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What’s Hot, What’s Not: National and Global Practice Trends 2017

This annual report looks at what’s going on in the legal profession in the United States and in other parts of the world. The legal profession will survive, says the author, if the profession recognizes the change that is occurring and turns it to an advantage.

By Bob Denney

What’s Hot, What’s Not: Wisconsin Practice Trends 2017

Borrowing a page from Robert Denney’s global look at trends in the legal profession, Wisconsin and regional attorneys and practice management experts weigh in on practice and marketing trends in the Dairy State.

By Dianne Molvig

The “Uberization” of Legal Services: Consistent with Ethics Rules?

A number of Wisconsin lawyers have received letters from virtual marketplaces inviting them to participate in their legal services. Contracting for legal work through a virtual marketplace doesn’t require merely making sure your office is fully equipped and your insurance is up to date. State Bar ethics counsel Aviva Kaiser explores the difficult issues that persist concerning a lawyer’s ability to comply with the Rules of Professional Conduct.

By Aviva Meridian Kaiser

Opinions, Voices & Ideas

President's Message
Wisconsin’s Dispiriting Incarceration Rates
Our state has some of the worst incarceration rates for racial and ethnic minorities in the nation. Fran Deisinger announces a new justice initiative to examine and find ways to address this equal justice issue.

Your State Bar
Suspended Animation
What happens if your law license is administratively suspended? A lot, says George Brown, none of it good.

Solutions
The Dog Can’t Eat Your Homework: 9 Benefits to E-filing
You have to e-file anyway, says Jennifer Collins, but there are plenty of reasons to embrace doing so.

Ethics
Client Files: Good Business Practices = Good Ethics
Dean Dietrich demystifies the duties lawyers owe when providing copies of a client’s file to a current client.

Managing Risk
Top 2016 Malpractice Claims: Resolve to Reduce Risk
Tom Watson says the top four practice areas producing the most claims were estate, probate, and trust; bankruptcy and collections; real estate; and family law.

On Balance
10 Traits That Slow Your Career Success
Paula Davis-Laack says some qualities that lawyers credit with their achievement in school and on the job might actually be hindering their ability to move higher in the law.

Ethics Opinion
Ethics Opinion EF-16-03: Surrender the Client File upon Termination of Representation
This State Bar Professional Ethics Committee opinion discusses lawyers’ ethical obligation to surrender the file to the former client or successor counsel.