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Laptops, Law Firms, and Workers Compensation?

The Daily Mail reports that neck and back injuries are climbing with the boom in laptop sales. It seems that laptop users are using the computers--surprise--on their laps, causing them to look down at the screen, rather than level with their forehead. That positioning of the screen seems to be the culprit leading to these physical ailments.

I must admit to being one of those laptop laptop users, er, ah, using my notebook computer on my lap. It also can lead to stress as discussed in a recent post. If you are one of the millions of consumers who are switching to a portable computer as your primary computer, you may want to seriously consider adding a docking station so that you can work safely and pain-free for years to come.

iGoogle: The Next Step in World Googlization

The good folks at Google have unveiled yet another web app that will be of interest to lawyers: iGoogle. This new service is like MyYahoo or MyMSN, but with the attention to user needs that few companies, if any, do better than Google.

I've spent the past couple days checking the ins and outs of this new service, and I have to say I really like it. And while it may never become my primary conduit for work or business, it has enough functionality and ease of use to make it a tool to use daily.

Like its competitors at Yahoo and MSN, iGoogle allows you to customize your "homepage" to include the features you want and need. Well, Google keeps making so many web-based apps that I find myself using them more and more. I've been a Gmail user for several years, and find it easy and intuitive to use. This past spring I started using Google Docs and Spreadsheets to collaborate on several ABA Techshow presentations. (It turned out to be a good way to collaborate, so I am using it for several other projects.) Then, just a few weeks ago, I started using Google calendar as a web-based vehicle to keep my personal/family calendar. And like some many others, I use Google as my main search engine. With the launch of iGoogle, I can now have one interface for all those applications and many more.

The first thing I did after quickly signing into iGoogle was to change the theme to fit my mood. I choose the "Beach" theme and, after adding my zip code, noted that the graphic changes colors throughout the day from sunrise to sunset.  Neat.  I then set about adding and rearranging "gadgets" as Google calls them.  Each gadget is basically a small interface into my Google applications and other helpful Internet tools. For example, I have my Google Calendar, News Alerts and Gmail on top of each of the 3 columns that makes up iGoogle. I see my monthly calendar, the top five news alerts, and the subject lines of the last 5 e-mails into my Gmail account. All of that is further customizable.

I also added the following productivity gadgets: A To-Do list, Google Notebook (a neat little tool, to be blogged later), a calculator, access to my Google Docs & Spreadsheets, and a dictionary/thesaurus tool. These tools were easily added with one click--much easier than my MyYahoo page--which, by the way, is no longer going to be "my" page!

Now, I could add more gadgets to that page, but then I'd have to scroll down to view them. Out of sight, out of mind. iGoogle provides an "add-a-tab" feature that allows the user to add numerous tabbed pages across the top. So now I can have my main page (I call my Productivity page) and I have tabs titled "Technology", "Business", "Legal Ethics", "Sports" (oh, why not?!) and I have plans for more.  iGoogle is also there to help me populate these new tabs: When naming the tab, just check the box "I'm feeling lucky. Automatically add stuff based on the tab name." While it isn't always that accurate, it does provide some useful gadget modules that I might not have found without the time to search.

iGoogle also makes it easier to move and rearrange the gadget modules, just click and drag to where you want them. No more "move up" or "move down" arrows to deal with. Thank God! And what if I have a module on one tabbed page, but want to move it to another? Just drag the module to the tab at the top of the page, and voila!

After setting up my initial Productivity page, I then followed the Google suggested gadgets, and added these modules to my page: local gas prices (near my house and office), weather, breaking news, a Wikipedia search module, and even a couple of diversions called "See Before You Die Place of the Day" and "Interesting Photo of the Day". That last one was gone in 30 seconds when I discovered a pesky little Google ad made that module take up three times the space of other gadgets. Yes, thankfully, there are no Google Ads on my iGoogle page. That may occur someday, but until then I'm loving my new daily interface to my on-line world.

Vote Devarieste Curry for D.C. Bar President

The annual D.C. Bar leadership elections are taking place this month, and I hope all Bar members will join me in voting for Devarieste Curry for D.C. Bar President. Devarieste is a long-time leader in the D.C. legal community, having served on the D.C. Bar Board of Governors, numerous bar committees, as well as participated in many pro bono events and activities. She is also an active member of many local and national bar organizations. She understands the business needs of lawyers, having worked in a large firm, as a solo practitioner, and in a small firm. Her experience, abilities, and commitment to the legal profession make her the best choice for D.C. Bar President-elect.

For more information, please visit Devarieste's election web site: www.dcfordcbar.net. You may have just received your paper ballot mailed to all Bar members last week, so you can return that ballot or vote on-line. Voting ends June 6.

Give Yourself a Trust Account Check-Up

For the past 6 years, I have had the pleasure of teaching the CLE seminar, Ethics & Lawyer Trust Accounts, with District of Columbia Bar Counsel, Gene Shipp. This past Wednesday night marked our twelfth time teaching the course to lawyers in the D.C. area.

Some of the lawyers who attend the seminar are there because their CLE reporting deadline is approaching. Others take the course to learn the ropes of opening and properly maintaining a trust account. Some of them are taking the course because they are facing disciplinary action. And some are taking the seminar as part of the process to regain their license to practice. Whatever their initial reason, many come up after the 3-hour class to say how grateful they were to take the seminar--i.e. we saved them from a present or potential trust account violation.

Most of the lawyers I have met in my 21 years in the legal profession dislike managing money--myself included. Rather than stare at bank statements or trust account ledgers, we'd rather be practicing law. In smaller firms, it  seems that lawyers delegate trust account management to their secretary, office manager, or receptionist--just about anybody in the office who seems worthy and loyal, so we don't have to manage it ourselves. In bigger firms, they have administrators or bookkeepers, but similar problems can still arise. Whatever size the firm, this person has your law license in the palm of their hand. Their conduct in managing the account is all that stands between you and the ability to practice law. Just ask some of the lawyers that take our seminar.

The biggest problem is that instead of just delegating management of the trust account, lawyers tend to abdicate all responsibility. After the initial training or explanation of the trust account, the person managing the account(s) is often left to their own skills to maintain the account. More often than we want to believe, the person handling our account either mishandles the bookkeeping, doesn't understand or comply with bar ethics rules, or succumbs to temptation because they know no one is watching. Even if the employee is doing a great job of writing checks and making deposits, how do we really know they are handling the money ethically and properly, unless we check behind them? Furthermore, our "bookkeeper" was instructed on the management process when they took over that function, but when was the last time they attended an ethics trust account class. As lawyers, we have mandatory ethics education requirements; how much of that do we pass on to staff?

So how to make improvements to make sure client funds are properly managed and our law license protected? Here are our top suggestions from twelve years of teaching this course:

1. Make sure your common-client (pooled) trust account complies with your state bar ethics rules. Review Rule 1.15, Rule 1.16, and Rule 1.5. (This numbering is based on the Model Rules of Professional Conduct; your state rule numbering may differ.) Read through the rules one-by-one, including the comments to each rule. Compare the requirements to how you have set up management of the account. Is the account in compliance with the requirements of these rules? Yes, this review is boring, but it will most likely prevent a trust account violation.

2. Visit your bank to review the opening signature card on the account. It is the signature card that is the evidence of a proper account, not the imprint on your checks. For many states, also make sure the account is properly set up as an "IOLTA" account. If you are just now setting up the account, make sure the bank employee does it correctly. If the account is improperly set up, it is your responsibility, not the bank's. (Yep, that's another person who may have your law license in the palm of their hand!)

2. Take control of the process. If you manage the account, then take steps to improve it. If you've delegated management of the account, take back some of the authority. Set up a system to organize and review the trust account on a monthly basis. Keep all the account records in a convenient location, such as a Redwell folder with 12 monthly sub-folders. Some state bars have specific record-keeping requirements, usually contained in Rule 1.15. Records to keep include the monthly bank statement, deposit slips, canceled checks, and the account journal. Also, if you do not handle the account yourself, make sure you set up and/or understand the process your bookkeeper/administrator uses to maintain the account.

3. Review your model fee agreement in conjunction with the aforementioned rules.  Especially review and revise your language about how client money comes in and goes out. If the agreement is silent on when and how this happens, revise the form to use in all future engagements.

4. Do not use electronic transfers. These may be convenient, but there is little or no paper trail to document our transactions. Further, we often forget to make notation of the transaction until the next bank statement is received, increasing the risk of overdrawing client funds.

5. Do not write a check out of the trust account unless that client's funds are in the account. Money in a trust account is not fungible. You may have thousands of dollars in your account, but you cannot use it to write checks for another client whose check has not yet cleared the bank. This is known as the "Good Funds" rule.

6. "Promptly" remove earned fees from the trust account, as required by Rule 1.15. Do not let them sit there until you decide to take them. After the funds have been earned, they are no longer the property of the client. By leaving your funds in the client trust account, you are commingling funds. How "prompt" should you be? This is not defined in the rule, but removing them monthly is a good business practice.

7. Have controls on your bookkeeper so temptation is reduced. Temptation is the greatest when one person handles all financial aspects of the trust account--processes all incoming checks, prepares and makes all deposits, writes all payment checks, etc. Interject yourself in this process. Make changes as suggested in Item 2 above, and handle another part of the process too: Carefully review all outbound checks or make all deposits yourself. It may be a slight inconvenience and take you away from billable time, but it will ensure a trustworthy trust account. And your bookkeeper will thank you too.

8. Know that trust account violations are often reported by dissatisfied clients, who let the problem fester before reporting it. They may wait months or several years. By that time, lawyers have moved on to other cases and clients, but the dissatisfied client has not. When a complaint comes in, will we recall the client or trust transactions? If our records are clear, understandable, and organized, we will have a much easier time to address the complaint and show our records and actions were completely ethical.

Managing a trustworthy trust account is not a easy task, but it doesn't have to be difficult if organized and maintained properly. Further, if your state or local bar offers a course similar to ours in D.C., take it--like many of those that attend ours, you'll be glad you did!

Give Your Office a Stress-Reducing Make Over

While we often attribute office stress to human activity and the fast-pace of events, there are many passive environmental factors that can contribute to our health and well-being. It only takes a few minutes to analyze passive stressors and make positive changes.

Poor lighting can cause eyestrain and contribute to fatigue. Fluorescent lighting is terrible for reading, and the glare off a computer screen can be a big source of eye-strain. Turn off that light and get a good desk lamp that directs the light where you need it. Get rid of any remaining old behemoth CRT computer monitors, and replace them with flat-panel LCD monitors with much less glare and reflection.

Another source of stress is tension and pain caused by bad office chairs with poor support. With all the time we spend in our office chair, it pays to buy one that fits you. Don’t settle for the one that fits the office decor, get one that makes you more comfortable and more energized to work.

An improperly positioned computer monitor and keyboard can strain neck, eyes, and hands. According to the National Institutes for Health, make sure your monitor is positioned 20-26 inches directly in front of you, with the top of the monitor raised to the level of your forehead. For most of us, that means raising the monitor off the desk. For the positioning of the keyboard and mouse, the NIH suggests the following:

• Adjust keyboard height so shoulders can relax and allow arms to rest at sides (an articulating keyboard tray is often necessary to accommodate proper height and distance).
• Keyboard should be close to the user to avoid excessive extended reaching.
• Forearms parallel to the floor (approximately 90 degree angle at elbow).
• Mouse should be placed adjacent to keyboard and at the same height as the keyboard (use articulating keyboard tray if necessary).
• Avoid extended and elevated reaching for keyboard and mouse. Wrist should be in neutral position (not excessively flexed or extended).
• Do not rest the hand on the mouse when you are not using it. Rest hands in your lap when not entering data.

Noisy offices can inhibit concentration and add to frustration. And it’s not just human noise, but noise from copiers and other office machines. Try to move office machines to enclosed spaces away from employees workplaces, but close enough to be convenient. Headphones are not recommended due to safety concerns (fire alarms, etc.); however, try placing several white noise machines (that have a soothing surf or babbling brook sound) around the office. When buying new office machines, ask the vendor about any noise-reduction features that savvy manufacturers are starting to build into their products. Lastly, some firms may look at noise-reduction materials to build into their office walls and ceilings.

Changing any or all of these office stressors can make for happier, healthier, and more productive staff.

Also, consider adding a water cooler in the office to promote increased consumption and better health. The minimal cost will make for more healthy and productive employees.

This last stress-reducing feature may make you laugh (also a stress-reliever), but it works in all the firms I know that do it: Adopt an office pet. Whether you are playing with a cat, petting a dog, or staring at graceful fish in an aquarium, the power of animals to soothe and reduce human stress is well-documented. Add an office pet to your daily office routine and watch the blood pressure go down and the smiles multiply!