The Lawyer’s Guide to Governing Your Firm

CHICAGO, June 16, 2009 – With today’s economy on the downside, creating a motivating and positive environment in a law firm is a challenge. A new book published by the American Bar Association Section of Law Practice Management, The Lawyer’s Guide to Governing Your Firm, provides valuable guidance on how to improve the working environment for both lawyers and staff.

The guide is a practical resource for firms that want to provide better client service and create the best work environment to help everyone succeed. Written by best-selling ABA author Arthur Greene, this guide provides strategies to change the culture of the law firm, boost morale, and effectively and efficiently manage and govern the practice. It provides guidance on leadership and partnership issues and basic running of the law firm, as well as:

• Creating a motivating and positive culture within the firm
• Establishing effective compensation plans for partners and associates to protect the firm
• How to properly budget, manage financials on a monthly basis, bring in revenue and be profitable
• Set goals for the firm and the employees
• Hire, train and mentor the legal staff
• Streamline management and address management problems.

The book includes a companion CD-ROM with more than 25 model forms, partnership agreements, worksheets, questionnaires and policy forms that can be customized to fit the firm’s needs.

The ABA Law Practice Management Section is a professional membership organization providing resources for lawyers and other legal professionals in the core areas of the business of practicing law — marketing, management, technology and finance — through its award-winning magazine, webzines, educational CLE programs, Web site and publishing division. For more than 30 years, LPM has established itself as a leader within the profession by producing ABA TECHSHOW, the world’s premier legal technology conference and expo, and through its publishing arm, which has more than 90 titles in print.

With more than 400,000 members, the American Bar Association is the largest voluntary professional membership organization in the world. As the national voice of the legal profession, the ABA works to improve the administration of justice, promotes programs that assist lawyers and judges in their work, accredits law schools, provides continuing legal education, and works to build public understanding around the world of the importance of the rule of law.

Title: The Lawyer’s Guide to Governing Your Firm
Publisher: American Bar Association’s Law Practice Management Section
Pages: 240
Product Code: 5110684
ISBN: 1-59031-780-7
Size: 7 x 10 w/ CD-ROM
Binding: Soft Cover
Price: $129.95; $89.95 for Section of Law Practice Management members
Orders: www.ababooks.org or 800-285-2221

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Editor’s note: Review copies are available by sending an e-mail to Trish Cleary at clearyt@staff.abanet.org. If you publish a review of this book, please send tearsheets or a copy for our files to Trish Cleary, c/o ABA Publishing, 321 N. Clark St., Chicago, IL 60654.