The Red Velvet Lawyer

Live with Heart Last Year’s Words A year ago, I shared the three words I wanted to represent my goals for 2014. They were: Robin, Launch, and Wealth.  So, how did I do? Robin was a bit of a miss. I had wanted it to remind me to work towards greater fitness. But, year-long problems with my orthotic shoes, which compensate for a fused ankle and heel, made regular exercise difficult without access to an indoor swimming pool. Yes, I launched my web-based mediation training program – Mediation with Heart -- and got terrific feedback from enrolled students. Now, I need to implement my marketing program in connection with it. Yes, I generated more wealth and cash flow. I also shared more of that wealth with others throughout the year. Words for 2015 It’s time to select three words for 2015. Surprisingly, this process has not come easily this year.  Well-being came early to mind – both emotional and physical. I recently completed a book recommen

My Home Town's Journey This recent communication from my mediation community touched me deeply. From: Sandy Heierbacher [ mailto:sandy@NCDD.ORG ] Sent: Tuesday, November 25, 2014 8:11 AM To: NCDD-UPDATES@LISTS.THATAWAY.ORG Subject: [NCDD-UPDATES] What can the dialogue & deliberation community do after Ferguson? Message to the National Coalition for Dialogue & Deliberation community, from NCDD’s Director... Hi, everyone. Many of us are reeling from the events in Ferguson. Some of you may be involved in protests in your own cities right now. Last night, President Obama addressed the nation after it was announced that Darren Wilson would not be indicted. In his remarks, I couldn’t help but think he was talking about the work that many of you do. The juxtaposition on the split screen of Obama encouraging protestors to stay peaceful on one side, and tear gas canisters being thrown by police in riot fear [sic?] on the other side was bizarre. But what Obama ta

Keeping Track of Good Advice Several of the bloggers I follow write on solo practice.  I want to start aggregating their advice in one of my posts.  So, here I go: 20 Law Practice Empowerment Tips by Peggy Greunke. Product Development for Lawyers by Carolyn Elefant. Lead Management: 3 Steps to Slash Your No-Show Rate  by Steven Fairley. On Building a Digital Law Library by Jean P. O'Grady. The 12 Best Legal Marketing Tips from 2014 by Steven Fairley. Last Minute Guide to 2014's Best New Books for Content Marketers by Roger C. Parker.  You are Better Off Having Experts Manage WordPress Hosting Environment by Kevin O'Keefe. Law Firms Assume Known and Unknown Risks in Operating WordPress Blogs  by Kevin O'Keefe. The 12 Best Legal Marketing Lessons from 2014: #9. Why Aren’t Lawyers Getting Paid? by Stephen Fairley. New crowdfunding site helps individuals raise money for legal fees by Martha Neil. Podcast # 3: Carol Elefant on Advance Plann

Graduate Competence or  Design and Scoring Problems? On Monday, the Wall Street Journal Law Blog reported the onset of a debate about the surprising drop in bar passage rates on a national basis.  It said:  A steep decline in bar exam scores on the most recent test has led to an outbreak of finger-pointing over who’s to blame for the downward swing.  In a sharply worded letter , the dean of Brooklyn Law School on Monday reproached the head of a national bar exam group for suggesting to law school leaders that their graduates who took the July exam were less prepared than students who sat for the test in previous years.  The dean’s letter came in response to an October memo by Erica Moeser, the president of the National Conference of Bar Examiners , addressed to law school deans across the country in which she defended the integrity of the group’s exam and raised concerns about the ability of the would-be lawyers who took it. ...  She continued: “Whi

Another Gap  Created by  Retiring Baby Boomer Lawyers Over the last several years, several state and local bar associations have focused on under-served clients living in rural areas.  Twenty percent of the U.S. population resides in rural counties, but only two percent of law practices locate there.   The October 2014 issue of the ABA Journal re-visits the topic again, profiling a number of lawyers practicing in rural North Dakota and South Dakota.  The article, Too Many Lawyers? Not Here. In Rural America, Lawyers are Few and Far Between by Lorelei Laird, gives a general overview of the situation, identifies a number of resources, and suggests the adaptations to rural practice required of young lawyers. An associated podcast is here . Additional states -- including Arkansas, Georgia, Iowa, Nebraska, Vermont, Montana, New Hampshire, and Maine -- have started various types of programs designed to encourage younger lawyers to practice in rural areas.   Other reso

A Touch of New Orleans  and  the Kentucky Derby Melded for a Charitable Cause Several years ago, our Dean, Lucy McGough, joined us after having lived in Baton Rouge, Louisiana most of her academic career.  Soon, events linked to that history came to campus. First, came the sale of home-made gumbo to raise funds for a local charity.  Then, ASL had its first shrimp boil.   Last month, the local chapter of the Lion's Club sponsored  the second shrimp boil on campus along with a corn hole tournament designed to raise money for its many worthwhile projects.  The local organization especially focuses on the needs of the low-income residents of Buchanan County who need eye exams and eyeglasses.   I profiled the Lion's Club as a student organization here . Students and faculty at ASL enjoyed a meal of spicy shrimp, sausages, corn, and potatoes. Many of the students participated in the corn hole tournament.  Josh Kinzer , the President of the Grundy Chapter

What Happens When  Baby Boomers Retire? In April 2013 , I wrote about the possible opportunities for new lawyers created by the increasing age of lawyers -- who will eventually retire.  Bill Henderson, of The Legal Whiteboard blog, provides a very interesting analysis of his data on this topic  here .  One of his findings: The big surprise here is that the proportion of young lawyers (under age 35) has been declining for several decades. And not by a little, but by a lot. During this period, the median age went from 39 in 1980, to 41 in 1991, to 45 in 2000, to 49 in 2005. Some of his conclusions: The analysis above suggests that the JD Advantage / JD Preferred employment market started to take shape several decades ago, long before these terms were put in place by the ABA and NALP. Yet, we really don't know about these careers. To construct a more useful, informative narrative, we'd have to systematically study the career paths of our alu

Feeling Like a  Master of the Universe! As many of you know, I spent the last year in a mastermind business coaching program that has made me comfortable with web-based platforms designed to build communities, deliver content, and market services.   I have proved that old dogs can learn new tricks.  In fact, this old dog is teaching the new tricks to folks much younger than myself.  My latest focus is on the "flipped" or "blended" classroom. These classes use the best of on-line education married with more traditional classroom approaches.   The Instructional Technology blog from Albany Law School provides a number of links to information about the "flipped" classroom.   Other resources include the following: Sean F. Nolan, Using Distance Learning to Teach Environmental Problem-Solving Skills and Theory , 28 J. Envt'l Law & Litigation 211 (2013). Gerald F. Hess, Blended Courses in Law School: The Best of Online and Face-to-Fa

Remembering  How I Became  a Teacher My mom, Jo Ann Drinkwater Young, died of colon cancer this month seventeen years ago.  She was only 61. Her death caused me to live life with more urgency, intention, and love. Last week, a family friend sent some photos of her as a teenager that I had not seen before.  She is posing with her best friend, Leotta, shortly before Leotta's wedding.  Mom was seventeen or eighteen years old.  Even dolled up as the bridesmaid (blue dress on right), she still looks so very young. She married at eighteen, had four kids by the time she was 24 years old, was always a loving and supportive spouse, and gave me a very happy childhood. Despite her youthful commitment to family, she had an old soul, even as a young mother. To say I miss her is an understatement. To say that her death released an energy in me to live the life I wanted would be deeply true.   As many of you know, I am celebrating my silver jubilee birthday (60th) celebratio

60,000  Page Views Friends, family, and colleagues: Another milestone reached! 60,000 page views! My blogging experience started in March 2013. Like everything, success relates directly to the attention and energy invested in the project. As I blogged more frequently, built my relationship with other bloggers, got more posts shared by my FB friends, and continued to create content I hoped you would like, page views grew exponentially. Here is a summary of my experience: 5,000 page views on August 2013. 10,000 page views on November 7, 2013. 15,000 page views on November 27, 2013. 20,000 page views on December 9, 2013. 25,000 page views on January 1, 2014. 50,000 page views on July 17, 2014. 60,000 page views on Oct. 10, 2014.

Meeting of my "Tribe" Plenary Sessions Offered by Leaders in the Field Last week-end, over 85 members of the Virginia Mediation Network (VMN) gathered for its Fall training conference. VMN is the largest state-wide organization of mediation practitioners, trainers, and scholars in Virginia.   Attendees enjoyed clear fall weather at the Wyndham Virginia Crossings Hotel in Glen Allen, Virginia, a lovely Colonial-style facility on 20-acres of park/golf course just north of Richmond.   The 2-day event offered three plenary presentations by leaders in the field: Plenary Session on Careers in the Field On Saturday morning, Bob Rhudy presented a Plenary Session based on his article, “ Engaging Conflict for Fun and Profit: Current and Emerging Career Trends in Conflict Resolution .” His paper on the topic appears here . During this interactive session, Bob shared the results of his research and engaged participants in a discussion about the emerging care

Recognizing the Leaders  in Our Field Last week-end, the Virginia Mediation Network (VMN) bestowed its highest honor on my friend and colleague, Jeanette Twomey. This award is presented annually to a prominent member of the mediation community in Virginia who demonstrates personal and professional commitment to advancing peaceful conflict resolution. Candidates are recognized for one or more of the following qualities: leadership in promoting and advancing the field of mediation;  innovation in the development of mediation programs or creative applications of mediation;  significant published writings on the subject of mediation;  exemplary pro bono mediation service;  cutting edge advanced mediation training; or  dedication of time and energy to an active mediation practice that supports collaborative problem solving.  Candidates must exemplify personal and professional integrity and respect for others, as well as demonstrated commitment to continuing growth of high

Opportunities to Serve the School, the Community, and the Profession This week, we held a bar-b-que that gave student organizations an opportunity to recruit members.   I profiled all, or nearly all, of ASL's student organizations in a series of posts beginning in August 31, 2013 that continued through October 2013. They are: Pro Bono Legal Service Providers: Court Appointed Special Advocates ( CASA )  VITA Tax Services ( VITA )  Great Eastern Trail Project ( GET )  Law Journals: Appalachian Journal of Law ( AJoL ) Appalachian Natural Resources Law Journal ( ANRLJ ) Student Government: Student Bar Association (SBA) Legislative Branch Executive Branch Standing Committees Honor Court Legal Fraternities: Blackwell Inn Phi Delta Phi ( PDP )  Phi Alpha Delta Law Fraternity, International ( PAD )  Focus on Substantive Law: ADR Society   Criminal Law Society ( CLS )  Education Law Society ( ELS )  Energy and Mineral Law Society ( EMLS )  Env

Tell Your Story! This invitation comes from one of my very ambitious ADR colleagues. Please take her up on the invitation to share your stories. Hi all, I wanted to share with you a new video blog project I started focusing on ADR as a first career. This video blog is a place to share and read about individuals who chose to begin their professional career in the ADR field. Check it out at here . The purpose of the blog is to explore how successful the next generation of ADR professionals has been in pursuing careers in ADR straight out of law school or graduate school. To do so, I am trying to gather ADR as first career stories by encouraging folks to upload videos about their own experiences or schedule an interview with me in which I will create a video to upload on their behalf. It is very simple to do (you can see others have already started participating), and you can even create your own video straight from the blog itself. I’d love it if you would share