One Lawyer’s Clio Cloud Takeaway: For Potential Clients, Waiting Is the Hardest Part

By Brandon Huffman

I recently attended the Clio Cloud Conference in New Orleans – thanks to an NCBA social media contest (#myNCBA)!

The conference was a tremendous chance to surround myself with other lawyers and professionals who view changes to legal technology as opportunity.

I was able to see the reveal of a new Clio UX/UI and now have insider access to it for my firm. I was able to connect with vendors and get up close and personal with the developers behind the software that is the backbone of my organization.

The biggest single takeaway for me, though, was about a larger trend in the legal industry. Last year’s Clio trends report showed the dismal efficiency in most small law firms (three quarters of work hours are not realized as collections). This year, there was a bit more nuance in the report, and the most interesting nugget, to me, was the survey of legal consumers.

In that survey, they discovered that the single most important factor to consumers considering legal services is the speed with which the lawyer contacts them. This means your “I try to get back to inquiries within 24 hours” policy is a dinosaur. If attorneys are waiting a full day to reply, especially to a potential new client, they should count on that client moving on.

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MacCord’s List: IP News & Notices From Art MacCord

By Art MacCord

Art MacCord is a patent attorney with 38 years of experience. He keeps an eye on the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and the U.S. Copyright Office for new rules and practice tips of interest to intellectual property attorneys. Please click on the links below for the most recent updates.

U.S. Copyright Office issued a new release of its electronic system to designate and search for agents to receive notifications of claimed infringement under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (“DMCA”)

U.S. Copyright Office Releases Updated Version of the Compendium of U.S. Copyright Office Practices, Third Edition

 

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Spotlight On Paralegal Student Felicia Atkinson

The Student Relations Committee serves as the bridge between the Paralegal Division and the students enrolled in paralegal programs across the state. The committee would like to shine the spotlight on Felicia Atkinson, a paralegal student at Pitt Community College. Ms. Atkinson has a Bachelor of Science in Finance with a minor in Accounting.

Ms. Atkinson discusses what she enjoys most about the program and the benefits the paralegal program can offer to other professionals.

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A 12(b)(6) Motion Asserted As Part Of An Answer Will Not Suffice, At Least Not In The NC Business Court

By Rick Conner

Have you ever included a Rule 12(b)(6) motion to dismiss in your answer, with the intention of filing a more formal motion or submitting a detailed brief later? If so, you should be aware of a recent decision by Judge Michael L. Robinson of the North Carolina Business Court which casts further doubt on the legal legitimacy of this practice.

In New Friendship Used Clothing Collection, LLC v. Katz, 2017 NCBC 71 (N.C. Super. Ct. Aug. 18, 2017), one of the defendants, Katz, filed an answer on the response deadline which indicated that his first defense was a “Motion to Dismiss under Rule 12(b)(6).” Three days later, he filed a more lengthy 12(b)(6) motion with a supporting brief. Plaintiffs contended that Katz’s motion should be denied because the motion, filed after Katz’s answer, was untimely under Rule 12(b).

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Is the EEOC Trying To Require Unforeseeable Intermittent Leave As a Reasonable Accommodation Under the ADA (Again)?

By Joseph S. Murray, IV

The EEOC filed two lawsuits in the past couple of months that show one of two things: (1) massive companies are cruel and heartless, with HR Departments that don’t understand the ADA, or (2) the EEOC, despite its own statements in guidances and regulations, continues to believe that the ADA allows employees to take repeated, unforeseeable intermittent leave.[1]

In August, the EEOC filed a lawsuit against Macy’s, Inc., alleging Macy’s fired an employee with asthma for a one-day absence due to complications arising from her disability. EEOC Sues Macy’s For Disability Discrimination (Aug. 16, 2017). In late September, the EEOC filed a lawsuit against Whole Foods Market Group, Inc. alleging that Whole Foods terminated an employee with polycystic kidney disease after she missed work two times in December 2015, due to hospitalizations related to her kidney disease. Whole Foods Market Sued by EEOC for Disability Discrimination (Sep. 28, 2017). In both cases, the EEOC alleges that the companies violated the ADA by failing to modify their leave and absentee policies as reasonable accommodations to allow the employees to take leave related to their disabilities.

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The NCBA Will Be At Your Swearing-in Ceremony, I Swear!

By Josh McIntyre

Growing up I was always told not to swear. And I don’t just mean “cuss” words.

I mean I was actually instructed not to say the phrase “I swear.” I could “promise” or “pledge” to do something, but actually swearing to do it was taboo.

The aversion to that phrasing stemmed from my cultural and religious upbringing, in which a warning against swearing was pervasive not only in church but also in society. And, in many ways, including at the upcoming bar swearing-in ceremonies, it continues to be so.

Newly licensed attorneys automatically receive a free year of NCBA membership. Go to NCBA.org to find out more.

As hundreds of newly licensed attorneys across North Carolina prepare to be admitted to the bar this month, they can choose from two versions of the N.C. State Bar’s Oath of Office form. If they print page one, they can solemnly “swear.” But if they print page two, they can solemnly “affirm.”

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You Still Have Time to Sign Up For the NC Society of Health Care Attorneys Conference Oct. 6

It is not too late to join the North Carolina Society of Health Care Attorneys for its annual conference this Friday, Oct. 6, 2017, at the Rizzo Conference Center in Chapel Hill.

This year’s keynote address will be presented by Aaron McKethan, Ph.D., on the topic “Managing Change in Health Policy: State and Federal Perspectives.”

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What Is a ‘Government Attorney’?

By Nicolette Fulton

When meeting a new person, the question I am most often asked after “What is your name?” is “What do you do?”  The answer to that question is not always simple. The simplest answer one can give is one’s title, “I am a/an _____,” filling in the blank with a range of positions, including:  City Attorney, County Attorney, Attorney General, General Counsel for (State Agency), or Clerk.

The first response I get is usually, “Is that like a DA?” or “What does that mean?” I explain that I am an attorney for the government, what our roles are, and “No, I am not a District Attorney.” When it comes to the public, and our colleagues, understanding what it means to be a member of the government and public sector is perplexing.  We are not defined by a practice area, but by our titles or roles (particularly for those in private practice). According to a recent Thomson Reuters survey, the average government attorney works on 32 different matters every week. Government Law Departments 2017, Thomson Reuters. This furthers the “jack of all trades” mentality that dominates many government attorneys. Id. While some do have specialty areas, a large percentage of government attorneys and those in the public sector do not have the specialization enjoyed by those in private practice. However, an alternate viewpoint could be that a government practice opens one to a breadth of knowledge not otherwise available.

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