The old adage “Write What You Know” holds true for lawyers

When a lawyer gets a great result, devises a winning strategy, tackles an old issue with a 21st-century twist or develops an approach that helps avoid a legal minefield, the client benefits.

A rainmaking lawyer will also recognize that those successes represent an opportunity to promote his or her practice. The attorney who uses the experience as inspiration for a guest article has a chance to attract additional clients, to grab the attention of lawyers with cases to refer and to improve the practice of law.

The work can be leveraged. If the author retains copyright to the content, the article can not only be featured in a print publication but can also serve as fresh content for the law firm’s Web site, be incorporated into a firm newsletter or be rolled into a continuing legal education handout.

In this blog entry we’ll explore the reasons lawyers should publish, where to find story ideas and how to go about getting items in print.

Why publish?

A philosophical riddle asks: “If a tree falls in the forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?” Most people agree that a sound is made but that it goes unperceived.

Similarly, when a lawyer develops a winning strategy or comes up with a fresh approach to an old issue, generally only the people actually involved in the case are aware of the work. Write an article recounting the experience and broaden your audience.

In addition to amplification, an article is online content. Some law firms have spent thousands and even tens of thousands of dollars on Web sites — but a Web site is not meant to be a monument. Rather, it’s a way to communicate. Post the article on the site as a way to keep clients updated. As an added benefit, Internet search engines, which are always on the hunt for fresh content, will soak up the information.

An article benefits both the lawyer and the legal profession. It represents a chance to showcase the author’s expertise and reinforce his or her credibility. It is also a way to contribute to the legal thought and analysis in a particular area of law. An article can help educate young attorneys and the not-so-young lawyer who doesn’t specialize in the area being discussed. Even lawyers who are considered experts in a given practice area never stop searching for ways to improve. Finally, a well-written piece has the potential to influence public opinion and affect the way in which justice is administered. In sharing insights and experiences, a lawyer has another opportunity to make a difference.

Spotting story ideas

Topics for articles are as plentiful as the files on a lawyer’s desk, as numerous as the phone calls that need to be returned after a vacation. The trick to story ideas is recognizing them.

An article may fall under one of three broad categories: substantive, procedural or strategic, and those that summarize lessons learned in practice.

A substantive article might draw upon a brief that’s already been researched and written. Perhaps the issue involves a question of first impression or brings an interesting 21st-century twist to a settled area of law. For example, a lawyer who has done research to determine whether a city could be liable for a collision between a Segway and a pedestrian that was blamed on crumbling sidewalks may have a story idea.

The article gives the lawyer a chance to explore related questions. In addition to addressing the issue raised in the case, an attorney might explore the ramifications of the legal ruling. In the Segway example, the author might also discuss what the ruling means for Segway riders and retailers, whether city councils should get to work on passing new traffic laws and how insurers will be affected.

Another option is to write about procedural rules or case strategy. Litigation is as much about complying with procedural rules and making strategic decisions at critical moments as it is about understanding the underlying law.

One dilemma many trial lawyers grapple with is whether to file a case in state or federal court. In the 2007 case Daugherty v. City of Maryland Heights, 231 S.W.3d 814 (Mo. 2007), the Missouri Supreme Court ruled that although the state court could look at federal employment law cases in discrimination suits, Missouri would develop its own jurisprudence. This ruling, combined with the facts that summary judgment motions are harder to win in state court and state juries do not have to reach a unanimous verdict, many employment discrimination lawyers in Missouri are now choosing to file their cases in state court when possible.

Employment lawyers aren’t the only ones wrestling with the question of whether a case should be filed in state court. After Missouri’s venue rules were changed in 2005, making it harder to file personal injury cases in Kansas City and the city of St. Louis, some plaintiffs’ lawyers who previously leaned toward filing suit in state trial courts located in large urban areas have had to decide whether to file a state court case in a rural county or to file the case in federal court in the hope of getting a jury pool containing jurors from urban areas. A lawyer who routinely weighs the pros and cons of federal and state litigation could also write an informed article on the topic.

The third category of articles outlines the lessons a lawyer has learned. Most lawyers have been approached by colleagues and asked for advice. The same advice that might be freely dispensed over the phone, during lunch or even in the hallway outside a courtroom can also be turned into an article.

One way to convert a mentoring session into an article is to use the numbered-list technique, a mainstay of the publishing industry. But instead of writing “Five Strategies for Sticking to Your Diet over the Holiday,” a lawyer might want to tackle “Ten Things Every Attorney Should Know Before Hanging Out a Shingle.” A commercial litigator might want to write an article discussing five strategies for taking the deposition of a chief executive officer. A mediator might want to outline three ways in which lawyers can make their presentations more effective during mediation.

Getting published

Once a topic has been chosen, the next step is to identify a legal publication that might be a good fit for the article. Lawyers routinely receive state and local bar journals, legal newspapers and magazines published by associations devoted to certain practice areas. Those same media outlets often publish guest articles.

Find the publication’s masthead and locate the editor’s contact information. Give the editor a call or send an e-mail. Editors like to hear from the lawyers they cover and should be happy to talk to you about your idea.

In addition to outlining the topic idea, the lawyer will also want to go over the submission guidelines. Some of the key questions that must be answered are whether footnotes are preferred or prohibited, the desired length, the article’s deadline and whether the author will retain copyright to the article.

Once the editor has given the go-ahead, it is important to set a workable writing schedule. Unfortunately, the schedule of a practicing lawyer can be erratic. The attorney with several upcoming trials on the calendar and a whirlwind of out-of-town depositions set may want to consider hiring a writer to help with the project.

When this collaborative approach is used, the writer works from the lawyer’s notes and research and will most likely interview the lawyer for the piece. The result is an article that relies on the lawyer’s knowledge, research, experience and vision. The writer assembles the pieces in a way that makes the article accessible to lawyers and nonlawyers alike. The finished product should conform to the submission guidelines and should meet the editorial deadline.

If the lawyer decides to write the piece alone, he or she should give the draft to someone else to read or, at the very least, set the draft aside for a day or two and then edit it with a fresh perspective.

Once the piece has been turned in, the lawyer should respond promptly to any questions from the editor. Production schedules at most publications are tight, and there isn’t much room for delay. If the lawyer takes too long to supply answers, the piece may be dropped.

Print publications may also be skipped altogether. The lawyer might decide to take the piece straight to the Internet and post it on the firm’s Web site or even post it to the Web site first and submit it for print publication later. With the Internet, CLE handouts, client newsletters and even blogs, many different publication combinations are available.

That also means plenty of chances to publicize great results, new insights, and innovative legal strategies. Don’t hesitate. Seize them.