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Features

Bridging the Justice Gap: Gauging the Public's Unmet Civil Legal Needs

A recent State Bar of Wisconsin comprehensive study examined unmet legal needs in our state and discovered that more than 500,000 residents face serious civil legal problems without legal assistance. Read more about this study and its findings.

Taking Reconfinement Hearings Seriously

Reconfinement hearings in Wisconsin are relatively new, and recent months have seen a shift in the law toward making the hearings more than a mere formality. Because of the importance of the hearings, the duties of the reconfinement courts and defense counsel have increased and both have an obligation to review the original sentencing before the reconfinement hearing.

Opinions, Voices & Ideas

Inside the Bar
LUST, SOX, 7 Deadly Sins, Rambo, and the Death Penalty
The 2007 State Bar Annual Convention promises substantive programming, discussion of critical issues covered in today's headlines, opportunities to socialize, and more.

President's Message
Justice for Poor People
Converging studies and conferences seek to measure the scope of unmet civil legal needs of poor people and how to fill those needs. Now that we know where we are, where do we go from here?

Ethics
New Rules Detail Required Info in Client Engagement Letters
The new Rules of Professional Conduct, effective July 1, 2007, require lawyers to advise new clients in writing of the basis or rate of the fee and costs to be charged and the scope of representation. Lawyers also might consider including additional information to enhance the attorney/client relationship.

Practice Tips
Gathering Competitive Intelligence
In the business sense, competitive intelligence is information about the external business environment that can affect a company's plans, decisions, and operations. Taken further, competitive intelligence is information about parties to a legal matter that can be useful in determining strategy in just about any lawyer's practice area.

Marketing
Write Bylined Articles to Build Your Practice
If approached the right way, writing bylined articles for well-respected publications can help establish your reputation as having expertise in your practice area. Here are some practical ideas to increase the effectiveness of this marketing strategy to build your practice.