No small business owner likes to receive a letter from the Internal Revenue Service – trust me. Such letters inspire dread. Though they occasionally include a good surprise, such as a refund of an over payment, more often they are “not good.” Melissa and I recently received such a letter informing us that, because we […]
Archive | Litigation Consultants
Dress for the Interview
Job interviews are something with which Melissa and I have had considerable experience over the last 30 years. We’ve revised our procedures over time, but we have always utilized an in-person interview as a final part of the process. Regardless of the position for which we are interviewing, we, as a professional practice serving a […]
I love people! I really do! I am constantly entertained and surprised by the things people do and say. Never a dull moment, that’s for sure! David’s post was prompted by our most recent job interview, which was of the shortest duration in the history of Magnus. Why? Because the job candidate, a young male, […]
Reactive v. Proactive
My mother used to tell me that she, as well as almost everyone else, would “have to get up before breakfast to stay ahead of me.” For readers of this post who are unfamiliar with, as Mom used to say “old South Carolina sayings,” this means that, all things considered, I work and move at […]
I don’t think of the proactive/reactive dichotomy as just an issue of speed, but of priorities. And, in fairness to our clients (attorneys), many reactive behaviors are a part of the job. They must react to rulings by the court, motions or pleadings by the other side, client demands, etc. It is not just attorneys, […]
Not Everyone in Purple Thinks the Same Way
Maybe it wasn’t really purple, more like lavender. The polo style shirts by 2 male senior citizens on one of our mock jury panels were very similar. I wasn’t present to witness the events first hand, but I have seen the video of the deliberations many times. The venue was a community where many senior […]
I know several people who adore the color purple (I am not among them). It is rare, however, to see 2 male senior citizens wearing purple clothing in the same room. In fact, the mock jury David is referring to is the only time I have ever seen 2 men of any age wearing purple […]
Probing Questions and Difficult Answers
I went to my primary care physician recently for my annual check up. (As an aside, my physician is smart: He has a Ph. D. in addition to an M. D.) My physician is committed to helping medical students with their education. He has mentored medical students from The University of Miami for decades and […]
I loved hearing the story Melissa related about the young medical student shortly after her check up. It was a classic example of how Melissa’s interactions with the world are sometimes more than what people bargained for on any given day. I hope that, not only did this make a lasting impression on this future […]
Vacations
At the time of this post, I am likely on vacation. After missing the opportunity to take a vacation for a couple of years, Melissa and I have been looking forward to it. The visit to this destination, Alaska, was delayed from our original plan and thus, we’ve been working on and revising the plans […]
I will begin this post by saying I love to work! One of my best friends, Bob, was my office mate (and co-conspirator) in graduate school. He frequently referred to me as a “workaholic” because, invariably, when he called to find out what I was doing, I was working or studying. I love my job […]
What’s the Rush?
Lately, it seems that we have one rush job after another. On the one hand, I’m glad we have jobs of any sort, especially after the impact COVID-19 related chaos on the legal system, and as a result, our business. But, it is a frustration that never diminishes when clients wait to the last minute […]
As usual, David’s post has reminded me of a song. As soon as I read the title, “What’s the rush?” I thought of a song by Leon Russell and Marc Benno called “Learn How to Boogie.” It’s lyrics include: What’s the hurry? What’s everybody hurrying for? Don’t worry What’s everybody worrying for? If […]
Fronting Money for Clients
One thing we learned the hard way, many years ago, is that advancing money on behalf a client is risky. On one of our first cases, we were given the verbal go ahead by an associate level attorney whose boss had told him to do so. We were very excited to work with this attorney, […]
The majority of Magnus’ clients are large corporations, such as insurance companies, financial institutions, and health care conglomerates, all of which have “mega bucks,” especially when compared to our small business. Because of this, it is quite irksome when Magnus is expected to advance funds to pay our clients’ expenses. Every time we conduct focus […]
Old School
In many ways, I, and people like me, are considered “old school” or “retro.” Someone recently complimented me on an Alice Cooper t-shirt I was wearing, saying he really liked its “old school” look. I still use expressions from “back in the day,” such as groovy, psychedelic, cool (instead of hot, meant to describe something […]
I don’t know when a part of one’s life, bell bottom pants for example, take hold as the norm such that later they become old school. And, while Melissa is more retro that I am in terms of fashion, etc., she’s newer school in keeping up with modern rock music than am I. She does […]
Shortcuts
I recently read a newspaper article in a business/legal publication that prompted this post. The premise of the article was that women are more likely to be plaintiff prone on juries than men. Prominent and successful lawyers espoused their preference for having women on juries. A jury consultant (of whom I’ve never heard) reported research […]
Some things change and some things remain the same. Over the years of my career as a trial consultant, there have been several constant factors, including many attorneys’ search for “a magic bullet,” “an easy way out,” or as David says, “a shortcut.” Instead of spending some time learning about how people make decisions, why […]