On more than one occasion, clients have complained to me about what happens after the outsourcing contract is negotiated. The customer or service provider is sobering up from the euphoria brought on by signing the contract, often after months of intense, complicated discussions. They are starting to grapple with the overpowering reality of managing a complex outsourcing relationship on a day-to-day basis. That is exactly the moment when large components of the negotiating team disappear, usually including the lawyers who have supported the delivery organization throughout the contract negotiations. Members of the delivery team aren’t lawyers, but they are left . . . [more]

Actually, it’s this fortnight’s biotech highlights as we catch up from the long weekend. Like everything else in this feels like 35° summer, the biotech market freeze is melting a bit. Ontario in particular has been heating up lately, thanks to two government funding initiatives:

The Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario), which gave BDC $50 million for Ontario tech investments last year, has allocated $45 million this year to the NRC’s Industrial Research Assistance Program (IRAP). The NRC-IRAP program has been active in funding life science companies, so this money seems likely to provide a . . . [more]

One of the biggest “aha” moments of my life happened in a self-development course in my mid-30’s when I realized that I didn’t have to practice law like a man in order to be successful. I could be feminine and still be taken seriously. This realization was enormously liberating, as I was able to relax in my own skin and stop trying to be someone I wasn’t. I discovered that a more collaborative and “softer” approach in negotiations or when dealing with opposing counsel was more successful for me than the aggressive male style I had been trying to emulate. . . . [more]

The Canadian Section of the International Commission of Jurists is comprised of approximately 600 judges, lawyers, law professors, and law students from across Canada who support the Rule of Law, Human Rights, and Judicial Independence, internationally as well as nationally. It operates under the umbrella of the International Commission of Jurists based in Geneva. Justices Ian Binnie of the SCC and Michele Rivet of Quebec are Commissioners to the ICJ representing Canada.

The annual general meeting of ICJ Canada scheduled for Monday August 16, 2010 in Niagara Falls in conjunction with the AGM of the Canadian Bar Association, will include . . . [more]

The International Legal Technology Association has its annual conference ILTA 2010 just around the corner. This association and its conference includes some of the leading law firms in North America and looks at not only technology but also records management, information management, knowledge management, social media and related areas. This year’s theme is “Strategic unity”

a concept that resonates the need for law firms and law departments to unite their technology with the practice of law. These disciplines must come together as never before in order to survive and thrive in the future. Conference sessions will be developed around this

“Sharpen the Saw” was #7 on Stephen Covey’s list of the habits of “Highly Effective People” The main point was that effectiveness requires continuous attention to self renewal and maintenance. The same applies to the technology systems we often just take it for granted. It is easy to go months without turning our minds to the mundane task of taking the time to keep it all working well. 

When an unexpected “disk full” situation arose recently the subject got my attention very quickly. A user “whoops” had inadvertently moved a large number of files. They seemed to . . . [more]

The potential ban against BlackBerry devices in Saudi Arabia has been averted, for now. The Saudi government is implementing a 48-hour grace period until tomorrow while they test out a deal reached which would allow them to monitor messages for criminal activity,

Officials say the deal involves installing BlackBerry computer servers in the kingdom, which would allow the Saudi government some access to user’s data.

Any agreement has to apply to all three of the mobile operators in the country, including Saudi Telecom, which is state-controlled, Mobily and Zain Saudi Arabia.

If the plan is successful it may help . . . [more]

But not me. Really.

The Periodic Table of Irrational Nonsense.

I figure he left law/lawyers out because it/we usually occupy a higher position in the periodic table.

[hat tip “Da Boid O”]

DC . . . [more]

As you read this, I’ll be lolling on a beach in Ontario that’s the lovely part of an island described by some as a sandbar held together by poison ivy. It’s not nearly as bad as that makes it sound. But the shrub Toxicodendron radicans is, in fact, pervasive, and I’m really, really allergic to the nasty urushiol it offers up to the unwary.

Those of us who revel in concrete surrounds and the comparative safety of traffic tend to forget that nature has green claws that can make trouble. There’s poison oak, as well, and poison sumac. Now I . . . [more]

The Federal Register, the daily journal of the United States Government including changes to rules and regulations, is celebrating its 75th anniversary, has relaunched its website and re-envisioned their services. Federal Register 2.0 is organized like a daily newspaper and is part of the open government initiatives under the Obama administration.

This video (which also appears on the new website under “About Federal Register 2.0”) provides additional detail about the history of the Federal Register and the changes:

Also note the website is using images from photo sharing site Flickr made available for use under Creative Commons licensing. . . . [more]

I’ve run across a few interesting tools for making reading the web a bit easier. Depending on what you are after, one of these might suit…

Readability

a simple tool that makes reading on the Web more enjoyable by removing the clutter around what you’re reading.

Read it Later

One reading list, everywhere you are

Use the bookmarklet to add things to your reading list, then sign in to the site later when you have the time to read. Designed for the longer-form materials that actually require some time and concentration.

Flipboard (iPhone and iPad only)

World’s first social magazine

In my last column, I said that asking how many people you need in your law firm marketing department is the wrong question: you need to know what you want to achieve and how quickly you want to see results. I also said that the key marketing appointment is the person who is going to lead the charge, whether that person is a lawyer in the firm, a staff person, or a consultant. The important thing is to have someone making the decisions, based on a goal. 

Once you know what you want to do, finding the kind of help . . . [more]