Next week, three legal conferences will be held in Washington D.C.- The College of Law Practice Management's (COLPM) 2010 Futures Conference & Symposium; the ABA Law Practice Management's Fall Meeting and MyLegal.com's The Case for Social Media. Of particular intrigue is the COLPM's Futures Conference which will bring together the who's who of law practice management on October 22 and 23 at the American University Washington College of Law. This is only the second year that the COLPM Conference is open to the public. The conference theme is "1, 2, 3, RESET: Getting Back to the NEW Business of Practicing Law". Here's more info from COLPM… 

"It's time to turn the dial to 'reset' and, starting now, do things differently in the business of practicing law! The worst is over and as businesses of every type pick themselves up, dust themselves off and forge surprising new routes for the future. 

The College of Law Practice Management invites you to attend the 2010 Annual Conference at American University Washington College of Law to hear how other lawyers and law firms are breaking that horrible precedent habit. You'll want to be there as assumption-changing speakers explore and predict ways in which the legal enterprise will "reset" after two years of upheaval. Small group discussion sessions will get up close and personal about what's really happening in law offices around the globe. You'll come away with a list of ways in which your firm can press the reset button and set out in new more profitable directions."

If you aren't familiar with The College of Law Practice Management, it is an honorary organization that recognizes distinguished law practice management professionals who have made extraordinary contributions to the field. The list of Fellows is a roster of who’s who in the global law practice management world. In addition, the InnovAction Award winners are being recognized at the event.

REGISTRATION
Below is information on the sessions and speakers. InsideLegal will be onsite covering the event so stay tuned. Register at the conference site and select the option for "ALA, LMA or ILTA member ($495)" to take advantage of InsideLegal's partner rate. For questions on the event, email COLPM Administrator Karen Rosen or contact her at 720-271-7015. 

CONFERENCE SESSIONS AND SPEAKERS

The Effect of the Growing Interdependence of the Capital Markets on the Legal Industry
For decades, top law firms striving to achieve global preeminence have migrated to New York and London in search of the best corporate work, particularly to build strong capital markets practices. But global capital flows indicate that the sources of capital are rapidly dispersing. Sovereign funds, private equity and emerging financial centers in the BRIC countries, particularly China, are growth strategy game-changers, creating opportunities and challenges in the quest for market leadership.

• Peter Zeughauser, Zeughauser Group LLC

Developing and Choosing Leaders for the New Generation and Beyond
Law firms determined to do things differently will require leaders equipped to turn resistance into teamwork. This session explores where the new leaders will come from and how some firms are grooming them for the task.

• Moderator: Harry Trueheart, Nixon Peabody
• Maggie Callicrate, Pierce Atwood
• Roland Smith, Center for Creative Leadership
• Patrick McKenna, Law Firm Strategy and Practice Management Consultant

A Sea of Change in London
How equity investments, alternative business structures and outcome-based regulation are rewriting the rules of the law business in England, Australia and soon … everywhere.

• Simon Chester, Heenan Blaikie

Law Firms with a Mission
Firms and clients commit themselves to pro bono activity, to diversity in the workplace, to community support, sustainability initiatives and more. Why do they do it and what are the outcomes?

• Moderator: John Michalik, Association of Legal Administrators – retired
• John Kirk, Manko, Gold, Katcher & Fox, LLP
• Ronald Martin, Holland & Hart LLP – retired
• Kendal Tyre, Nixon Peabody

Social Media: the Ultimate Business Development Tool or a Huge Waste of Time?
Social media is hot. Staid law firms are opening their firewalls and venturing into the fray. Is there a legitimate commercial aspect to this? Our experts say “yes” and promise you’ll walk away from this session to implement a social media strategy that will change everything.

• Moderator: Dan Pinnington, PracticePro
• Steve Matthews, Stem Legal
• Timothy Corcoran, Hubbard One

Inside the New Law Firm
We are outsourcing legal and support work, modifying fee-setting methods, replacing people and paper with technology and just basically upending the way we do our work.

• Moderator: K. William Gibson, Arbitrator/Mediator
• Patrick Lamb, Valorm Law Group
• Mark Robertson, Robertson & Williams
• Susan Saltonstall Duncan, RainMaking Oasis, Inc.

Hitting the Reset Button
Knowledge tools, elawyering, unbundling and more…technology lets lawyers work smarter, find and serve new markets and expand access to justice for real people and institutions.

• Moderator: Ron Staudt, Center for Access to Justice & Technology
• Marc Lauritsen, "The Lawyer’s Guide to Working Smarter with Knowledge Tools"
• Richard Granat, Directlaw, Inc. & MyLawyer.com
• Will Hornsby, ABA Standing Committee on Delivery of Legal Services

60 Tips in 60 Minutes
Get rapid fire proven tips from College Fellows on how they have pressed the reset button and what changes they are making to improve the business of practicing law.

• Mark Tamminga – Management Tips
• Ann Lee Gibson – Marketing Tips
• Tom Grella – Finance Tips
• Reid Trautz – Technology Tips

Now What?
Aric Press, Editor at American Lawyer Media puts together a “to do list” for the law practice entrepreneur.