The ABC’s of the legal world: Key concepts for people who work with lawyers

Successful lawyers know that they must understand the businesses – not just the legal problems – of their clients and potential clients.  Law-firm administrators, managers and staff who work with lawyers can also benefit from this valuable advice.

In order to make professional careers for themselves in the legal industry – and support lawyer/clients in their work – people who work with lawyers must have a basic understanding of how the legal system operates.

About 75 people attended the program, which was held on the afternoon of June 8 in the Alfred A. Arraj U.S. Courthouse.  The sponsors plan to make “ABC’s of the legal world” an annual event.

The state and federal court systems (including the appeals courts) were compared and contrasted for the audience by John F. Walsh, a shareholder with Hill & Robbins.  He also discussed state and federal agencies, which sometimes act in a judicial capacity, and special courts.  Walsh outlined the differences between criminal and civil cases, and how these cases proceed through their respective systems.

The litigation process was covered by Carolyn J. Fairless, a partner with Wheeler Trigg & Kennedy.  She defined the terms that accompany various parts of the litigation process – including those involved at the pleading stage, the “at issue” stage, the disclosure stage, the discovery stage, the pretrial motion stage, the settlement stage and the trial stage.  Fairless also discussed the elements that precede and follow the litigation process.

Aspects of the world of legal transactions were addressed by Craig Garby and Kevin Kelly – both with Rothgerber Johnson & Lyons.  Garby approached the subject from the perspective of transactions involving technology assets and intellectual property.  Kelly focused on the areas of mergers-and-acquisitions and real estate.

The seminar concluded by looking ahead, as Phil J. Shuey presented “How trends will affect the future of the legal profession.”  Shuey is president and CEO of Shuey Robinson, an international law office and management consulting group that focuses on futurism, technology and change-management.

Shuey outlined ten trends – aging of the population, migration away from urban centers, migration to the south, changing demographics, nanotechnology, information overload, globalization, the shortened delivery cycle, loss of privacy and the convergence of technologies – and the impact that these trends could have on the legal industry.