2007-2008
Solo and Small Firm
Section Council

Chairperson
William N. Nettles
Sanders & Nettles, LLC
914 Richland St., Ste. A-102
Columbia, SC 29201
(T) 803-779-9966 (F) 803-256-2302
bill@sandersnettles.com

Chairperson-Elect
Däna E. Wilkinson
Law Office of Däna Wilkinson
365 C East Blackstock Rd.
Spartanburg, SC 29304
(T) 864-574-7944 (F) 864-574-7531
danawilkinson@danawilkinsonlaw.com

Section Delegate
Aaron J. Kozloski
Capitol Counsel, LLC
P.O. Box 11902, Capitol Station
Columbia, SC 29211
(T) 803-748-1320 (F) 803-255-7074
aaron@capitolcounsel.us

Council Members

Nancy E. Johnson (exp. 2009)
Law Office of Nancy E. Johnson, LLC
1728 Main St., Ste. 104
Columbia, SC 29202-0146
(T) 803-343-3424 (F) 803-656-0510
nej@njohnson-bankruptcy.com

Linda Farron Knapp (exp. 2010)
Linda Farron Knapp, P.C.
P.O. Box 714
Barnwell, SC 29812
(T) 803-541-7676 (F) 803-541-7677
lfknapp@bellsouth.net

Ken H. Lester (exp. 2009)
Lester & Hendrix
1901 Gadsden St.
Columbia, SC 29201
(T) 803-252-4700 (F) 803-252-0333
klester33@aol.com

Sheryl Sisk Schelin (exp. 2010)
The Law Office of Sheryl Sisk Schelin
730 Main St., #358
N. Myrtle Beach, SC 29582
(T) 843-283-4840 (F) 866-641-2930
sheryl@schelinlaw.com

Letter from the Staff Liaison
Courtney Kennaday
pmap@scbar.org

Time to Sign Up for the Section
License fee renewal time is almost here! This is your easiest opportunity to sign up again for the Solo & Small Firm Section of the S.C. Bar. For just $20 more a year, you will be able to participate in Section-only advantages, such as the Small Firm Practice Area Directory and the Solo & Small Firm listserv. Just select Solo & Small Firm from the list of activities. Look for your license fee statement in the mail soon!

2009 S.C. Bar Convention—It’s sooner than you think!
The S.C. Bar Convention will undergo a change in scenery this year. The 2009 Convention will be held in Myrtle Beach at the Marriott Resort at Grande Dunes January 22-25. Therefore, it is fitting that the Solo & Small Firm Section plans to gather informally Saturday night at the beach music party featuring the world famous Catalinas. The Section will have a reserved table; just let me know that you want to sit there! Please join us for this great opportunity to network with your fellow small-firm lawyers.

Solo & Small Firm Slogan Contest
If you have a short, catchy slogan for the Solo & Small Firm Section, send it by e-mail to pmap@scbar.org. If you win, you can receive one free admission to the 2009 Convention in Myrtle Beach. The deadline is December 8. (A winner will be chosen by the Section Council. If no slogan received is judged to be the winner, the Council reserves the right to select a slogan of its own choosing without picking a winner from the entrants.)

Also at the Convention: Dustin Cole will present “How to Build a More Profitable Practice.” I have heard fabulous reviews of Dustin’s lectures from other state bars, so I can’t wait to see him! But there’s more for small firm lawyers: the Law Office Technology Seminar. Back by popular demand, John Simek and Sharon Nelson will regale us with all the latest in computer sleuthing for lawyers. Think computer forensics is just for geeks or big firms? Think again. John and Sharon will educate you on how computer evidence is impacting all law practices. But best of all, you’ll be highly entertained while becoming informed. I have seen them present many times in national venues, and I promise you won’t be disappointed.

South Carolina’s own Ben Stevens will join Sharon and John for a portion of the program. Ben is a practicing lawyer and bona fide Macintosh lawyer—his blog, The Mac Lawyer, is a must see! Ben was one of the star attractions at ABA TECHSHOW 2008, headlining the very popular Mac users track. If you’re wondering how to use Macs in your law practice, come and see Ben.

I hope to see you at the Convention in January!

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Simple Ways Any Lawyer Can Back Up a PC
By William E. Booth III

While most lawyers understand the importance of backing up office and client data, many find that doing so is time consuming, complicated and too technical. You need to know what to back up, where the information is stored, which files to copy, and that's before you even have to think about restoring when you need to, or for that matter, whether you've definitely backed up everything that’s required. As a result, many lawyers either postpone their backups or are using partial data sets that may be useless when they need them.

It is recommended that a two-prong approach for backups be used. The first approach is to make sure that you have created an image of your entire hard drive in the event of a catastrophic loss, as your regular backups guard against the loss of individual files or folders.

Image Backups
In the event of a complete hard drive failure, the installation of a complete computer system on another hard drive can only be accomplished if an image of the C: drive was made and is available for recovery. You can then use the recovery boot CD and bring your system back from the dead, even if the C: drive had a mechanical failure or you need it to migrate to a new drive. The image program should be run as often as new applications are loaded or updates have been installed.

A good image program is available through a company called Acronis. Some of the new features include a backup onsite as well as a remote backup location.

Another solution for creating an image recovery file is the use of the Maxtor OneTouch 4 Mini. It looks like a small hard drive and is small enough to fit inside a coat pocket. You could buy one of these external hard drives for each computer in your office and then create an image as often as necessary due to software changes. The software included with OneTouch is the Maxtor SafetyDrill software that comes on the external hard drive along with the recovery CD. Maxtor SafetyDrill is a bare-metal restore solution that creates a "snapshot" or exact copy of your entire hard drive at a specific point in time.

The installer is also located on the external hard drive so that you do not need to keep track of the installation DVD or CD. This external hard drive does require that the hard drive is NTFS-formatted. The OneTouch has a five-year warranty, and the software pack has been reviewed favorably by PC Magazine.

For recovery, you simply boot your computer from the SafetyDrill recovery CD, and the software automatically discovers the Maxtor OneTouch external hard drive where your backup snapshots are stored. You will need to make sure the BIOS is set to boot from the CD device.

Automatic Daily Backup of E-mail Folders
The e-mail messages received each day should be backed up regularly. The Outlook personal files (.pst files) grow very quickly. A good software program for making regular, updated backups of your Microsoft Outlook mail folders is Outback Plus 6. Outback can also be used to back up your “My Documents” folder as well as all Internet Explorer settings and favorites.

External Drives for Backing Up
A network storage device (also called NAS for “network attached storage”) can be a stand-alone unit designed specially for centralized storage, or you can convert an old PC into a file sharing device. Either way, you will have a 24/7 data depository for backups and for sharing documents, images, videos and other files.

A NAS device should be isolated in a safe, cool, dry, out of the way place to make it less vulnerable to bumps, spills and other physical dangers (plus, hiding your storage device keeps it safer from theft.) Though offsite is the safest destination for your backups, NAS can be the next best thing—barring tornadoes and other acts of nature. The easiest way to add NAS to your network is to buy a box designed for that task. Nearly every PC under four years old supports gigabit-per-second Ethernet. If yours doesn’t, spending $20 or so for a gigabit Ethernet adapter is a good idea. With gigabit Ethernet, a movie streamed from a PC or NAS box looks as smooth as silk, large files transfer at a blazing speed, and backups are faster than with the older 10/100 Ethernet cards, which are limited to 100 megabits-per-second.

A choice for offsite storage is the Western Digital Passport. These devices currently come in capacities of 320 GB, 250 GB, 160 GB, and 120 GB, formatted for PC or Mac. This device has built-in software for synchronizing backup files. This is a quicker method of creating a backup for essential data files. This device can be stored in a hardcover case and then kept in an offsite location. The device connects to the PC through a USB 2.0 connection and then can be disconnected after a synchronization process. This is an extremely fast update for your backup files. The small unit can then be carried home for an offsite backup solution.

A recent product called Windows Home Server (WHS) was developed by Microsoft. HP sells an appliance that includes WHS called HP MediaSmart Server. This device will allow the automatic backing up of crucial files as well as an image file.

The HP MediaSmart Server and WHS should be considered for use in the small law office for backup in a firm with 10 or fewer computers. The backup procedure is very simple, and each computer on the network will be backed up each night. The backup program is unique in that a file that is located on several computers will only be backed up one time to save space. It is truly an automated “no touch” backup system that allows you to easily restore the entire computer or an individual file or folder to a previous point in time. The backup solution also is innovative in that the backup is made of only data that has not already been backed up before. The storage capability allows the addition of hard drives by opening up the front of the case and inserting a SATA drive.

Using Old System as a Storage Device
Instead of donating your old system when you upgrade to a new model, re-task it as a network storage device. Its Ethernet connection makes converting it into a storage device easy. Don't worry about its slow processor or lack of RAM: CPU speed and memory are less important when you are just sending files. The network's limited bandwidth is more of an inhibiting factor than even a 10-year-old PC processor's speed. If you plan to convert a PC for your NAS device, you must reconfigure it and define an area to store files in. Windows XP lets you share files by simply right-clicking a drive icon, choosing properties, sharing and checking “Share this folder.”

Window FolderShare
The beta version of Windows Live FolderShare allows synchronization automatically or on-demand. The automatic synchronization will allow the files in the library to be synchronized or updated whenever the computer is online. In the system tray, an icon will be displayed that will allow connection to the folder share system. In addition, the folders selected for synchronization will also be shown.

Online Backup
During recent years, the number of online backup choices has grown. There are a couple of sites that offer free online backup to a certain capacity. The monthly charges are now very reasonable, and this is a good place to store vital files. However, this method of backup is extremely slow and you should run this during off hours. One of the backup services is Mozy. Mozy is a simple and relatively safe way to back up all your important data on your hard drive. [Note: Before choosing an online storage provider, make sure these questions are answered satisfactorily.]

Microsoft also has a free online backup system. This is known as Windows Live OneCare Online Backup and the feature called SkyDrive. However, this program does not have a feature for allowing scheduled backups of information. You will need to add your data online each time. This can be used for occasional back up of some of the files. Currently, the size limitation is 5GB. This is a good location for storing financial data files.

Recently, the Bar endorsed CoreVault, an online backup service company, which offers a discount for South Carolina lawyers. The cost can be as low as $30 per month for online storage.

William E. Booth III is a member of Booth Law Firm, LLC, a solo practice in West Columbia/Lexington. He is active in the South Carolina Bar, having served as chair of the Solo and Small Firm Section and as chair of the Law Office Technology Committee. Mr. Booth recently spoke at the Palmetto Land Title Association annual meeting and at the annual agent seminar for Security Title on the topic of disaster prevention/recovery in the use of technology in the law office.

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Rules, rules, rules...
By Richard H. Wallace, Jr.

Lawyers live by THE rules, the S.C. Appellate Court Rules. However, there is one S.C. Appellate Court Rule that most lawyers miss, a rule with compliance that is almost nil.

This rule, and some will call it dictum, is an Official Comment to SCRPC 1.3 of Rule 407 – Diligence:

[5] To prevent neglect of client matters in the event of a practitioner's death or disability, it is the better practice, and the duty of diligence may require, that each lawyer or law firm prepare a plan, in conformity with applicable rules, that designates another competent lawyer to review client files, notify each client of the lawyer's death or disability, and determine whether there is a need for immediate protective action. Cf. Rule 31 of the South Carolina Rules for Lawyer Disciplinary Enforcement (providing for court appointment of a lawyer to inventory files and take other protective action in absence of a plan providing for another lawyer to inventory files and take other protective action in absence of a plan providing for another lawyer to protect the interests of the clients of a deceased or disabled lawyer). (Emphasis added.)

How many solo practitioners and two-partner firms are in compliance? Almost none.

The Bar’s Practice Management Assistance Program, PMAP, has recognized this problem. PMAP has published an “Agreement to Close Law Practice” along with other materials related to lawyers in transition. This agreement is okay if closing your practice is what you want.

The concern is the sudden and unexpected absence of a practitioner, whether from accident, illness, death, disability, suspension, disbarment or any other cause. Rule 31 serves to protect clients as to filing deadlines, the statute of limitations and any other neglect of their legal matters. The PMAP document is offered as a means of avoiding difficult issues for family members to handle. These concerns are valid and admirable.

Many practitioners are under the totally incorrect assumption that “the Court will take care of it.” Closing a law practice—isn’t that what appointing an “Attorney to Protect” accomplishes under Disciplinary Rule 31? The only “protection” to the practitioner under a DR 31 appointment is some degree of protection from malpractice liability.

What happens when you recover from your heart attack or stroke, your accident or when your suspension ends? What is left? And, while you were “absent,” what happened to your clients, your “book of business” as our insurance friends call it, and what happened to your billed and unbilled accounts receivable, your unbilled work in progress—and if you collect in advance, your unearned trust account balances? Without proper planning, your practice will evaporate!

When a practitioner is absent, the concerns should be protection of client rights and avoidance of professional liability, but they also should be about keeping the practice together. Having a partner helps, but a partnership is a lot like a marriage—do you want to “marry” a partner just to deal with your possible sudden absence from your practice?

Solo and small firm lawyers value our clients. We spend decades building a clientele. Some practices have repeat clients, such as corporate, tax, some types of real estate, loan closings and collections. Others depend on client referrals, name recognition and publicity, such as criminal defense and plaintiff tort litigation. The practitioner is key in all of this.

If client protection is the only concern when a practitioner is suddenly absent, the practice will be gone! If a proper plan is in place, the practice will be protected and preserved while the clients are protected.

While the practitioner is absent, bills do not stop. The practitioner and the practitioner’s family need money. The practice needs money for staff and for expenses. If the practitioner is permanently gone, there may be a valuable practice to be sold. If the practitioner is to return, the practice needs to be held together so that there is a practice when he returns.

The plan should not be simplistic. A proper plan is extremely important to all solo and small firm practitioners and it should be artfully done.

Rick Wallace is a Columbia attorney and CPA whose practice focus is almost exclusively on assisting lawyers with solo practice succession planning and implementation. His practice focus was on trust and estate planning and administration and on complex real estate, corporate, business and tax matters for more than 35 years. He can be reached at rwallace4@sc.rr.com or (803) 799-2027.

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Newsletter articles

If you are interested in submitting an article for the next section newsletter, please forward to Courtney Kennaday at ckennaday@scbar.org.