Jay Reeves practiced law in North Carolina and South Carolina. He was Legal Editor at Lawyers Weekly and Risk Manager at Lawyers Mutual. He is the author of The Most Powerful Attorney in the World, a collection of short stories from a law life well-lived, which as the seasons pass becomes less about law and liability and more about loss, love, longing, laughter and life's lasting luminescence.
The NC State Bar has issued an opinion outlining the ethical responsibilities of lawyers who are retiring or phasing out of practice. Read, print or download NC Formal Ethics Opinion 1 here. A companion guide is the Lawyers Mutual publication, “Buying or Selling a Law Practice,” which you can read… Read More
AI promises to be a game-changer for the legal profession. The question is: are you ready for the changes? In an effort to get ahead of – or at least keep up with – the speeding locomotive that is AI, the American Bar Association has passed a sweeping resolution addressing some of the legal and eth… Read More
Just when you thought your law practice was cyber-safe, along comes a slew of new online scams involving typosquatting and combosquatting. Typosquatting, also called URL hijacking, relies on user mistakes – such as making a simple typographical error when entering a URL into an internet browser – t… Read More
We all understand the importance of wellness, but we sometimes have trouble maintaining it. BarCARES can help. BarCARES is a confidential, short-term wellness intervention program available to members of participating North Carolina judicial district bars, voluntary bar associations and law schools. It offers… Read More
Here’s some free risk management advice: if you’re going to make snarky comments about a judge’s ruling, don’t do it in the courtroom in front of a live microphone. And while you’re at it, avoid profanities. Otherwise you might find yourself brought before your professional disci… Read More
When it comes to passing the bar examination, it seems Artificial Intelligence is better than Law School Intelligence. In a recent mano-a-machina competition, an upgraded version of ChatGPT outperformed humans on the two-day bar exam by seven percent. “GPT-4, the upgraded AI model released by… Read More
If you are embroiled in a fee spat with a client, you’d better brush up on your ethical obligations. Under the Rules of Professional Conduct, you must notify your client of the N.C. Bar’s program for resolving fee dispute program at least 30 days prior to initiating a legal proceeding to collect th… Read More
If you want your LinkedIn posts to go viral, try making them less promotional and more personal. By emphasizing the “social” aspect of social media, you’re more likely to make real and lasting connections. “When a piece of content makes a reader or viewer feel a certain way, they are m… Read More
Here’s some risk management advice for litigators: it’s not a good sign if a judge says your motion “threw more punches than it pulled, and some were below the belt” and suggests you revise it after quiet reflection and a good night’s sleep. It’s also not good if the judge s… Read More
Did you know the NC Advocates of Justice is the third-largest trial lawyers association in America and has been around for more than 60 years? Or that it produces more than 40 original CLE programs each year, in addition to sponsoring high school mock trial competitions, mentorship outreach, and women&rsq… Read More
Just back from my 2023 Spring Training baseball tour with exciting news to report on chili slaw-dogs, Shohei Ohtani and the privilege of pressure. Not to mention the Pitch Clock – the biggest rules change in Major League Baseball since the Designated Hitter. Plus the marvelous World Baseball Classic, which was just getting underway as I wrapped up my most recent visit to MLB training camps in south Florida. Read More
Keeping your clients happy has always been critical for a successful practice, but these days it’s more important than ever. That’s because clients – and consumers in general – expect quality service and are increasingly intolerant when they don’t get it, according to the 20… Read More
A passion for education, combined with expertise in legal accounting, has made Brenda Barnes a go-to person for helping law firms get their finances in order. Now she is sharing some of her secrets in her new book, Respect: An Insight to Attorney Compensation Plans. “Over the years, I had found that the… Read More
If you think you’re seeing more baby girls named Olivia, Emma, Amelia, Sophia and Ava, you’re not mistaken. Likewise for boys named Liam, Noah, Oliver, Elijah and Mateo. Those are some of the top-trending names for newborns, according to BabyCenter. On the other end of the spectrum are Kyle, Walte… Read More
Burnout doesn’t just sap energy from your law practice, it also hurts your bottom line. But if you understand the most common causes of burnout, you can be proactive in preventing it. “Burnout [is] characterized by three dimensions: feelings of energy depletion or exhaustion, increased mental dist… Read More
For lawyers handling real estate closings, it’s important to know that seller fraud continues to rise, especially with the upcoming holiday season when distractions are high, and fraudsters are active.
Lawyers Mutual has published previous alerts regarding the new filing requirements under the Corporate Transparency Act (“CTA”) that went into effect January 1, 2024. After reviewing additional resources, we want to emphasize concerns that we have about the risks and increased potential liability for lawyers undertaking the reporting requirements. This is especially true for the continuing reporting requirements after entity formation and initial reporting.