Brendah Mpanga is the founding partner of BNM Advocates in Kampala, Uganda, which is also one of the ILN member firms. In this episode, Brendah and Lindsay discuss the deep gender inequalities that African women are facing, as laid bare by the pandemic, the steps that the government and powerful women leaders have taken to rectify those inequalities, and how Brendah, as a leader herself, of a primarily female firm, has navigated some challenging times. This is a not-to-be-missed episode!

You can listen to the podcast here, or we’ve provided a transcript of the highlights below.

Continue Reading Law Firm ILN-telligence Podcast | Brendah Mpanga, BNM Advocates

I am blessed with four of the best nieces and the best nephew around (and I will fight you on this).

Weekly, I have video chats with the two oldest ones, who are 13 (almost 14) and 11 (separately, because, teens/tweens).

The other day, 13 and I were talking about how she had to give a speech to her whole school (about 200 kids) because last year, she created a recycling program. Somehow, her school didn’t already have one, and she noticed that and decided they needed one. Uh, yeah, she’s amazing. So she rounded up some kids in her class, told them they could miss one lunch period a week, and figured out what she needs to do to make this happen. This year, her principal is going to oversee the club (I think because she knows it won’t continue after my niece graduates otherwise). Continue Reading Being a Good Leader Means Knowing When to Ask For Help

Have you ever heard the saying “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results?”

Well, the counter-argument could be made that to get new results, you need to build new habits. It has been said that you need 21 days of doing something to make it a habit – so if you start now, by the end of October, you’ll have some new habits built into your routine!

What do I mean by that? Continue Reading Build New Habits to Get New Results

Rafael Salaberren Dupont is a founding partner of SyLS in Buenos Aires, Argentina, which is also a member firm of the ILN. In this episode, Lindsay and Rafael discuss the transition between starting a firm and its succession, the true role of a lawyer and their client, and the difference between Latin American law firms and law firms in other regions.

You can listen to the podcast here, or we’ve provided a transcript of the highlights below.

Continue Reading Law Firm ILN-telligence Podcast | Rafael Salaberren Dupont, SyLS

It’s almost the final quarter of the year and everyone I know has been swamped with work – which means you’re probably not thinking too much about where your next matter or case is coming from. We all know that’s the PERFECT time to be thinking about networking and business development!

Sorry, folks, I know it’s the last thing on your mind.

But, consider these four tips to shake things up and see what falls out of your networking tree – apologies, it’s fall and I can’t resist a good metaphor. Continue Reading Lawyers: Shake up Your Networking with these Four Tips

Karel Janssens is a partner at & De Bandt in Brussels, Belgium, which is one of the ILN’s newest member firms. In this episode, Lindsay and Karel discuss his passion for IP & IT law, its opportunities and challenges, and the case that has stuck with him.

You can listen to the podcast here, or we’ve provided a transcript of the highlights below.

Continue Reading Law Firm ILN-telligence Podcast | Karel Janssens, & De Bandt

Martino Canal is a labor partner at Ferrari Pedeferri Boni Studio Legale Associato in Milan, Italy, which is also a member of the International Lawyers Network. In this episode, Lindsay and Martino cover the importance of adaptability and communication, the balance between innovation and privacy, and the value of humanity mixed with professionalism. And don’t miss finding out Martino’s secret identity!

You can listen to the podcast here, or we’ve provided a transcript of the highlights below.

Continue Reading Law Firm ILN-telligence Podcast | Martino Canal, Ferrari Pedeferri Boni Studio Legale Associato

We all know the adorable adage about lawyers that they don’t want to be first, but they want to be first to be second.

Having worked in legal for almost 18 years, I’ve seen this proven to be true over and over again. And as a result, it means that we can learn a lot from what our competitors are doing. It doesn’t mean that we copy them, by any means, but it does mean that when we ask ourselves some challenging questions in the context of our own firm or business activities, we can improve our own goals and focus.

I’ve found there are four key questions that we can ask about our competitors that help us identify what we could be strengthening in our own firms and businesses, and when we review these regularly, we can stay ahead of the marketplace. As a note, when you’re reviewing your competitors, you want to limit this to 3-5 of them, since these are in-depth tactics. Continue Reading Four Key Questions to Ask About Your Competitors

Can Natan is a founding partner of Özcan & Natan Attorney Partnership in Istanbul, Turkey, which is also a member of the International Lawyers Network. In this episode, Lindsay and Can discuss the challenges of the last year, what most people misunderstand about the practice of law, and what has been most valuable about the firm’s membership in the ILN.

You can listen to the podcast here, or we’ve provided a transcript of the highlights below. Continue Reading Law Firm ILN-telligence Podcast | Özcan & Natan Attorney Partnership

It’s the dregs of August. It’s hot and humid. You may be in the office or you may not be. But if you are, this may be the time of year when you start to feel…stuck.

August is like the 4 pm of the day, the Sunday of the week, and while there are beautiful descriptions of how to languish in a porch rocker, listening to the crickets and cicadas while sipping a cool drink as you watch the condensation slowly make its way down the glass…I am not an August person.

Also, some of us may be stuck in the frozen tundra of an air-conditioned office and not sitting languorously anywhere and so the need to feel “unstuck” is a very real one – alas, for me, my home office is the hottest room in my house, so that’s not me either. I’m more like an office hobbit, hunched in front of my laptop, dreaming of crisp fall days and pumpkin-spiced lattes (only a week away!).

But, I digress. Continue Reading Two Ways to Become Unstuck