Numbers to Different Sections in Microsoft Word (4/11/2025)
Published by How-To Geek, this article explains the step-by-step process of adding different page numbers to various sections in a Microsoft Word document. Lawyers will find this essential for creating organized and professional legal documents, ensuring clarity and ease of navigation.
The latest ethics opinion from the American Bar Association outlines the considerations and guidelines that lawyers should follow when ending client representation. It is advisable to identify red flags and thoroughly evaluate potential clients before agreeing to representation, rather than facing challenges in terminating an unsuitable relationship later.
Don’t Trust the Cloud. You Need to Back Up Your Email and Online Data (4/25/2025)
Leo Notenboom’s article on Ask Leo! warns against relying only on cloud storage. It gives tips for backing up email and online data. Backup is essential for business continuity by protecting the firm from ransomware attacks and providing continuous service to clients. Implementing strong backup strategies not only safeguards sensitive information but also supports ongoing client engagements without disruption
Turn Websites into Apps: How to Use Progressive Web Apps (5/2/2025)
In this article from PCMag, learn how to make all those browser-based tools appear in your system tray and your start menu like a software application. One click access to the tools you use every day instead of first navigating your browser. Bonus: you won’t lose the application if you accidentally close a tab in your browser.
Synopsis of the North Carolina State Bar April 2025 Council Meeting (5/16/2025)
The NC State Bar has issued a new and EXTREMELY useful ethics opinion on “Obligations Related to Notice When Lawyer Leaves a Firm (2025 FEO 1)”. If you are contemplating leaving a firm, or a lawyer in your firm gives notice, this opinion provides detailed hypotheticals about the type of notice that should be given to clients. It also discusses whether a departing attorney may take her client contact list. Sample letter language covering multiple situations is included. Additionally, two proposed opinions are open to comment, including one on “Client Consent to Annual Rate Increase”. The Ethics Committee does listen, so get your comments in!
What’s the Best AI Chatbot? Compare Side-By-Side with This Tool (5/23/2025)
If you have ever checked the same prompt across multiple models to see which one performs best, then this comparison tool is for you! It helps users evaluate different AI chatbots. Enter your prompt and see whether ChatGPT, Gemini, or Claude provides the best answer, or just use insights from all three. The comparison summary is generated by Gemini, so it does show a bit of bias by suggesting that Gemini has the “best” answer.