My research into the more than 50 year history of the legal plan was assisted by a comprehensive 2014 law journal article by Jeremy Tomes, titled “The Emergence of Group and Prepaid Legal Services: Embracing a New Reality.” Tomes’ paper outlines the “tortured history” of the legal plans that started in the early 1960s as a response to the access to the justice problem. After battling ethical concerns, the plans benefited from the new model ethics rules in the late 1970s and grew from trade union into group and prepaid plans via employee benefits enjoyed today by some 20-40% of Americans. Unfortunately, the fight against the unauthorized practice of law was battled out, mainly by Legal Zoom, in most states to allow for the web-based, self-service, automated documents required to make the legal plan economical.

Continue reading “Law Technology Today Update – Group Legal Services Association’s Annual Educational Conference”

In the modern marketplace, consumers like to be able to have an idea of what they’re purchasing. From free samples at the grocery store to free 30-day trials for software and apps, the though is that being able to try something before you have to put down hard-earned money will make consumers more willing to try something and hopefully like it enough to eventually pay for it. For book lovers, the idea of sampling before purchasing is a long-standing tradition. Walk into the few remaining brick and mortar bookstores and you’ll see people sitting in chairs and benches reading books and magazines from off the shelves. Find a book that you might be interested in buying and you’ll inevitable skim a page or two to see if the prose appeals to you. And online book shoppers will still be able to enjoy the same sampling thanks to a recent Supreme Court decision.

Continue reading “Supreme Court Rejects Fair Use Challenge Against Google Books”

We end our lessons learned series (co-authored by me and Mike Willee) with our favorite topic, intellectual property (IP). Many entrepreneurs fail to recognize the importance of IP—let alone the value of an IP protection plan in the earliest stages of their businesses. Building a brand, creating a minimum viable product, generating sales leads, and keeping your head above water all push the pressing matter of IP to the back burner. However, having a firm grasp on the importance of intellectual property from the outset can reduce future headaches and chances of financial loss.

Continue reading “Forbes Update – Startups are Personal, Part VIII: Protect Your Intellectual Property From the Start”

I recently attended WebSummit’s US franchise Collision in New Orleans. Note to self: bring along gluten-free snacks for next trip to NOLA! In all seriousness, it was a very slick conference – excellent use of space to pack in 630 startups! 

Continue reading “My Reflections on Collision Conference”

Whenever I hear something repeated, questioned, or discussed by three independent sources, I consider it a sign that I should pay attention, and in today’s case, my personal “rule of three” inspired me to write this article. There are some amazing, exciting things happening in Arizona’s tech ecosystem, but we have to step back and look at this environment from an outsider’s perspective. To draw from Brad Feld’s books, I believe we should worry less about branding our community and instead focus on pushing forward. We should just freaking do it with the “it” being taking care of our businesses.

Continue reading “Phoenix Business Journal Update: Valley Tech Companies Need Less Networking, More Action”

Trade secrets are a vitally important part of many businesses. While patents get a lot of love (and rightfully so), it’s often the special something that trade secrets represent that can set a company apart. Companies take great measures to try and keep their trade secrets protected, but it’s difficult to maintain absolute security over long periods of time; as much as businesses might forestall it, there’s a chance that you may be a victim of IP theft. And to this point, trying to take legal action against trade secret theft has been difficult due to a lack of comprehensive federal law. But with a new measure passed into law, protecting those trade secrets in court should prove easier.

Continue reading “President Obama Signs Defend Trade Secrets Act”

A legal technology entrepreneur and friend of mine created automated intake forms for her practice. Her goal was to sell this technology to law firms and consumers. Unfortunately, though, consumers will not proactively complete the forms. She found out the hard way that she had created a product with no demand. Much has been written on how to succeed, including tips and tricks for all the challenges that small businesses face. You often read stories about rapid growth and startups killing it, but it’s not too often you hear about the unsuccessful journeys.

Continue reading “FORBES Update – Failing Gracefully: The CaseRails Journey”

In the world of films both short- and long-form, you can often see the influence of other works in what a particular artist brings to the screen. Many artists craft original works that still manage to evoke the look or sound or feel of a piece of art that influenced them in some way. In its purest form, many would cite that evocation as homage rather than copying. But in certain cases, mimicking a particular style in your work can be seen as copyright by the original artists, and that can cause an unpleasant dispute.  

Continue reading “Rock Band Upsets Cartoon Creator With Potential Copyright Infringement”

This is a guest blog from Bryan Brewer, Founder and CEO of Funding Quest, LLC and Creator of the Minimum Fundable Company Test.

Continue reading “The Value of Patents at Different Stages of a Startup”

I presented last month at Davis Wright Tremaine’s first Women’s Entrepreneurial Bootcamp and as I was explaining Evolve Law, I was asked how my investors let me start a second company. That brought up some interesting thoughts for me that I did not have time to address on the fundraising panel.

Continue reading “Traklight and Evolve Law?”