Diego Martinez Berlanga and Luis Lavalle are partners at Martinez Berlanga Abogados, the ILN’s corporate member firm for Mexico. More importantly, they are long-time friends, which becomes clear quickly in this fun podcast episode that covers practicing law in Mexico, changing leadership and teaching methods, and why lawyers really aren’t going anywhere. 

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

Continue Reading Law Firm ILN-telligence Podcast | Diego Martinez Berlanga and Luis Lavalle, Martinez Berlanga Abogados

Taras Utiralov is the Director of the Ukrainian office for PETERKA & PARTNERS, a Central and Eastern European Law Firm and a member of the International Lawyers Network. In this very special episode, Taras and Lindsay discuss what it’s like to work during a war, leading an office that never missed a day of work, the very real “war/life balance” and what the future looks like. Please do not miss this 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 | Taras Utiralov, PETERKA & PARTNERS

On January 10th, the Center on Ethics and the Legal Profession at Georgetown Law and the Thomson Reuters Institute released their 2023 Report on the State of the Legal Market, which seems more relevant than ever as we go into a year of uncertainty. The report confirms this (and I’ll delve into a few specific points), but overall, I’d like to remind readers that we’ve been here before – contractions in the legal industry are nothing new. The good news is that hopefully, firms have learned the lessons of 2008/2009 and haven’t forgotten them. Will there be some casualties? Yes, but that’s the nature of business. And make no mistake – the law is still a business.

Continue Reading State of the Legal Industry: No Need to Panic – We’ve Been Here Before

We’ve now returned from our winter break and I have some news – my family has grown by four paws: the adorable Belgian Malinois mix, Nikko.

Who can resist this face?

Rescuing an older dog with almost no recorded history has its challenges – all I know about Nikko is that his previous owner died tragically and he was found at 52 pounds in a field in Roswell, New Mexico (yes, that Roswell – his paperwork even has a spaceship on it). I’m not a new dog owner – I’ve had dogs growing up, and have been a basset hound owner for 14 years. I definitely don’t recommend getting a Mal if you’re new to dogs, and I’m lucky to have worked with a truly GREAT rescue throughout this entire process.

Continue Reading BD Lessons from Rescuing a Dog

Our final guide of the week is also the biggest one!

The International Lawyers Network’s Corporate Specialty Group is delighted to announce the ninth release of its corporate publication, “Establishing a Business Entity: An International Guide.” This collaborative electronic guide offers a summary of key corporate law principles in 40 countries across the globe, serving as a quick, practical reference for those establishing an entity in these jurisdictions.
Continue Reading ILN Releases 9th Edition of Corporate Publication, Offering a Summary of Key Corporate Law Principles in 40 Countries

Guide number 2 is out this week, and it’s our Real Estate Guide!

The International Lawyers Network’s Real Estate Specialty Group is excited to announce the seventh release of its real estate publication, “Buying & Selling Real Estate: An International Guide.” This collaborative electronic guide offers a summary of key real estate law principles in 30 jurisdictions across the globe, serving as a quick, practical reference for those buying and selling real estate in these locations.
Continue Reading ILN Releases 7th Edition of Real Estate Publication, Offering a Summary of Key Real Estate Law Principles in 30 Jurisdictions

As someone with a MAJOR type-A personality (ask anyone who knows me), I am a wee bit of a workaholic. This might sound noble, but I assure you, it isn’t. 

Over the past three years, I’ve been caught up short by my own workaholism more than once, and the way in which it does not serve me as a good business practice. I’ve had many, many conversations with others in the legal profession who are in the same boat – and I think we’ve also learned that remote work (which has offered many people a greater work/life balance – whatever that is) can help us to achieve a little more peace. But so many of us are still really burned out.
Continue Reading Burnout is Not Good for Business…But Self-Care Is

It’s December and we’re in the home stretch of the year. Everyone I talk to is burned the eff out and we’re all just trying to make it to whatever break we’re taking – amiright?

So I’m guessing you DO NOT want to read another cheery post about how to finish the year out strong and nail those BD goals.

But what if you could fake until you make it?

Listen, if you want to do absolutely nothing until next year, I’m not going to tell anyone. That’s fine and totally on you.

But if you want to get a couple of things done between now and the new year, which may help just tide you over until you get some mojo back, then this is the post for you!!
Continue Reading 4 Easy Ways to Fake Business Development When You Don’t Feel Like It