The Modern Firm, LLC

One of the most commonly asked questions regarding our Law Firm Merchant Account service pertains to the rules surrounding trust accounts. The rules and requirements vary state by state, so you should check with your local bar to determine which of the following scenarios will work for you.

Scenario 1:

Tie the trust account directly to the merchant account and have discount fees withdrawn in a separate transaction.

With this configuration the entire deposit will be placed into the trust account. A separate transaction will withdraw the discount/processing fee from the trust account. Often the merchant can configure the (more…)

Law firms of every size and discipline face growing exposures with respect to breaches in their computer security and information systems, with increasingly sophisticated attacks occurring more frequently. Due to rapidly changing policy coverages and premium in this area, it is important that you frequently review your firm’s exposures and options for handling them. And just because you don’t handle web-based transactions it doesn’t mean you are insulated from a problem. Certainly, if your firm keeps records or information on-line or stored locally on hard-drives, (more…)

Lawyers tend to forget that law is a service industry. Clients have a myriad of choices for their legal representation. By focusing on client service, lawyers can better retain current clients, gain more referrals, and minimize the risk of ethics complaints.

By Roy S. Ginsburg

If you ask attorneys whether their clients are satisfied, most would, of course, say yes. If you then ask them “What makes you so sure?” the responses would typically range from “They don’t complain” to “They’re nice to me” to “They pay their bills” to “They continue to do business with us.” But statistics indicate otherwise. Such client behavior hardly translates into satisfaction:

• In 2005, a national consulting firm polled Fortune 1000 clients to determine client satisfaction. Only 30 percent of clients said they would recommend their primary law firm.1

(more…)

Proposed changes to the Minnesota Rules of Professional Conduct regarding marketing and professional communications call for modest adjustments in existing rules while encouraging effective client relations.

by Roy S. Ginsburg and Kenneth F. Kirwin

Business development. You keep reading about its importance to your career. You keep hearing about it from other lawyers in your firm and other professional colleagues. So you finally decide to do something about it. Everyone has told you that the key is networking. First stop: your law school alma mater-sponsored cocktail reception. You figure, this shouldn’t be too awkward; chances are pretty good you’ll run into someone you know and, sure enough, you do. (more…)