What happens when a firm has partners reaching retirement age but has no clear policy for moving them onward, outward, forward or back? If recent events are any gauge, they can settle in for a nice long court case, or maybe watch their superannuated partners take their business to another firm that appreciates them. Janice Tibbetts writes about what to expect – and how to prepare.

Studies and experience show that few organizations are immune from employees that wish to take steps to supplement their income if given the means, opportunity and motive. Eliminating fraud is almost impossible, but there are factors organizations and in-house lawyers should consider to avoid catastrophic loss.

Unexpected challenges abound for new firm leaders.

The fundamental task of law firm leaders is to help everyone in the firm work together. Lawyers and staff who physically share the same office environment should share an outlook that shapes the development of common goals and agreement on how to achieve them. Lack of such an outlook inevitably can be traced to lack of leadership in the firm, no matter how big or small the firm is.

You probably recognize the names of lawyers who appear in the media on a regular basis. You see them referred to repeatedly and wonder “why does no one ever call me for a quote?” Or perhaps you’ve been interviewed but you’re not being called on a regular basis.

The first question that needs to be asked is, for what purpose do you want to measure the practice groups? We think the question of why you are measuring may be more important than what metrics to use.

Shared leadership has become more common as law firms struggle to find partners who aspire to be full-time managers

All law firms, large and small, have one thing in common: a finite limit to discretionary spending.

Every lawyer and law firm faces the same problem—how to distinguish the professional services they offer from those offered by every other lawyer or firm.

Research has found that so-called CrackBerry addicts who compulsively monitor their e-mail are subject to higher levels of stress than more infrequent browsers.