FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 16, 2010
Top Legal Social Media Experts to Advise Lawyers on Building Their Practices
Held at Georgetown University Hotel, MyLegal.com upcoming conference presents attendees with unparalleled legal social media training from industry experts
Washington, D.C.— Lawyers will get a first-ever opportunity to hear recognized legal social media experts discuss how to strategically use online social media platforms such as Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter to build their legal practice. Just as important, lawyers will also learn how to navigate the unique challenges of this world from the standpoint of ethics, compliance and liability.
MyLegal.com, the first online networking resource exclusively for legal professionals, is presenting “The Case for Social Media: Managing Your Online Presence to Build Your Law Practice,” an exclusive one-day conference to be held Thursday, October 21 at the Georgetown University Hotel and Conference Center (3800 Reservoir Road, NW, Washington, DC). For those who cannot attend in person, MyLegal.com will also provide live coverage of the event through SMASH technology, a social media platform that combines feeds from popular social networking sites into one presentation window that will include live streamed video for all presentations, conference tweets, photos, and blog feeds.
“MyLegal.com is thrilled to offer our attendees the opportunity to receive tips, techniques and actionable items of the emerging technologies available in the social media arena.” said Lisa DiMonte, CEO of MyLegal.com. “Social media marketing is a proven method for increasing referrals, driving traffic to your website, and building your law practice and professional networks. Our conference will be of significant value to all who attend.”
Speakers and their topics include:
- Carolyn Elefant, Esq. and Nicole Black, Esq. – From Facebook to Twitter, from LinkedIn to Avvo, from Justia to JDSupra, social media can be a tremendously effective tool for building your legal practice. This session will cover what you need to know before jumping in. Discover which online professional/legal directories are most effective in helping you achieve your professional goals. Learn which social media platforms make the most sense for you based upon your areas of practice, geographical location and your “online personality.” Plus, hear the pros and cons of using free or lawyer-specific platforms.
- Sharon Nelson, Esq and John Simek – For legal professionals, the social media waters are still murky from an ethical standpoint. Our experts will help you safely navigate them. Lawyers and their clients often fail to recognize that they have a duty under compliance laws to preserve data. Learn more about preservation and production duties during e-discovery – and how to plan for them ahead of time. Get valuable information on how to avoid worst-case scenarios including trade disparagement, discrimination, defamation and even bar disciplinary actions.
- Larry Bodine, Esq. - LinkedIn can be a potent business development tool, affording lawyers a unique, cost-efficient opportunity to make new contacts and turn them into face-to-face meetings. But simply putting up a profile and forgetting about it won’t do the trick. Business development expert Larry Bodine will discuss a variety of practical LinkedIn techniques that you can apply to your practice, including the most strategic ways to identify and join the right groups, participate in relevant discussions and send effective messages to key contacts.
- Matthew Asbell, Esq. – Establishing a strong online brand is increasingly critical to business success for solo practitioners and law firms, as well as their clients. Protecting that brand is equally important. In this insightful session you will learn how to protect your brand equity, how to encourage and control your employees’ use of your brand, and how to advise your clients regarding their brands in the social media space, whether as usernames, in user or company profiles, or in posted content.
- Adrian Dayton, Esq. – Tired of social media 101 presentations? Time to dive a little deeper. This session will cover case studies from some of the most innovative law firms in America, as well as advice on maximizing your time with your social media toolkit (bit.ly, Tweetdeck, and scheduled updates), power blogging tactics, targeted content distribution techniques, and various strategies for measuring your ROI and setting appropriate benchmarks for success. We will also look ahead to what technology is on the horizon.
- Steve Crandall, J.D. – Lawyers are now using new media platforms to deepen their professional networks and to demonstrate their knowledge and proficiency. Learn how to create a winning profile and discover the most effective ways to showcase your expertise using social media tools. Find out the best practices to improve search engine optimization (SEO) and the quality of online leads. Plus, gain valuable insight on how to guard your online reputation and the ethics surrounding social media.
- Conrad Saam – Within three years, Avvo went from concept to market leader, surpassing established brands like Martindale as the definitive resource for people to get information and guidance for their specific legal needs. Avvo is very new, very different, very web 2.0, and many attorneys have questions about how it works. Lawyers who attend this session will learn where the information on Avvo comes from; what impacts the rating (and what doesn’t); how Avvo monitors client reviews; and how to gain visibility through an Avvo profile.
Throughout the day attendees are invited to visit the MyLegal.com Technology Lounge, where Georgetown University law students will be on hand to assist lawyers with setting up social media accounts, downloading Smartphone apps and learning how to tweet. Attendees are encouraged to bring their laptops. Wireless Internet is available throughout the hotel and conference center.
To enhance the networking experience, MyLegal.com will introduce “The Poken,” a unique device by which conference attendees will exchange contact information. The digital business card, which includes a photo, name, address, telephone number, email address and links to various social networks, is exchanged when two Pokens are touched together. A digital caricaturist will also create a digital avatar for each attendee. Registration also includes access to the exhibition area, the opening breakfast, luncheon, and evening cocktail reception.
MyLegal.com Conference Details:
The conference will take place Thursday, October 21 at the Georgetown University Hotel and Conference Center (3800 Reservoir Road, NW, Washington, DC).
For more information, conference schedules and registration forms, please visit:
http://mylegalmedia.com or call 253-405-7910.
A variety of customizable sponsorship packages are available for corporate partners. For sponsorship information, contact Lynn Edwards at conference@mylegal.com, or call 253-405-7910.
About MyLegal.com
MyLegal.com is the first social network exclusively for all professionals within the legal community. MyLegal.com focuses on the business aspects of law and helps its members to effectively promote their expertise, expand their reach, and build their business with a simple and systematic method of targeted multimedia publication. MyLegal.com fills a significant void in the legal space with the convergence of all legal professionals in one agnostic portal where members can share academic insights, best practices and intellectual dialog. With its broad reach encompassing all legal service providers, MyLegal.com is the most comprehensive global resource for lawyers, paralegals and legal assistants.
About the Presenters:
Matthew D. Asbell, Esq. is an Associate of Ladas & Parry LLP. Matthew primarily practices trademark and patent law, both domestically and internationally. With a diverse background in the entertainment industry, information technology, and medicine and proficiency in several languages, Matthew is comfortable working with a wide range of clients. His certification as a Social Media Strategist further supports his ability to handle complex intellectual property matters arising in the Web 2.0 space. Matthew is an active member of the American Bar Association, in which he has been appointed a Young Lawyer Fellow of the Section of Intellectual Property Law, and has served as Vice Chair of the Intellectual Property Committee of the Young Lawyers Division. Matthew has authored and co-authored publications and given presentations on the topics of trademark, licensing, copyright, patent, broadcasting and internet and privacy law.
Nicole Black, Esq. is of counsel to Fiandach and Fiandach, in Rochester, New York. She is also the founder of lawtechTalk.com, a company which educates lawyers regarding technology issues and provides legal technology consulting services. She co-authors “Social Media for Lawyers: The Next Frontier,” a book published by the American Bar Association. She also co-authors “Criminal Law in New York,” a Thomson West treatise, and is currently working on a book about cloud computing for lawyers that will be published by the American Bar Association in early 2011. She also writes a weekly column for the Daily Record focusing on a variety of topics, including constitutional and criminal law issues and law and technology issues ranging from the use of social media for marketing and networking to using emerging technologies in the law office. She has authored numerous articles and spoken at many conferences regarding the intersection of law, technology and social media. She publishes four legal blogs and is a contributing blogger at Lawyerist.com.
Larry Bodine, Esq. is a former litigator who, for the last 19 years, has worked as a business development advisor helping lawyers and law firms generate new revenue and attract new clients by devising business development strategies, training lawyers in business development, and using technology to market a law practice. Larry has particular expertise in using social media, online social networking, blogs, podcasts, webinars, and e-newsletters to extend a lawyer’s marketing reach. Larry often speaks on business development topics, including presentations for the American Bar Association, several state and local bar associations, CMO Conference co-chair in 2009 and 2008, the TAGLaw network, ALFA International Global Legal Network, the National Association of Minority & Women Owned Firms, the Total Practice Management Association, the Legal Marketing Association, and the Association of Legal Administrators. Larry has also served as an expert witness in litigation involving the Web and Internet. Larry was named a Technolawyer Legal Technology Consultant of the Year and received the Edge Award for writing the best article published in the ABA’s Law Practice magazine: “What the Web Can Do for You.”
Steve Crandall, J.D. is an attorney and expert in digital media. He brings a unique perspective to helping companies develop new-media solutions to old-world problems. His current interests are business applications of social networks, streaming media, and the use of evolving technologies to deliver barrier-free communication. At present, Steve is Managing Director of ProMotion Arts, LLC, a full-spectrum new media company he founded in Seattle, Washington. Steve earned his Juris Doctorate from Seattle University School of Law, his Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the University of Washington, and an Associate of Applied Arts in Video Production from the Art Institute of Seattle. Steve holds a number of professional certifications and has received many awards and professional recognitions, including the Greater Seattle Business Association Business Man of the Year.
Adrian Dayton, Esq. is an attorney and social media strategist for large law firms. He is also the author of the book “Social Media for Lawyers: Twitter Edition.” His blog “Legal Marketing: Social Media Edition” teaches attorneys and law firms how to bring in more business with social media.
Carolyn Elefant, Esq. is an attorney in Washington D.C. with her own firm, the Law Offices of Carolyn Elefant, focusing on renewable energy, appeals, and select federal litigation, including federal eminent domain and Section 1983 matters. She is creator of MyShingle.com, the longest running blog on solo and small firm practice and author of “Solo by Choice: How to Be the Lawyer You Always Wanted to Be,” as well as co-author, with Nicole Black, of ”Social Media for Lawyers: The Next Frontier.” Carolyn is a member of the bars of New York, Maryland and Washington D.C. and a graduate of Cornell Law School in Ithaca, New York.
Sharon D. Nelson, Esq. is the President of Sensei Enterprises, Inc., a computer forensics and legal technology firm in Fairfax, Virginia. Ms. Nelson graduated from Georgetown University Law Center in 1978 and has been in private practice ever since, now concentrating exclusively in electronic evidence law. Ms. Nelson is a past President of the Fairfax Bar Association, a Director of the Fairfax Law Foundation and serves as a member of ARMA’s E-Discovery Advisory Group. She is a former Chair of the American Bar Association’s Law Practice Management Publishing Board. She is a co-author of ”The Electronic Evidence and Discovery Handbook: Forms, Checklists and Guidelines” (American Bar Association, 2006) and ”Information Security for Lawyers and Law Firms” (American Bar Association, 2006), as well as The 2008, 2009 and 2010 ”Solo and Small Firm Legal Technology Guides” (American Bar Association, 2008, 2009, 2010). She is also a co-author of ”How Good Lawyers Survive Bad Times” (ABA, 2009). Ms. Nelson is the author of the noted electronic evidence blog, Ride the Lightning and is a co-host of the American Bar Association podcast series called ”The Digital Edge: Lawyers and Technology.” She is a frequent author and speaker on legal technology and electronic evidence.
Conrad Saam runs marketing for Avvo, where he oversees the firm’s SEM, SEO, social media, online marketing, email and web analytics initiatives. Prior to Avvo, Conrad served as a consultant to major consumer brands, assisting them in adapting their online marketing strategies to meet the changing market, technology, and regulatory environments of the Internet. His experience includes numerous awarding-winning interactive projects for clients including Disney, Nickelodeon, Lego, MTV, Ford, Macromedia, the United Nations, Microsoft, AOL, McDonalds, Mattel and Napster. Conrad holds an MBA from the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan. He is the In-house SEO columnist for Search Engine Land and a sought-after speaker on online marketing, SEO, and service marketing, and has been featured in USA Today, The New York Times and Strategy Magazine.
John Simek is the Vice President of Sensei Enterprises, Inc. He is an EnCase Certified forensic technologist (EnCE). He has a national reputation as a computer forensics technologist and has testified as an expert witness throughout the United States. Mr. Simek holds a degree in engineering from the United States Merchant Marine Academy and an MBA in finance from Saint Joseph’s University. Mr. Simek has in-depth experience with network troubleshooting, hardware and software implementations, systems integration, and logistical and financial expertise in a wide range of computer engineering designs and solutions. He currently provides information technology support to over 220 area law firms, legal entities and corporations. He is a co-author of ”The Electronic Evidence and Discovery Handbook: Forms, Checklists and Guidelines” (American Bar Association, 2006), ”Information Security for Lawyers and Law Firms” (American Bar Association, 2006), ”The 2010 Solo and Small Firm Legal Technology Guide: Critical Decisions Made Simple” (American Bar Association, 2010) and a contributing author of “eDiscovery” (Pennsylvania Bar Institute, 2008). He is a frequent author and speaker on legal technology and electronic evidence throughout the country.
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For more information, contact:
Kathy DiLorenzo, VP Business Development
412-720-7757
kathy.dilorenzo@mylegal.com
www.mylegal.com
