Feb. 12, 2013 – The February issue of Wisconsin Lawyer magazine, in your mailboxes and now available online, marks a new beginning for the State Bar of Wisconsin’s flagship publication. A new design reveals a contemporary look with a fresh content mix.
The magazine still includes substantive articles from contributing attorneys, including this month’s articles on “What’s Hot, What’s Not” in the legal profession globally, nationally, and right here in Wisconsin. But you’ll also get something more:
“Quicker ways of gleaning the main points of the articles, new avenues to acquiring additional information online, and new columns providing additional perspective,” explains State Bar Executive Director George Brown in his monthly magazine column.
In particular, the revamped magazine places more emphasis on members, highlighting contributors and distilling the thoughts, ideas, and viewpoints of Wisconsin lawyers.
“With this issue, we kick off a brand new look for the print and online Wisconsin Lawyer magazine,” writes Nilesh Patel, chair of the State Bar Communications Committee, in his opening message to magazine readers. “With your participation, we will build an interactive community that reads, writes, and shares information.”
You may have already received your February Wisconsin Lawyer in the mail. Check out the pages, and the new online format that coincides with the launch of the State Bar’s new website. Here’s a peek at the February Wisconsin Lawyer:
What’s Hot, What’s Not
In his article, Robert Denney explains what’s hot and what’s not in the legal profession, both globally and nationally, a perspective based on an annual report by Denney’s Pennsylvania-based consulting firm. Denney says energy, health care, and sports law are “red hot practice areas,” but real estate and bankruptcy could be cooling down.
Denney predicts the legal market will grow but become more segmented. “The resulting picture is a montage of a profession that is in a state of flux and will continue to be so, not just in 2013 but many years to come,” he writes in his article.
Meanwhile, in her article, writer Diane Molvig brings the “what’s hot, what’s not” theme to Wisconsin. She provides perspectives from local lawyers and other regional experts on practice area trends, as well as marketing and business development trends.
Wetland Reform
In their article, “Wisconsin’s Wetland Reform Act,” Madison lawyers Paul Kent and Jordan Lamb deliver a comprehensive overview of changes to Wisconsin’s wetland laws and regulations, including key impacts on general and individual permitting.
Specifically, they explain how 2011 Wisconsin Act 118 revises the standards and procedures the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources uses to issue permits for discharges into wetlands, contemplating both state and federal law implications.
“Act 118 represents a significant change to the process for regulating wetland activities,” they write, noting the Act as a controversial one. “The Act provides a uniform system for regulating wetland fills for all wetlands, federal and nonfederal.”
Other Columns
10 Questions: Get to know lawyer Paula Davis-Laack, who will be a regular magazine contributor to a forthcoming “On Balance” column discussing the work-life balance that lawyers strive to maintain on a daily basis. In 10 Questions, you’ll meet some of Wisconsin’s legal innovators and thought leaders. In this one, Davis-Laack discusses lawyer burnout and how she bounced back.
Technology and Ethics: These are important topics to our readers, and we’ll continue to deliver information through standing columns on issues related to both technology and professional ethics. This month, State Bar Practice Management Advisor Nerino Petro discusses Windows 8, while Dean Dietrich talks about the ethical issues associated with email disclaimers.
Final Thought: Don’t miss the magazine’s “Final Thought,” another new column that lets lawyers tell thought-provoking, inspiring, or entertaining stories about life as a lawyer. In this one, Madison lawyer Kevin Palmersheim talks about working for free. “I need to be the one deciding when I give away my services, not the client,” Palmersheim writes.
Finally, Wisconsin Lawyer includes familiar content, such as book reviews, lawyer discipline, the court digests, and our “Members Only” section on new hires and promotions, awards, retirements, and other member news.
