The Economist, June 28, 2014 at 11, writes about higher education’s future and observes that with colleges, it “suffers from Baumol’s disease – the tendency of costs to soar in labour-intensive sectors with stagnant productivity.” That effect could diagnosis the malady of corporate legal services: what big-firm lawyers do…
The Economist, Oct. 13, 2012 at 90, explains how the greater concentration of America’s largest metropolitan areas compared to those in the euro area confers big advantages. Essentially, ideas appear and spread more quickly in larger urban areas, which economists referred to as “knowledge spillover.” Even though we have more…
It’s a cliché: delegate as much as you can. The prerequisites for effective delegation, often unstated, are that there is someone to whom you can delegate and who is competent, less expensive, and has time to do the work well. Stated in the negative, at least five reservations hold…
An article that criticizes the rigidity and wastefulness of forced hourlong sit-down meetings appears in Bloomberg BusinessWeek, June 11, 2012 at 51. Almost by definition, one hour allows too much time for the issue at hand or it cuts off discussion and deliberation – it is rigid. Often, much of…
Alternatives, published by of the International Institute for Conflict Prevention & Resolution, May, 2012 at 120, mentions ongoing work on a site that will enable certain kinds of disputes to be resolved on the internet. Specifically it explains that the Uncitral Working Group III Online Dispute Resolution initiative has enlisted…
Observers of the law department scene incessantly complain about thickets of regulations that drive up legal complexity and costs and they bemoan even more burdens on legal departments as regulations metastasize. But wait, here is the Economist, May 19, 2012, flying in the face of that dire prospect: “Many businesses,…
A new financial exchange, called IPXI, will let companies buy, sell and hedge patent rights. On the exchange, companies will be able to buy and sell “unit license rights,” which is a one-time right to use a particular patented technology in a single product. This is explained in the Economist,…
Research by a company, admittedly one with a stake in highlighting e-mail overload, “found that most employees spend at least a third of their time at work on e-mail.” Inside counsel may log something like that, or at least feel that consumed by e-mail. Therefore, It has been a frequent…
A couple of suggestions not covered on this blog heretofore can help tame the unruly beast of e-mail. They appear in Law Practice, May/June 2012 at 63. The author leads into one practical suggestion – send fewer e-mails – with some data. “For every five emails you jettison into cyberspace,…
This humble, but practical bit of advice comes from the ACC Docket, March 2012 at 32. E-mail serves best to transmit information that doesn’t need discussion. Long threads of e-mails, especially if there are multiple people copied and they weigh in, become unwieldy quickly. It is much more effective to…