From the e-newsletter: "Blackberry Apps for Lawyers

http://www.llrx.com/features/blackberryapps.htm

Nicole Black highlights an assortment of Blackberry applications for research, document management, mobile communications, news, music, dictation and more - all of which would benefit just about any law practice.

**The Government Domain - Congressional Documents on FDsys: the Basics

http://www.llrx.com/columns/govdomain41.htm

E-Gov guru and research expert Peggy Garvin provides an overview of the organization, content and search features of GPO's new Federal Digital System (FDsys).

**After Hours: Fancy Foods Are Alive and Well http://www.llrx.com/columns/afterhours43.htm

Kathy Biehl returns, sharing the highlights of the 2009 Summer Fancy Food Show, which ran June 28-30 in New York City.

**Seeking Bypass: What Will Ultimately End Confidence in the Necessity of Parental Involvement Laws?

http://www.llrx.com/features/parentalinvolvementlaws.htm

Public interest law advocate Diana Philip's commentary focuses specifically on the multifaceted, complex and challenging issues that encompass the dichotomy between reproductive health care and rights available to adult pregnant women and pregnant minors. Diana's position includes references to seminal legal cases as well as to selected scholarly literature in the field of juvenile reproductive health.

**LLRX Book Review by Heather A. Phillips: The Little Red Book of Wine Law: A Case of Legal Issues http://www.llrx.com/columns/bookreview14.htm

Heather A. Phillips recommends this slim volume as it provides an engaging and accessible introduction to American wine law and history that will broaden the reader's appreciation of the wine industry. Though short and non-technical, this book is suitable for a surprising number of library collections.

**Green Files: Green Resources and Sites on the Internet http://www.llrx.com/features/greenfiles.htm

Marcus P. Zillman provides a comprehensive, wide ranging listing of web based green resources and sites, inclusive of home and business related information.

**Five Things Lawyers Should Know About Social Media http://www.llrx.com/features/lawyersandsocialmedia.htm

Lawyer, writer and blogger Nicole Black advises fellow professionals about important core techniques and goals to consider before jumping on the "social media" bandwagon.

**LLRX Court Rules, Forms and Dockets - continually updated by law librarian Margaret Berkland http://www.llrx.com/courtrules

Source: Pacifici, Sabrina. "New on LLRX.com for July 2009." Copyright © LLRX TM, Law Library Resource Xchange, LLC. All rights reserved. Subscribe <http://www.llrx.com/subscribe.htm>.

In the news: "The so-called green movement has sprouted a fresh crop of lawsuits: greenwashing claims, in which companies are getting sued for making bogus eco-friendly statements about their products. Consumer plaintiffs and environmental groups have caught on, lawyers warn. "This is the beginning of what may be an explosion in these kinds of cases," said patent attorney Eric Lane of Luce, Forward, Hamilton & Scripps, who tracks greenwashing litigation. "This is a hot area of false advertising."

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Posted by Ernest Svenson: "Interesting article on the topic of going paperless [click here]. In addition to the, by now obvious, economic and efficiency benefits, there is the environmental benefit:

"There is a clear environmental need for paperless offices. The paper industry is one of the world's major polluting industries and one of the largest contributors to greenhouse gases with over 900 million trees cut done annually. The EPA reports that paper is the number-one material thrown away, comprising 40% of our waste stream."

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Source: PDF for Lawyers, 20 April 2009

In the news: "Phantom power is the power used when an electrical device is supposedly off -- or is not being used but is still plugged in -- which can waste a significant percentage of a law firm's electricity. How can you cut these costs? There are gadgets on the market to keep the phantoms at bay."

Topics discussed include: KILL A WATT METER, THE ENERGY DETECTIVE, SMART STRIP, ENERGY ORB, SOLAR BATTERY CHARGER, WATT'S THE DIFFERENCE?, and SAVINGS

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Source: Law.Com's Daily Legal Newswire. 14 May 2009. Copyright 2008.  ALM Properties, Inc. All rights reserved. Subscribe  <http://store.law.com/registration/register.asp?subscribeto=nw>.

From the blog: "The Gardere Wynne Sewell Women's Council wanted to create a bit of drama and ended up with a slice of television when its leaders invited Ed Begley Jr., of "Living with Ed," to be the speaker at their law firm's networking cocktail party. Monica Bay, Editor-In-Chief of Law Technology News welcomes Attorney Jane Fergason, chair of the Gardere Wynne Sewell Women's Council and Jennifer King, assistant director of marketing & business development for Gardere Wynne Sewell LLP, to talk about this star-powered celebration and how you too can plan your next 'green' event."

Podcast: Play it here | Play in new window | Download

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Source: Legal Talk Network, 16 March 2009

Posted by Erik Mazzone: "It starts with digging a hole.

Someone that I am related to -- and out of a sense of family harmony I am not going to name names -- recently disposed of an old computer.  This family member was appropriately concerned about making sure the hard drive contents did not fall into the wrong hands, and so he/she took care to make sure that did not happen.

How?

He/she buried the hard drive in the back yard.

Leaving aside the myriad ecological, not to mention legal and psychological, concerns that arise as a result of this behavior, most of us aren't too sure what to do with old computers and other electronics.  At most you should be on a 48 month cycle of replacement for desktop computers and 36 months for laptops (if you are reading this on a seven year old laptop I am covering my ears and shouting la-la-la-la-la-la-la);  even if you have only one computer in your office you'll be disposing of hard drives regularly enough to find a better solution than reaching for the nearest shovel.

Disposing of old computers really involves two separate activities -- 1) wiping the hard drive of all personal information and 2) getting rid of the hardware.

As far as wiping the hard drive, there are several programs out there that get the job done, but the one that pops up most often in my discussions with other geeks folks interested in technology is DBAN (Darik's Boot and Nuke) for PC's.  Mac's OSX operating system contains much the same functionality built in withDisk Utility.

If a drive wiping program doesn't provide enough security for you, Fox Mulder, uber-legal techie Ross Kodner mentioned recently that just pulling the hard drives and storing them physically in perpetuity was as safe as it gets (assuming you think the lock on your office door is more secure than a software program).

As for the hardware itself, start by looking for a place to donate it; there are lots of schools and nonprofits that would love to have your old machines.  In my neck of the woods, the Kramden Institute is one of those places.  I'm sure there are bunches of places near you, too.  It's a win-win:  you get rid of the junk and get to help make the world a better place in the bargain.  For a more comprehensive run down of how to get rid of almost anything electronic, check this excellent article from the Unclutterer.

Whatever you end up doing with your old hard drives and hardware, it's gotta be better than digging a hole."

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Source: Law Practice Matters, 25 February 2009

Posted by Evan Schaeffer: "Ernie the Attorney remains on the trail of the paperless office. For details, see his post, "Upcoming 'paperless lawyering' seminars," and sign up to receive notice of seminars that might be taking place near you.

Related Post: "The Paperless Office Wiki: Everything You Need to Know" (and other posts noted therein)"

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 Five Tips for IT to Survive the Plunge

In the news: "Who would have expected the world economy to take such a precipitous plunge? Attorney Ross Kodner issues tips for law practices to batten down the hatches, tighten belts and learn to better exploit their existing infrastructure before rushing to upgrade and buy new technology."

The five tips include:

1. Exploit office suites...

2. Time purchases...

3. Leverage Web 2.0...

4. Compare prices...

5. Green your practice...

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Hungry Lawyers in Lean Times Invite GCs for 'Free' Lunch

In the news: "The phone is ringing off the hook in the office of Stuart Nichols, general counsel at tiny MIPS Technologies. Who's on the line? A lot of "old friends" at law firms who suddenly aren't so busy, just calling to see if he wants to go to lunch and "catch up." "When times are good, they've got their book of business -- now they're really desperate for a job that would just involve a few hours," said Nichols. So, are general counsel actually swayed to hand over legal work because of a free lunch?"

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Business Development in 15 Minutes a Day

In the news: "Do you ever hear yourself saying there are never enough hours in the day? Do you ever complain you don't have time to go out and build your book of business? Do you want 2009 to be the year you attract a huge number of new clients? If you answered yes to any of these questions, then make sure you put aside 15 minutes each day. That's all the time you need to boost your productivity and your network, according to productivity expert Neen James. She outlines three strategies for getting fast results.

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Source: Law.Com's Daily Legal Newswire. 14 January 2009. Copyright 2008.  ALM Properties, Inc. All rights reserved. Subscribe

Posted by Chuck Newton: "Law firms are in the information and communication business.  As a result, lawyers and law firms discard large numbers of computers, printers, computers, TVs, cell phones, monitors, smoke detectors and other instruments.  E-waste is the term used to describe these discarded electronics and electrical products on which we, as lawyers, rely.  As the legal markets taste for gadgetry has increased, e-waste from lawyers and law firms has increased.

The question is what happens to this e-waste?   It contains [a] large quantities of toxic and hazardous components that are currently being thrown into landfills.  Even worse for the lawyers and law firms, much of it is crammed in offices, and storage facilities as law firms try to figure out what to do with it..."

Continue reading this interesting post at the source site listed below.

Source: Chuck Newton Rides the Third Wave, 30 December 2008

In the news: "The economic downturn presents an opportune time for firms to re-examine their policies for managing client matter information -- to cut costs and go green. When a client calls, asking "What environmental initiatives has your firm implemented?" your firm will have a solid response."

TIPS FOR ENVIRONMENTALLY RESPONSIBLE RECORDS MANAGEMENT

1. Whenever possible, print research and draft documents double-sided on recycled paper...

2. Switch from legal-sized to letter-sized for paper and file folders...

3. Print draft documents in "draft" mode...

4. Manage and distribute documents electronically to save paper and reduce storage...

5. When transitioning inactive physical files to off-site storage, remove documents from binders and hold them together with rubber bands...

6. Ensure that only the official file is stored off-site...

7. Purchase records supplies that are made from recycled materials...

8. Work with your off-site storage vendor to establish a schedule to minimize the amount of trips to and from off-site storage...

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Source: Law.Com's Daily Legal Newswire. 10 December 2008. Copyright 2008.  ALM Properties, Inc. All rights reserved. Subscribe  <http://store.law.com/registration/register.asp?subscribeto=nw>.