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I want to introduce you to this issue of the Litigation Management
Report by going from the finish to the start. The topic in
this issue's " Ideas" article is the concept of
measurement. Litigation managers are under constant pressure
to accurately gauge and measure the value of litigation services.
What "Ideas" explores is the origin and meaning
of measurement in a modern day context and illustrates its
critical importance as the foundation for improvement and
advancement in every area of activity in society, including
legal services. The message here is that anyone who tries
to disassociate measurement from adding value to a service,
particularly a professional service like law, is just plain
wrong.
That proposition brings readers back to the start of this
issue and the Litigation Management Strategy article on Qualitative
Measurement. Litigation managers are in the thick of qualitative
measurement and, following the logic of the "Ideas"
article, this article points out the necessity of getting
both the process and procedure grounded in finite terms of
reference that have a clearly identifiable relationship with
the key concrete criteria that are used to determine success
in the organization.
The Bill Management article on Paralegals will provide litigation
managers with ammunition to use when they feel the need to
direct law firms on how to best delegate work to paralegals.
The fact that this advice comes from an American Bar Association
(ABA) sponsored panel on litigation strategy would be to their
advantage to mention in discussion. In fact, litigation managers
might want to suggest to law firms that they read it by clicking
into www.litigationmanagementreport.com
The John G. Kelly Report on ABA Formal Opinion 99-413 - Protecting
the Confidentiality of Unencrypted E-Mail is emblematic of
your editor's efforts to use the Litigation Management Report
as a mechanism for putting litigation managers in an informed
position on issues that pertain to ethics and professional
conduct. As is the case with many e-billing issues, there
has been a series of confusing and contradictory state bar
advisory opinions issued on the status of unencrypted and
encrypted e-mail. The good news is that e-mail, in whatever
form, is an approved form of communication for billing as
well as other case related information.
| Litigation
Management Strategy |
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Why do so many non-financial performance measures fail
to measure up? Litigation managers stress that they
are just as interested in the quality as the cost of
results in evaluating the results of outside law firms...
click here
to learn more
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| Bill
Management |
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Litigation managers are aware that the billing rates
for paralegals are substantially lower than those of
even a junior associate... click here
to learn more
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| John
G. Kelly Report |
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E-mailing is the foundation for e-billing systems.
There has been some confusion within the ranks among
some law firms who are under a misapprehension and/or
misunderstanding about whether and to what degree.…
click here
to learn more
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| Ideas |
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I am a firm believer in the basic premise that is the
foundation for all applications of Kaplan and Norton's
Balanced Scorecard methodology; "what gets measured
gets managed.". … click here
to learn more
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