In this issue, we’re launching a new column from Don Hopper about law firm succession planning. And speaking of the future and succession planning, we’ve got a succession plan in place here at Indiana Lawyer.
Let me introduce you to 30 people who will undoubtedly impress you — this year’s Leadership in Law Award winners.
If you voted for President Barack Obama in 2012, sorry, but your vote no longer counts. That’s effectively what the Republican members of the U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary said in a Feb. 23 letter to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.
If you have not had an opportunity to take our survey, please take a moment to do so at www.theindianalawyer.com/survey-2015.
The dramatic changes that our world has experienced, and the impact those changes have had on the practice of law, has produced a fertile supply of topics to address over the years.
I’d like to make a suggestion to Indiana lawmakers when they return for the 2015 legislative session. I am not telling you how to do your jobs, but this suggestion falls under the guise of editing, so I feel I’m within my bounds.
While I am not arguing against a person’s right to own guns or protect himself from threat, here is the question I can not shake: When does one person’s right to own a gun trump another person’s right to return home alive? In fiercely protecting one, we are clearly not doing enough to ensure the other.
On Sept. 26, I had a birds-eye view of the funeral procession honoring fallen Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department Officer Rod Bradway. From IBJ Media’s second-story windows at the corner of Washington Street and Pennsylvania Avenue, my co-workers and I watched throughout the day as officers from jurisdictions throughout the state and Midwest arrived to show their support.
Regardless of our career paths, we’ve all experienced a moment when we’ve watched a peer in action – doing his or her job and doing it very well – and the realization came that this person truly is a role model for our respective professions. Whether the admiration you feel is the result of a big win in court and is splashed across newspapers and TV screens, or the quiet day-to-day way the person works with clients and mentors young lawyers, the Indiana Lawyer would like to recognize the work ethic and dedication that makes certain lawyers stand out.
Lucas offers a few suggestions to a list created about what reporters want – and don't want – when interviewing attorneys.
Through the profiles in the Leadership in Law award supplement, it is our goal to introduce IL readers to the men and women behind the public and professional personas.
As they say, time flies when you are having fun. I’ve found that it also seems to stampede past when you are very busy. Both have been the case for the staff of the Indiana Lawyer. But time moves on, which is a good thing, and with this issue of the paper Indiana Lawyer turns another year older.
With this issue of IL, we begin presenting movie reviews by Indianapolis criminal defense lawyer Bob Hammerle. Bob is known to many lawyers and businesspeople for his passion about cinema and his colorful commentary about the latest shows to hit the theaters.
We’re excited about bringing readers another opportunity to learn about and maintain connections with lawyers around the state.
As I write the first of my 2013 columns, my inclination is to put on my rose-colored glasses and look with optimism toward the year ahead. While I feel that I am truly a glass-half-full kind of gal, I am also a realist and not a fan of people who stick their heads in the sand and pretend things are OK when they are not.
The 2012 elections are finally over. And while I think most people, with the possible exception of mail carriers and holiday Scrooges, are happy to have gift catalogs replace political flyers in their mailboxes, I would bet that no group is happier to see election season come to an end than the county clerks.
Up the street and around the corner from my Broad Ripple house, a yard sign caught my eye that didn’t involve the usual Democrat versus Republican political rhetoric. This simple, hand-painted sign called for the ouster of Supreme Court Justice Steven David.
I encourage you to nominate an up-and-coming lawyer or distinguished barrister who you admire. Time is limited, and I realize that when it comes to discretionary projects like completing a nomination form, while our intentions are good, our follow-through can fall short. But there is something about the feeling derived from taking the time – or making the time – to do something like this that is so satisfying.
Indiana lawyers will have a unique opportunity to participate in a civic education program that will cast a national spotlight on our state and legal community. The 2013 National High School Mock Trial Championship will be held in Indianapolis May 9 to 11.
I wonder what it is really like to be a woman – or a man, for that matter – trying to balance the demands of work and family in today’s law firms. Let me know if you believe it is possible to work long hours but still have a balanced family life.