Fashion Law: appreciation vs. appropriation

Gargi Yadav, a 3rd Year law student pursuing BBA LLB (Hons.) from The Northcap University explains the relation between appreciation and appropriation in fashion law. Introduction Perhaps the most clear-cut and significant definition of cultural appropriation was given by Susan Scafidi, an author and law professor at Fordham University, who wrote in her book “who owns culture?: Appropriation and Authenticity in American law” as follows. “Taking intellectual property, traditional knowledge, cultural expressions, or artifacts from someone else’s culture without permission. This can include unauthorized use of another culture’s dance, dress, music, language, folklore, cuisine, traditional medicine, religious symbols, etc. It’s most likely to be harmful when the source community is a minority group that has been oppressed or exploited in other ways or when the object of appropriation is particularly sensitive, e.g. sacred objects.”(1)   Susan Scafidi, “Who Owns Culture?: Appropraition and Authenticity in American Law” While this may appear to be a well-intentioned act that treads on the foundation of cultural inspiration, the danger of such appropriation is that the cultural outcome may one day become entirely disconnected from its original community. In fashion, cultural appropriation refers to the usage of non-dominant culture in a way that disregards its original meaning or fails to give credit to its source. It is not a new phenomenon but has existed for decades. Consider the seventeenth century. The three-piece suit, which is the typical ensemble of Islamic nations, was adopted by English and French aristocracy. Similarly, dandies from the English Regency period adopted the Indian “churidar” into the slim fitting pants. “Appropriation occurs when a style leads to racist generalizations or stereotypes of where it originated, but is deemed ‘high fashion,’ ‘cool’ or ‘funny’ when the privileged take it for themselves. When power is imbalanced, cultures are no longer mingling; they’re being redefined externally

Read More

Take Control of Your Calendar With Outlook Categories

Is your day filled with internal meetings, Zoom calls with clients, and trips to the courthouse? Manage it all at a glance with Outlook categories. Try these tricks, adapted from Affinity Consulting Group’s “Microsoft Outlook for Legal Professionals.” Introduction to Categories Categories allow you to “color-code” emails, tasks, appointments and contacts. Categories carry across Outlook. If you create a new category while updating an appointment, that same category will be available for email, tasks and contacts. Categories can be used to color-code things, and they can be used to filter. Each category is assigned a color. While you can assign multiple categories the same color, most people assign each category a unique color to help distinguish them at a glance. Color-coding is especially useful on your calendar. Setting Up Categories From your email, categories are found on the Home ribbon. From your calendar, click on an appointment to open the Meeting tab where you’ll find categories. You can also find them by right-clicking on an email, appointment, task or contact. Whichever way you open the categories dialog, from Categorize, select All Categories… at the bottom of the list. Outlook contains categories like red, blue and yellow out of the box. Either rename those to something meaningful to you or delete them and start from scratch. When setting up categories, think about ways you’d like to color-code your calendar (or emails, tasks and contacts). What do you want to be able to tell at a glance? Do you want to know whether your meetings are internal ones, ones with the client, or ones with the court? Set up a category for each of those. For example, if internal meetings are yellow, client meetings are red, and hearings are blue, just by glancing at your Outlook calendar, you’ll know what types of

Read More

Marketing and Business Development: Show and Tell

Say what you will, but when it comes to effective marketing and business development, how you act matters more than the words you choose. If you spend any time reading lawyer bios (as I do), you will run across characteristics lawyers emphasize to differentiate themselves. Qualities like responsiveness, creativity, writing skills, thoroughness and pragmatism are regularly inserted in LinkedIn profiles and website bios. I’m all for identifying and promoting the things that set you apart from others. However, it’s important to remember that people’s impressions are based on their experiences with you more than on your words. Creating Impressions Through Your Marketing Activities Over the years, I’ve heard a lot of clients and representatives of the community complain about board members who consistently miss meetings, speakers who don’t submit their materials before the meeting or authors who miss due dates. Your marketing and business development activities have the potential to either demonstrate or damage your professional brand. Here are some examples. Proposals or pitches When you have opportunities to get new business, do you: Make an effort to research the entity, individuals and opportunity?Ask the prospect informed questions so you can tailor your response?Answer all the questions that have been asked?Find out the preferred form or format of the pitch or proposal?Meet the deadline? Presentations If you have a speaking opportunity, do you: Pay attention to the organization’s desired topics and formats?Tailor your program to the audience?Respond in a timely way to requests for bios, session descriptions and session titles?Submit your paper or slide deck on time? Board or committee memberships As a leader of a group or association, do you: Show up — and show up on time?Come prepared to the meetings (e.g., read the agenda and prepare materials/information in advance)?Follow through on your assignments? rticles When you are

Read More

Outsourcing Your Legal Blog Requires Collaboration

Recently, a marketing company asked me to take over writing the blog posts for one of its clients, a law firm that specializes in construction law. According to my contact, while their marketers are “quick to learn, they are not legal experts, and our client has made the comment they need to spend more time than they would like to with revisions.” What I thought was, “Duh. You’ve hired a group of non-lawyers to write posts that sound like they were written by an expert in construction law.” What I said was, “It sounds like you have an issue with this client’s expectations.” Outsourcing Your Legal Blog is Not a ‘Set-it-and-Forget-it’ Endeavor It’s impractical to expect third-party marketers to write as if they are lawyers. Just like clients hire lawyers because we can effectively help them with their legal problems, we hire marketers because they have expertise in marketing. They probably didn’t go to law school, and definitely haven’t spent years focusing on any area of law for 40-plus hours a week. Additionally, each legal specialty has its own jargon and rules that are unfamiliar to outsiders. It will take time for even the brightest marketers and copywriters to build up their knowledge base so they can write more efficiently. What to Expect When Outsourcing Your Legal Blog If you want to outsource any aspect of your content marketing — blog posts, social media posts, videos — expect to have an ongoing dialogue with your marketing team. At the beginning of your relationship, your marketing team will need a crash course in your area of law. Here’s my recommendation: As part of the onboarding process, schedule three two-hour meetings with your marketing team. The first meeting will be more of an academic lecture where you will teach your marketing team

Read More

Call for Papers: RMLNLU Journal on Communication, Media, Entertainment & Technology Law [Volume 9]: Submit by 6th February 2022

bout RMLNLU Dr. Ram Manohar Lohiya National Law University is an institute for law in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India. Dr. RMLNLU was established in the year 2005, and since then, has been providing undergraduate and post-graduate legal education. bout the Journal Committee The Committee was constituted with the objective of promoting legal research and writing. Apart from conducting the RMLNLU International Legal Essay Writing Competition every year, the Committee annually publishes two peer reviewed journals – the RMLNLU Law Review and the RMLNLU Journal on CMET (Communication, Media, Entertainment and Technology) Law. Both these journals publish articles, essays, case notes/comments and book reviews from contributors all over the world. The RMLNLU Law Review also runs a blog which provides a platform for people in the field to express their opinions on contemporary legal issues. bout the Journal The RMLNLU Journal on Communication, Media, Entertainment & Technology Law (hereinafter ‘the Journal’) is an annual, student-edited, peer-reviewed law journal published by the Journal Committee of Dr. Ram Manohar Lohiya National Law University, Lucknow. Through this Journal, the Committee aims to foster the spirit of writing and set in motion a discourse among knowledgeable intellectuals from various fields of law. The Journal Committee is pleased to announce the call for papers for The RMLNLU Journal on Communication, Media, Entertainment & Technology Law, Volume IX. This is a theme-based journal and only accepts submissions pertaining to the same. Call for Papers The Journal accepts submissions from law students, academicians and legal professionals all over the country and abroad in the form of: Articles: 5000-7000 words. (These are evaluations of specific contemporary issues and aim at conceptualizing the issues in a unique and unconventional manner. The assessment of contemporary issues shall be appreciated, though not mandatory). Case notes/comments: 2000-3000 words. (These are assessments of the

Read More

Analog Attorney’s Analog Gift Guide for Attorneys Who Whiskey

This year’s annual Analog Gift Guide for Attorneys Who Analog has taken the concept of analog onto a new path to offer you, our discerning readers, a collection of small-batch, hard-to-find, mostly unknown, rather extraordinary and award-winning American whiskies. Wait, Did You Say Whiskey? I know what you’re wondering: Where are the pencils? Where are the Post-it notes? I assure you, I swear, there is nothing more analog than creating a truly brilliant bottle of whiskey, bourbon or rye. It is a craft that can only be wrought by hand, slowly, over time, resulting in a product where every bottle is unique. Like a signature. Because the American Whiskey Renaissance Is Real You may have heard of some of the brands that have leaped into the public eye in the last decade. Brands like Pappy Van Winkle, Michter’s and Basil Hayden’s. But here’s the interesting thing about these and other seemingly independent whiskies you may have noticed at your liquor emporium: They’re made in the same distilleries as the big brands that own them. They are fine whiskies, but they are just the tip of the spear. Hundreds of startup distilleries in nearly every state are racing to be the next Pappy. Distilleries like Milam & Greene, started by two Texas legends, entrepreneur Marsha Milam and global whiskey consultant Heather Greene. Greene’s status in the whiskey world is unassailable. But you’ve probably never heard of her whiskey, which is swoonfully good. Garrison Brothers is another regional spirit poised to breach the brand recognition level enjoyed by Woodford Reserve and Jim Beam. Produced in Hye, Texas, which is exactly nowhere, Garrison Bros. bourbon is unique and in such insane demand, that its annual release of their signature Cowboy Bourbon is met by thousands of cars lined up the dirt road to

Read More

CLAT/AILET PG WORKSHOP BY IDIA KERALA CHAPTER: Register by 17th December

bout IDIA  Increasing Diversity by Increasing Access to Legal Education (IDIA) is a non- profit   organization working in India which aims to empower underprivileged children by providing them with equal access to quality legal education. It is a student-run organization that aims to train underprivileged students and transform them into leading lawyers and community advocates. We conduct sensitizations across India to spread awareness among underprivileged children about opportunities in pursuing law as a career, select promising students and provide training for law entrance examinations, including the Common Law Admission Test (CLAT), provide financial aid and mentorship to these students once they secure their admission to a leading law school. IDIA – Kerala Chapter functions from its base at The National University of Advanced Legal Studies (NUALS), Kochi, which is the only National Law University in Kerala. The Kerala Chapter is run entirely by student volunteers from NUALS, with an aim to help underprivileged students in the state.  For further details, visit IDIA’s official website here. The Event An LLM from a NLU can be a game changer in your career. However, the CLAT PG and AILET PG entrance exams are competitive. It is important to have a focussed and systematic preparation for the exams. Important areas relating to law must be clearly understood by the aspirants. Starting your preparation early and following the right method of studying will go a long way in helping you crack these exams.  IDIA Kerala Chapter is conducting a workshop where we will be discussing the opportunities that open up after a LLM from a NLU, pattern of CLAT PG and AILET PG, preparation strategies, tips and tricks, and recommendations for materials by our resource persons. To lead the talk, we have Krithika Singh and Dhanya Prasad, who have cracked these exams with top

Read More

Developing a Growth Strategy for Your Solo Law Practice: Focus on These 8 Things

As a solo law firm, you are small but mighty — able to run a lean business operation, offer customized and competitive pricing, and outperform your BigLaw competitors through personalized legal services delivery. Yet year after year, the biggest struggle for solo practitioners and small law firms is finding time to do what matters most: marketing and growing their practice. Developing a smart growth strategy will help you move from survival mode to building mode. Smart Growth Strategy for Your Small Firm If you want to grow, it’s important to understand how to tap into your firm’s strengths. A smart growth strategy leverages your people, processes and data so that you can gain a competitive advantage. Whether your small firm is a startup or well established, it’s important to prioritize a growth strategy that can support the firm’s expansion into the future. Signs of Failure Having an effective business growth strategy will also protect you from some of the common symptoms of a failing firm, such as: Scaling too quickly without the resources to back up your rapid growth.Creating a weak or imbalanced staffing structure that is inefficient, poorly trained or mismanaged.Missing out on valuable revenue because of lack of clarity on your niche practice areas, target market and competition.Misdirecting marketing, branding and advertising campaigns, which then fail to deliver results and generate leads. Elements of Success Key elements to incorporate in your firm’s growth business plan include clarity on your firm’s mission and value propositions, niche practice areas, pricing, staff organization, and key metrics by which you will measure your growth. With consistent review sessions on a monthly, quarterly and annual basis, you’ll have a steady guidepost throughout your growth journey. Here are eight ways to ensure your growth strategy succeeds. 1. Work smarter (not harder) through streamlined systems.

Read More

Thought Leader Collaborative ‘Lab’ Now Accepting New Members

The Thought Leader Collaborative (the “Lab”) is an online training program and membership site that helps lawyers and legal marketers grow legal practices using LinkedIn. As a member of the Lab, you’ll have access to the resources you need to build a practice and grow your personal brand on LinkedIn, including: A core curriculum of on-demand video contentTwo live monthly training sessions (via Zoom) on LinkedIn strategies and tacticsA growing library of LinkedIn checklists, guides and templatesAccess to a community of lawyers and other professionals interacting via a private LinkedIn group Be Sure to Sign up by December 20 These resources and more are available for a cost of only $39 per month (with a 10% discount for the purchase of an annual plan). The Lab only opens to new members three times a year, and is now open for registration from December 6-20, 2021. The Lab and the monthly live training sessions are led by Jay Harrington, a lawyer, legal marketer and author. If you’re a regular reader of Attorney at Work, you’ve likely seen Jay’s work, as he has been a regular contributor of articles for close to a decade and his books are available in our bookstore. If you’re looking to hit the ground running in the new year and leverage LinkedIn, the world’s most powerful social network, for marketing and business development, you’ll learn how as a member of the Lab. To learn more and join, please visit the Thought Leader Collaborative site, here.https://www.thoughtleadercollaborative.com/a/46861/LBRdeMHS The post Thought Leader Collaborative ‘Lab’ Now Accepting New Members appeared first on Attorney at Work. Randy Reidwww.itcse.org

Read More

Thought Leadership Marketing: Don’t Hold Back Your Best Ideas

Giving away good ideas may seem counterintuitive, but providing free attorney thought leadership is one of the best ways to get new business. The purpose of creating thought leadership content is to provide answers, make sense of complex information, and chart a future course for a reader, viewer, or listener. By consistently generating high-quality content and publishing it to the right audiences, a lawyer will generate awareness, build trust, and develop new business opportunities. Many lawyers don’t realize these benefits, however, because they’re concerned about giving their ideas away. When they do create thought leadership content, they hold back. Their concerns are rooted in a belief that their insights will be put to use, independently, by a prospective client, and thus their efforts will be wasted. This belief is understandable but mistaken. A prospective client isn’t searching for a solution to a complex legal challenge so they can implement the solution themselves. They’re seeking clarity so they can assess what they’re faced with and identify the right expert to help guide them forward. A lawyer’s stock-in-trade is providing knowledge in exchange for a fee. It may seem counterintuitive, but one of the best ways to generate new business opportunities is to share your best ideas for free. Free Attorney Thought Leadership Content is Your Proxy A very small number of the world’s greatest chefs, such as Grant Achatz of Chicago’s famed Alinea restaurant, can offer a single, unalterable tasting menu for an astronomical price and pack the house every night. For the top chefs, their reputations precede them. They’ve earned such high levels of trust that people will accept what they’re serving and pay handsomely for it, sight unseen. For the other 99.9% of restaurateurs out there, offering a menu of options with explanations of ingredients and cooking techniques is

Read More