Category Archives: Presentations

Learn More About MILOfest 2015

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MILOfest-Mac-LawyersAre you an attorney that uses Macs, or would you like to be one? Ether way, you’re in luck. MILOfest is a legal technology conference for Mac-using lawyers, and it offers practical and substantive tips on Macs, iPhones, and iPads. It will be held this year from November 12-14, 2015 at the Disney’s Yacht Club Resort in Orlando, FL.

I am honored to be part of this year’s faculty, along with numerous other Mac illuminati. If you have been debating whether to attend (hint: do it!), you’re invited to attend a free Executive Teleseminar on Monday, September 21st, 2015, which will discuss:

  • How MILOfest can keep you up to date on the latest tips and how to use Macs in your law office, for only a few billable hours
  • The risks of falling behind technologically – and why MILOfest is the single best conference that experts both attend and contribute to so they can ensure this does not happen to them
  • How to leverage technology to reduce bottlenecks in your firm and increase productivity; making a measurable financial impact on your profits
  • The #1 business reason why the most well known and respected Mac-using attorneys come back to MILOfest, year after year
  • Why running a firm on Macs without leveraging the best tools available gives you a false sense of IT productivity

Join Victor Medina, Mark Metzger, and me on Monday at 1:00pm (eastern) for this free Executive Teleseminar to learn more about MILOfest 2015. Click here to register or get more information.

The Mac Lawyer Presenting at ABA TECHSHOW in Chicago, IL

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techshowBen Stevens (a/k/a The Mac Lawyer) will be presenting on several topics at the annual ABA TECHSHOW in Chicago, IL April 16 – 19, 2015. This marks the eighth consecutive year that Ben has been asked to speak at “the world’s largest legal technology conference.”

Ben’s presentations this year will cover the following topics:

  • VOIP is Ready for Prime Time (with Nerino Petro)
  • Moving to Mac – Putting Your PC in the Rearview Mirror (with Tom Lambotte)
  • Family Road Trip to Yosemite and iOS 8 (with Katie Floyd)

Because our firm understands the importance of technology, particularly for South Carolina family law attorneys, so our firm’s other attorneys, Jenny Stevens and Jonathan Lounsberry, will also be attending this conference. If you are in Chicago or at TECHSHOW, please stop us and say hello.

Free Webinar: eDiscovery for the Small Firm Lawyer

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eDiscoveryThe American Bar Association Law Practice Division’s Solo and Small Firm Interest Group, of which Jenny R. Stevens is the co-chair, recently presented a webinar program titled, eDiscovery for the Small Firm Lawyer.

Ms. Stevens moderated the webinar, which is the first in a series which will be offered by the Solo and Small firm Interest Group for free via Google Hangouts throughout the year.

The presenter was Kyle Albert of Foxhound. Foxhound is a unique partnership of lawyers and technology experts working together to provide small and medium-sized firms with large-firm eDiscovery capabilities, minus the hassle and expense of in-house personnel, equipment and software.

The presentation discusses the technical, logistical and budgetary issues surrounding the use of eDiscovery in small firms.  Additionally, information on emerging eDiscovery issues and best practices was also shared with attendees. The webinar was recorded and is available here  and a link to downloaded the materials provided is located in the Google Hangout description area.  Stay tuned for future free webinar dates and times.

The Mac Lawyer at SC Bar Solo and Small Firm Conference in Greenville

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SC Bar SSF 2014

The South Carolina Bar’s Solo and Small Firm Conference is being held in Greenville this Friday, and its theme is “Reinventing Your Small Firm Practice: Strategies and Solutions.” We’ll investigate the latest trends in technology and explore alternatives to traditional law practices.


Ben Stevens will be giving two presentations at this conference:

  • Are You Mac-Curious? If Not, You Should Be!
  • Amazing Apps, Practical Practice Pointers, Terrific Tech Tips & Wonderful Websites

If you haven’t made plans to attend, you should. If you do attend, please find me and say hello.

Solo & Small Firm Conference Is Coming to Greenville

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SC Bar SSF 2014Each year the Solo & Small Firm Conference is the place to be for all SC attorneys who are solo practitioners or practice in the small firm setting. From networking to marketing to picking up tips on how to incorporate the latest technology into your practice, you’ll find it at the Solo & Small Firm Conference.

This year’s theme is “Reinventing Your Small Firm Practice: Strategies & Solutions” and it will feature three tracks of programs allowing you to completely customize your conference experience.  With topics such as “Cloud Computing: The Good, The Bad, and The Ethics”; “A Systems Approach to Small Firm Practice”; “Are You Mac-Curious? If Not, You Should Be!” and “Essential Skills & Strategies for Legal Research” (as a sampling) – it is sure to be an information-packed day which will measurably improve your practice.

The special guest speaker, a friend of our firm, and a nationally known author and speaker, Nerino Petro, is a regular contributor to local, state and national publications and has a wealth of knowledge to share with all SSF Conference attendees. He will be presenting three separate sessions, as well as joining the always popular Tech Tips & Practice Pointers panel at the end of the day along with other featured speakers, Courtney Kennaday, Dave Maxfield, Ed Walters, and our own, Ben Stevens.

The early bird registration for this fantastic seminar starts at $205 for Section Members and $230 for Non-Section Members, but this special rate ends September 5, so register now (Click Here for Registration Information).

Review of Presentations by David Sparks

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presentationsWhat are you afraid of? You’ve probably heard that some people fear public speaking more than they fear death. I know many attorneys who fall into that category. However, whether they realize it or not, most lawyers give presentations as part of their job, whether to the Court or to a civic organization. The manner in which they present can affect their reputation. I’ve seen some great lawyers give horrible presentations, and I’ve seen mediocre attorneys absolutely wow an audience.

I believe that if you decide to do something, you should do it with excellence. There are several resources to help you give an excellent presentation, including Presentations, the new Book from my good friend David Sparks (a/k/a MacSparky), which was released earlier this week. David has published other award-winning “Field Guides” on topics such as Paperless and Email, but Presentations may just be the best of the bunch.

His new book will benefit both beginners and power users, as it explains how to create exceptional presentation to connect with your audience, the technical wizardry necessary to create a stunning presentation, and walks you through the day of your presentation to make sure it goes off without a hitch. Presentations is available in both iBooks and PDF formats, though the iBooks version includes 44 screencasts, audio interviews, and other rich media assets to help you make your next presentation riveting.

Even after giving so many presentations over the years, I picked up several helpful tips to incorporate going forward. In fact, David’s book is so good that it has its own feature film type trailer. Check it out below, and then pick up Presentations to make your next one the best it can be:

4 Great Reasons to Attend MILOfest 2014

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MILOfestMy friends at CHL Software, the developers of Doc Moto document and email management software for Macs, have graciously agreed for me to republish their blog post about MILOfest 2014, which will be held October 23-25, 2014, at Disney’s Yacht Club Resort in Orlando, Florida:

For once this isn’t an article from CHL about document and email management. This article is about why, as a Mac using lawyer, attending the forthcoming MILOfest event in Florida can reap benefits to you and your business that go beyond the material covered in the presentations.

Just in case you don’t know, MILO stands for Macs In Law Offices, and it’s a group of individuals and organizations who delight in getting the very best return from their decision to adopt Mac in the work place.

Reason 1 – The rise of the Mac

Macs and other Apple products are on the ascendancy in law firms. This trend looks set to continue with Apple’s continued focus on ease of use and the subsequent gains in productivity this delivers. Even today no other manufacturer produces tablets and laptops that can be so easily used wherever you are.

Reason 2 – The knowledge share

Apple products are packed full of tricks and features that can make a big impact on productivity. But finding the time to discover these for yourself can be difficult. At MILOfest you meet people who simply love pushing their Apple devices to the limit, they know all the tips and tricks to improve your productivity.

Reason 3 – The Vendors

Of course there are always a small number of hand picked vendors at the event too. All of them are like us, focused and committed to developing and delivering the very best productivity tools and services for the Mac user. MILOfest is just the perfect event to meet these vendors, and put forward your suggestions and requirements. I know in our case that a great many of DocMoto’s most productive innovations have come from the people we have met at MILOfest.

Reason 4 – The sum greater than the parts

Mac usage within the legal world continues to rise and MILOfest more than any other event drives the force of change. As more and more lawyers see the benefits of using Mac for business so vendors respond with more and better developed products. Overall that has to be good for everyone.

Begin your journey and register now. To book your place at MILOfest 2014 just click here to register.

Source: “MILOfest 2014 – Four good reasons to attend” published CHL’s DocMoto Blog.

A Presentation on Presentations, or How to Avoid Death by PowerPoint

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how to avoid death by powerpoint

Randy Juip‘s one hour master class on presentations dazzled crowds at TECHSHOW in Chicago and MILOfest in Orlando over the last several months. I’m thrilled to announce that I have managed to get Randy to come give an expanded two hour version of “A Presentation on Presentations, or How to Avoid Death by PowerPoint” at the South Carolina Association for Justice Annual Convention in Hilton Head, SC on August 7, 2014.

Anyone giving presentations in this day and age – whether to clients, groups, judges, or juries – have to live up to high standards. Today’s media-savvy clients, judges, and juries expect clean, coherent, and logical presentations.  Unfortunately many attorneys return, time and time again, to a “Death by Powerpoint” style of presentation, replete with 12-point font, bullet point after bullet point, and text-dense incoherence.  This presentation will explore the art of slide design, the science of proper presentation, and the mechanics of giving your audiences the slick, professional, and visceral presentations they crave.

This seminar will obviously be a tremendous benefit to trial lawyers, as it will give them practical tips and techniques they can immediately implement in their practices. However, having already seen this presentation myself, I am confident that every attorney in all practice areas will benefit from seeing it, because whether we realize it or not, lawyers give presentations every day. All communication involves some sort of “presentation” and knowing what works (and what doesn’t) can be a very helpful tool and provide you with a working advantage.

If you want to find out more or register for the South Carolina Association for Justice Annual Convention, you can click here or call (803) 799-5097. Trust me, you do not want to miss Randy’s presentation, so make plans now to attend. I look forward to seeing you there.

Free “iPad for Lawyers” Seminar in Greenville

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iPadIf you are an attorney in Greenville, SC or the surrounding area and are interested in learning how to be more productive, have a cleaner computing experience, save costs, bring you current in technology, and rid yourself of headaches, you should make plans to attend the “iPad in Law” seminar on Tuesday, May 6, 2014 at The Cazbah, located at 16 W McBee Avenue in Greenville.

This free seminar is presented by Karl Burns of KB3 Solutions. Karl is a local iPad consultant with many years of experience with Apple products and the legal community. There will be a reception from 5:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m., at which time the iPad for Lawyers presentation and Q&A session will begin.  Join other forward thinking attorneys at this seminar and learn how you can better use your iPad in your law practice.

Click here to download the brochure or email Karl at karlburns@me.com for more information.