实践指导

适合您的商业街区或办公楼/综合体. 向每个邻居或房客请求一个电子邮件地址. 让每个人都发送商业公告、特价、销售、提醒、文章等. 每个月给你. You can put it into one e-mail (with your name and office address prominently displayed) to send to your business neighbors each month. You can include a short article on a legal issue, or you might even include a Legal Tip of the Month!

由美国澳门赌场官网协会澳门赌场官网职业责任常设委员会出版, 选择法律过失保险. 这本书提供了关于医疗事故保险政策的易于理解的信息, 术语词汇表, 保险单核对表, 一个可拉出的比较图表，帮助您选择保单, 以及各州医疗事故保险公司的名单. 它的价格是15美元加3美元.请致电ABA 1-800-285-2221.

不用倾家荡产. Improving the working environment and increasing employee recognition can be effective without being costly. 这里有10个低成本的技巧来帮助你留住人才:

• 随意的着装要求.
• 灵活的工作时间.
• 内部培训或指导.
• 在员工的雇佣周年纪念日给他一个惊喜, 礼物, 或者休息一天(每次都不一样).
• 指定一个特定的时间进行头脑风暴，讨论新想法，分享挫折.
• 营造一种“这是一个很棒的工作场所”的氛围.
• 通过频繁的表扬来庆祝成就.g.“没有你，我们不可能做到。”).
• 与你的员工分享大大小小的客户胜利.
• 在工作繁忙期间，尽量善用兼职雇员(例如.e.(不要为了节省几美元的短期利益而让你的优秀员工精疲力竭)。.
• 定期将公司的飞行里程奖励给值得奖励的员工. Remember: lost productivity from the loss of key employees costs far more than the costs associated with any positive retention alternatives.

使用以下指针.

第一个, have each client sign a release granting you authority to take the file (including all discovery and other property) with you to your new practice. 这保护了所有相关人员.
第二个, 如果你把任何客户的预付金转移到你的新律所, have your former firm prepare a final statement of account and provide written releases (to be signed by the client) for each retainer balance. 公司是否为你和你的客户开出一张联合支票来支付每笔预付金的余额. 这将排除以后所有关于谁欠谁什么的争论, 并为你和你的客户创造一个更平稳的过渡.
最后, make sure your former firm continues to carry malpractice coverage for work you did while at that firm; your new malpractice coverage probably does not cover you for those prior acts, 所以一定要阅读你的政策!    坚持你的专业阅读 无论走到哪里，都要随身携带一两篇文章或期刊. 你是否要上法庭, 和朋友共进午餐, 或者去看牙医, there’s always a few minutes of waiting time that can be used to catch up on this type of reading. 每天只需要10到15分钟，你就能很快读完一叠书!

无论走到哪里，都要随身携带一两篇文章或期刊. 你是否要上法庭, 和朋友共进午餐, 或者去看牙医, there’s always a few minutes of waiting time that can be used to catch up on this type of reading. 每天只需要10到15分钟，你就能很快读完一叠书!

自2010年8月1日起，D.C. 职业行为准则.第15条经修正，使参加D.C. IOLTA课程是D的必修课.C. 获得符合iolta条件的资金的澳门赌场官网，但有某些有限的例外情况.  规则1.第19条和D .的附录B.C. 《上诉法院澳门赌场官网规则》也被删除.  前规则1的规定.19和附录B现在位于新 §20 of D.C. 上诉法院规则十一.  有关哥伦比亚特区IOLTA的更多信息， 点击这里.

万一有问题，你有开户表格的复印件吗? 账户是否符合你们国家的道德规范? 如果你所在的州有IOLTA项目，利息是否会流向合适的接受者? 酒吧 disciplinary authorities are rather harsh even with inadvertent trust account irregularities, 所以这是一种值得采取的预防措施.

提前把它写在你的日历上. 除了法庭命令的出庭, 把它当作一个客户会议，不应该取消或重新安排. 你所有的账单都应该尽可能高效地审核并最终确定. (避免干扰和分心!记录完成任务所花费的时间. 当你知道一项任务需要多少时间时，开始做起来就更容易了.

你可以在初次咨询时陈述, 把它写在你的书面收费协议里. 鼓励他们在收到账单后仔细阅读你的账单. 还可以考虑一个条款，限制客户对具体收费提出质疑的时间, within 30 to 60 days of receipt—to encourage the client to address the issues sooner than later. 你的客户会欣赏你愿意公开你的费用和服务.

这样你就不用纠结于被卡住的文件了, and you’ll be more likely to put away your client files instead of letting them pile up on your desk!

了结一个客户的案子对你和你的客户都有利. 这里有六个步骤，你可以混合搭配来适应你的练习:

• 进行事后分析. Give the client an opportunity to ask any and all “final” questions about the outcome of his or her case. 这也会给你一个机会来回顾文件，并解决遗留问题. Consider making this a no-charge session, as it is as much for your benefit as it is for your client.
• 发送最终发票. Sending the final invoice as soon as the last task in the case has been performed will give a final accounting or status report to the client in an expeditious manner, and increase the likelihood of collection—instead of waiting for the next billing cycle to come around. Make sure your billing software can accommodate out-of-the-normal-billing-cycle final billing without any flaws in the system.
• 返回客户端的属性. 在案件结束后立即将客户的财产送回, 或者给客户一个最后期限，让他们从你的办公室拿回他或她的财产, 作为对客户的额外提醒——案子结束了. 也, it will save you from having to store and safeguard any materials that should rightfully be returned to the client as soon as you no longer need them. Prepare a checklist of items returned to the client and have the client acknowledge receipt by signing your form.
• 关闭文件. 准备一份结案清单. 确保文件夹中没有任何重复的文件草稿，法律便笺等. 将要归还给客户的物品与你可能想要或需要保留的物品分开. 为该文件指定一个“关闭文件”标识符，并将其合并到您的关闭文件系统中. 你将储存更少的材料, 并且在这个过程中占用更少的空间, 通过精简有序的档案.
• 安排文件定期审查. Initially schedule the file for review in three months to make sure all return-receipt-requested cards have been received, 最后的账单已经付了, 所有的问题都解决了. 这取决于案件的类型, you will want to schedule the next review a year or two later to see if the client’s circumstances have changed and the client would benefit from additional legal counseling.
• 感谢客户! Make it a habit to send either a card or a letter to the client to thank him or her for choosing you as his or her legal representative. 这将有很长的路要走!

在别人的语音信箱或答录机上，一定要说得慢一点. 这个国家的许多地区现在要求10位数的电话号码, 另外，许多小型办公室电话系统也有三位数的分机. 你可能很快就知道你的电话号码，但试图把它写下来的人却不知道. Your receiving party won’t get quite as upset having to replay the message several times to transcribe the number correctly. 记住，正是这些小事让我们脱颖而出!

为了减轻压力，但不要落入两个常见的陷阱:

• 不要过度计划你的假期. 安排太多的事情会对一个轻松的假期产生反作用. 不要急于做任何事情，给自己留点时间. 腾出时间什么都不做.
• 如果你觉得你必须带着工作, 移动PC, 或者手机, 限制你使用它们的时间. Otherwise you are cheating yourself and any companions out of a meaningful, refreshing experience.

如果减税是可能的，与你的客户分享这个信息. Encourage them to have their accountant or tax preparer call you to get 信息rmation that might maximize their deduction(s). 你的客户会感激你的额外努力——尤其是如果你免费解释的话!

在决定接手法律事务之前. 您甚至可以在您的客户接收表上包括这样的条款-附带签名行. Ask the current lawyer what financial arrangements exist and whether the client has an outstanding bill. 这并不总是一个容易的决定, but you may save plenty of financial (and possibly ethical) headaches by making this inquiry before you take over the case.

确保你的接待员或秘书知道如何引导客户到你的办公室. (不要以为他们每天都来上班就能给你指路!)另外, create written directions that include instructions from starting points around the metropolitan area. Your office should have a clearly readable map that should be faxed to everyone making an appointment. Further, if your office is located in a downtown office building, is the address prominent? 如果没有，请添加建筑物的简要描述，并包括您的套房号码.

如有停车设施，应提前通知客户, 还有是否要收停车费. 开几个街区去找个停车位真让人沮丧, 走回办公楼, 后来才知道，在同一栋楼或邻近的一栋楼里可以免费停车!

没必要让身价百万的潜在客户失望, 当他或她可能开车去找另一家澳门赌场官网事务所的时候!

在案件结案后. 这是对客户的一种服务, 对未来可能索赔的保护, 还有一个留住客户的方法. 尽管如此，在这个司法管辖区，文件仍然是客户的财产. In fact, if you do keep the file, you are required to keep it for a minimum of five years. 看到 D.C. 澳门赌场官网公会法律道德通讯. Op. 283.

那么，在保存了一段适当的时间之后，这个文件会发生什么呢, 然后决定存储成本太大, 或者您只是决定不再希望保留该文件? 你能直接丢弃或销毁文件吗? 根据283号意见，不是这样的. 因为这是客户的财产, “the lawyer should make a reasonable and good-faith effort to notify the former client of the existence and contents of the client’s file and follow the client’s instructions whether to hold, 返回或销毁文件.“这种通知可能很耗时，而且在五年或更长时间后往往毫无结果. 那么澳门赌场官网该怎么做呢?

Add a provision in your fee agreement that allows you to destroy or discard the file after a stated time period. 声明您将为客户保留该文件，除非客户提前提出请求. 说明如果客户端不要求您返回文件, that you will discard or destroy the file at the end of ___ years—whatever you think is appropriate for your practice and under bar ethics rules. 您还可以解决谁来支付任何存储的问题, 检索, 以及与文件相关的销毁费用.

最后, be sure to draw your client’s attention to this file retention–destruction provision before signing the fee agreement. 草签这项规定可能是一个谨慎的步骤.

It still may be a good idea to send the client a “warning” letter before you destroy the file, 但至少在客户没有回应的情况下，你已经得到了许可. 然后一定要定期丢弃或销毁这些旧文件.

越快越好. The lawyer–client relationship that develops is much better than those in which the client is not involved. 让你的客户起草他们自己的病历, 审查在取证中获得的文件, 参与准备审前陈述, 或者做其他方面的法律事务. 结果是, clients obtain some appreciation for the amount of time and type of work involved in preparing their cases, 获得对自己案件的控制权, 了解作为一名澳门赌场官网需要付出的努力和技巧, 并对你的服务获得更大的信任和感激.

普通的白色矩形名片总是不错的选择, 但为什么不制作一张真正能表达你个性的卡片呢? 例如，明黄色，为一位“柠檬法”澳门赌场官网的名片. 想办法改变尺寸, 形状, 名片的颜色和内容要反映你的实践. (关于任何道德问题，请参见 规则7.1、指导.)

or at least weekly—to reflect your schedule so callers will know whether you will receive their message in ten minutes, 十个小时或者十天. There are few things more frustrating for a client than to call their lawyer and get the same “I’m either away from my desk or on another line,却发现他们的澳门赌场官网在塔希提岛受审三天或三个星期. 也, 如果你超过一天都不能上班, leave instructions on your greeting message on how to reach a real live person if they need to when you’re unavailable.

因为它的影响可能会毁掉你的诊所. The fire doesn’t even have to start in your office suite; down the hall or one floor away, the smoke and water damage could paralyze your practice and harm your clients’ case if papers and evidence are damaged or destroyed. Take a few moments to consider your precautions in case of a fire (or other such disaster) and implement some simple loss prevention measures.

检查办公室的防火和最小化系统. 你有什么预防措施，包括烟雾探测器，火灾报警器，喷水灭火系统? 这些能以合理的成本升级吗?

The 信息rmation stored on your office computers should be periodically duplicated (backed up) onto tapes or disks, 并储存在现场以外的地方. These tapes/disks should not only encompass client 信息rmation, but firm financial 信息rmation. An undamaged back-up tape of your most recent billing cycle will keep your cash flowing and save immeasurable hours of lost time and aggravation. (Remember to periodically restore a sample file from the tape/disk to make sure your backup system is really working.)

重要的客户文件和案件证据也应防火. Most attorneys do not have the space or resources to house important documents or evidence in fireproof file cabinets. 然而，有些事情可能值得额外的投资. 你拥有的“独一无二”的证据应该放在防火保险箱里, 还有证据照片或x光片.

最后, 保留一份客户名单的机密副本, 包括名字, 地址及电话号码, in a secure and confidential place out of your office; be sure to update it several times per year. 如果发生火灾，你无法进入办公室, 至少你有办法联系你的客户，让他们知道你的情况.

把自己从一个潜在的危险问题中解脱出来:

• 如果你在一家小公司，和同事交换文件. 接近你的伴侣或其他同事，提出用你的“狗”档案交换她的. 至少这样你就不会和客户有问题了.
• 给一位重要的同事打电话，邀请他或她共进午餐. 假设一下，解释一下情况. 问问你的同事他/她会做什么，从哪里开始，怎样做最好. 如果建议是好的，请买午餐. 使用此帮助快速启动文件的工作.
• 打开文件并立即开始处理它. (这意味着现在!有时候我们自己的拖延才是真正的问题. 只要打开文件并开始阅读，当想法和任务出现时，把它们写下来. 在文件上工作至少30分钟. 如果可以的话，延长工作时间. 当你不能再工作时，在日历上安排时间，明天再做. 当您重新熟悉该文件时，它将变得更容易处理.

增加业务:

• 举办社交聚会. 邀请朋友、同事和生意上的熟人参加定期的社交聚会. 聚会可以在你的办公室或当地的餐馆举行. 你甚至可以租一个健身俱乐部过一个晚上.
• 给澳门赌场官网里的人打电话. 当你在报纸或杂志上读到你感兴趣的文章时, 圈出文章中引用的个人的名字. 给你想了解的人打电话. 用他们的话来打破僵局. 然后问一个后续问题，让对话继续下去. 如果一切顺利，把他们添加到你的联系人列表中.
• 自愿做秘书或抄写员. When you are newly active in an organization, it is sometimes hard to get to know other members. 当你参加一个活动时, volunteer to take notes of the meeting or write an article about the event for the organization’s newsletter. You then have a good reason to call the other members and introduce yourself while preparing the minutes or article.

通过立即表现出一点额外的客户关怀. 给每个新客户发一封简短的感谢信，并附上礼物. 礼物可以是一份最近的公司通讯, 你最近写的一篇专题文章, a business card that lists an unpublished telephone number for the client to reach you in an emergency, 或者一本与他们的法律问题相关的书，表明你作为客户关心他们. (你懂的.) Then follow-up with a personal telephone call several days later to let your client know you have begun work on the matter; let your client know it is a no-charge call. This immediate special attention helps to retain clients and build positive long-term relationships.

This makes it much easier to troubleshoot any difficulties later or to recreate your system if it crashes. 在网络上创建一个主日志(使其只读)是一个好主意, 只有经过授权的人员才能进行更改)，这样每个人都可以访问信息. Be sure to store a copy every time you make a change since if your computer crashes you don’t want to also lose the documentation.

带有公司名称、地址、电话和传真号码、电子邮件等标签. 在文件中放置一份签署过的费用协议副本，作为第一份文件.

Explain to the client that you will send copies of everything related to the case and that the client should place these documents in the folder immediately. Many clients don’t have an adequate filing system, so these documents may otherwise be lossed. 在代表任期结束时(或其间的任何时间点), 您的客户将拥有其文件的完整副本.

它是获取包括美国政府在内的联邦政府信息的首要门户.S. 众议院，国防核设施安全委员会等等.

你需要修改你的商业计划吗? 制定营销计划? 你的办公系统是否足以避免不当行为? 如果您在实践管理问题上需要帮助，请联系D.C. 酒吧 Practice Management Assistance Program at 202-780-2764 (Kaitlin Forster) or 202-780-2762 (Dan Mills). 他们有关于如何改善你的业务的信息和想法.

这里有三个建议可以帮助你:

• 锻炼. 锻炼 is one of the most effective anti-stress, anti-depression tools in behavioral medicine. 试着建立一个合理的步骤来增加锻炼的新生活方式. Do what you enjoy most; aerobics, short walks, take the stairs, sports, etc.
• 尝试放松运动. Take a five-minute break each afternoon and practice “imagery”—a popular relaxation technique. Imagery is sitting back and remembering a favorite event such as a vacation or a round of golf. Try to use all of your senses (the sounds, the smells, the colors, the feeling of the wind, etc.)，并获得诗意的许可(一场高尔夫比赛可以是你最喜欢的18洞一起打)。.
• Practice good nutrition (and not because your mother said so): Improved nutrition is a very important aspect of behavioral medicine. 更少的食物和更少的超重会增加能量. 增加水果和蔬菜(甚至每天一份)是有效的. 研究 has shown that small achievable steps toward a lifestyle change are more enduring and thus more effective than large changes.

问几个客户, your spouse or other non-lawyer to review several samples of your bills—with names and addresses redacted, 当然! 他们知道做了什么工作吗? 他们能理解账单的金额是如何计算的吗? 措辞是否没有行话和错误? 如果是这样，你可能有一个成功的格式，你的客户会尊重和支付.

保持软件最新 by periodically (2-4 times per year) checking the web sites of the developers of the software on your computers. 软件通常带有bug，开发人员会为其发布补丁, 插头, 或要修复或更新的服务包. 你只需要下载并安装它们. 你需要知道软件的版本，看看是否需要打补丁. 你可以打开每个软件程序，点击“帮助”，然后点击“关于”.” Write down the version number and go to the software developer’s web site and see if there are suggested improvements. 如果你不想一个人做这些, 有几个在线实用程序可以为您提供合理的费用. 如果你的软件已经有一段时间了, 很有可能会有免费的改进. 记住，在更新之前要备份你的电脑数据!

(通常在Ctrl和Alt之间)作为许多Windows功能的快捷方式. 使用Windows键 in conjunction with the appropriate letter key to achieve the following results:Windows-C opens control panel

• Windows- e打开Windows资源管理器
• Windows-F启动“查找文件/文件夹”
• Windows-I显示鼠标属性对话框
• Windows-K显示键盘属性框
• Windows-L注销对话框
• windows - m最小化所有打开的窗口
• Windows-Shift-M取消最小化
• Windows-R显示“运行”对话框
• Windows-F1启动“帮助”

学习如何传达注意力. 使用适当的肢体语言. 学会安静. 不要玩回形针. 不要盯着窗外看. 不要被打断. 由此带来的好处数不胜数，但最重要的是，你的客户会感谢你.

包括口头和书面. Remember that clients are often under considerable stress (from their legal problems) when they first visit a lawyer. 你对费用的解释可能是一种清晰的模式，但它可能不会被理解. 用书面和口头的方式解释. 如果(在客户眼中)很多钱处于危险之中, 在支付你的费用之前，给客户时间考虑一下. “买入”收费协议的客户更有可能遵守协议. 在代理期间定期讨论费用数额. 如果在任何给定点的费用不符合客户的期望, resolve the situation as soon as possible—don’t let it fester until the attorney/client relationship is irreparably damaged.

通过你如何介绍自己. 如果你马上说"我是劳工澳门赌场官网,“很少有人会对自己说，他们需要你的服务. 在这一点上，你可能已经失去了为任何其他目的推销自己的机会. 创建一个五秒钟的自我介绍，在遇到新朋友时重复.e. 潜在新客户). 它应该是自然的和信息丰富的, such as “I am a problem-solver for small businesses” or “I help families plan for their financial future.”

所以你可以在文件柜里快速区分它们. 想想你的实践是如何运作的，哪些类型的文件最好用颜色编码. 不要尝试太多的颜色——三到五种颜色效果最好. 每次搜索文件时，只查看该颜色的文件. 你将节省时间和烦恼，每次你需要找到一个文件.

比如暴风雪. 保留所有客户和对方澳门赌场官网的办公室和家庭电话号码. 每隔几个月带一份最新的纸质清单回家，或者用电子邮件发给自己. 在紧急情况下，您可以联系相关方，通知他们情况.

trusts, cover letters and other form documents often read by elderly, or soon to be elderly clients. 在未来的许多年里，他们会感激这个小小的感动.