Making Your Criminal Practice More Rewarding
“The variety in a criminal law practice keeps it enjoyable. Familiarity at the courthouse makes it fun,” says Austin solo Erik Goodman, who has been board certified in criminal law since 1985. Houston criminal attorney John Parras agrees. “People charged with crimes are wealthy, poor, smart, dumb, funny, eccentric, boring, interesting and mundane. The scenarios that bring them to court are sad, funny, interesting, complicated, simple, stupid, and entertaining,” according to Parras, who has been designated as a Super Lawyer – Rising Star and began his legal career as a law clerk to Michael Tigar and Ron Woods in the Oklahoma City Bombing trial.
Yet many criminal attorneys suffer from stress and burnout. Others struggle to make ends meet. How can you keep your practice manageable, enjoyable and financially successful, too? Read more
Post Date: July 6, 2010
Fitting It All In: Efficient and Ethical Service to Clients
Technology keeps lawyers tethered to the office 24/7. Clients seem to expect instantaneous response time. How do lawyers serve their clients without sacrificing their health and sanity?
Debra L. Bruce, JD, PCC, President of Lawyer Coach LLC, will provide time mangagement tips for lawyers to the Law Practice Management Section of the Houston Bar Association. Non-members are welcome.
When: Thursday, April 15, 2010, 12:00pm–1:00 p.m.
Where: Law Offices of Dunn, Neal & Gerger LLP, 3050 Post Oak Blvd., Suite 400 (Lakes on Post Oak), Houston, Texas 77056
Cost: $10.00 (includes lunch – bring parking receipt for validation)
1.0 hour MCLE credit, including 1.0 hour ethics.
To RSVP for the meeting and reserve a box lunch, please contact Scot Dixon at sdixon@velaw.com or 713.758.3373.
The Law Practice Management Section will also be electing officers and council members for 2010-11. For more information about serving in a leadership role please contact Jennifer Hasley at jennifer@hasleyscarano.com or 713.667.6900.
Post Date: April 13, 2010
ABA Journal quotes Debra
Debra Bruce, President of Lawyer-Coach, was quoted in the February 2010 issue of the ABA Journal. The article is titled “Virtual Escape: Lawyers Wrestle with 24/7 Technology.” Authors Becky Beaupre Gillespie and Hollee Schwartz Temple explore the impact on attorney productivity and stress levels resulting from being constantly tethered to smart phones.
The last time Debra was quoted in the ABA Journal, the article was “Midcareer Malaise:
How to find a new path for your 40s.”
Post Date: February 10, 2010
Keeping Those New Year’s Resolutions
How long do your New Year’s Resolutions usually last? If they rarely make it through January, you may be getting tripped up by some common snags that lawyers encounter. Do you set the bar unrealistically high or lack a way to measure interim progress? If so, you set yourself up for discouragement. On the other hand, perhaps the time frame, or the goal itself, is too fuzzy.
The benefits of achieving your goal may not be tangible enough to keep you motivated. You may need an accountability partner or someone to buoy you up when it gets tough. Perhaps you need to think about what has helped you succeed in the past, or how to make the process more fun. Maybe this resolution is just a “should,” rather than what you really care about. Maybe you need more meaningful consequences for the outcome, whether failure or success.
To improve the likelihood of keeping your resolutions, make sure you know: (1) why you really want to do this, (2) how to measure interim progress, (3) the specifics, including the deadline, for what constitutes success, (4) the resources available to help you, and (5) the reward for your triumph.
For more in-depth tips on how to keep those resolutions, read Secrets to Actually Accomplishing Your Goals in this blog.
Post Date: January 4, 2010