August 20th Benefit to Support Local Survivors of Domestic Violence

Please join us on August 20, 2010 for  an art auction, raffle, and silent auction to benefit the programs and services of the Portland Women’s Crisis Line (PWCL). The Portland Women’s Crisis Line is the entry-point for survivors of domestic and sexual violence in the Portland tri-county area, and answers over 2,000 calls a month from all over the state of Oregon.

The details are as follows:

New Life: An art auction to benefit the Portland Women’s Crisis Line

Friday August 20th from 6pm – 9pm

Eastbank Commerce Center

1001 SE Water Avenue

Portland, OR 97214

There will be music, light refreshments and a cash bar provided by Clarklewis restaurant.

Sponsored by Beam Development, Portland City Art, Clarklewis, Osher & Bergstrom Law, The Monkey & The Rat, and Red Ribbon Crow.

Please feel free to contact Christopher Bergstrom (chris@osherlaw.com) if you have any questions!

OMLA Auction & Raffle – Thursday, July 22, 2010

The Oregon Minority Lawyers Association (OMLA) is pleased to announce that our 11^th Annual Summer Social & Fundraising Auction will be held Thursday, July 22^nd at 5:30 p.m. at the World Trade Center, 121 SW Salmon Street, in downtown Portland.

We hope that you will join us for this wonderful event which includes silent and oral auctions!  Bid on wine or an amazing trip for two to the Emmys!  There is something for everyone and all proceeds help fund bar preparation scholarships for ethnic minority applicants of the Oregon State Bar Exam.

Want to avoid the lines?  Pre-registration means express check-in, no check-out lines and a good time so do it now here:https://ormla.ejoinme.org/MyPages/RegistrationPage/tabid/137430/Default.aspx

The first 100 people to pre-register will receive a drink ticket compliments of Barran Liebman LLP.

We hope to see you there!

CAN’T MAKE IT TO THE AUCTION BUT STILL WANT TO HELP SUPPORT MINORITIES IN THE LEGAL FIELD? Consider purchasing a raffle ticket!

Each year, OMLA donates all its raffle proceeds to the Oregon State Bar Affirmative Action Program Opportunities for Law in Oregon (OLIO), a recruitment and retention program designed to support incoming minority law students. Please help us continue to support this excellent program through your purchase of raffle tickets.

This year’s raffle prize is $500. Tickets are only $5 each, or five for $20, and may be purchased online or in person at the auction on Thursday, July 22, 2010 at the World Trade Center Plaza. However, only 1,000 tickets will be sold, so please hurry and enter before tickets run out!

You can purchase your raffle tickets online at:

https://ormla.ejoinme.org/MyPages/CopyofRaffleTickets/tabid/224557/Default.aspx

To learn more information about our 2010 Summer Social & Fundraising Auction, please visit our website:

http://www.oregonminoritylawyer.org/Auction10/auctionindex.html

Life Settlement Market Booms

Recent Developments: Regulation and Taxation of the Life Settlement Industry

by Troy E. Thompson (1)

Like all catastrophes, the market turmoil of 2008-09 will produce winners as well as losers. With conventional portfolios depleted, and with some overly excitable pundits sounding the death knell of modern portfolio theory, one aspiring winner is the growing market for life insurance policies, known as life settlement.

Life settlement is the purchase of an in-force life insurance policy by an unrelated investor, who expects to profit at the death of the insured by collecting more than she paid to acquire and maintain the policy. Such a buyout can represent a genuine boon for seniors who no longer need life insurance or can’t afford the premium anymore, and who might otherwise expect to recover only the cash surrender value of the policy. Investors are attracted to life settlements as an asset class for their supposed non-correlation—proponents tout relative immunity from stock market volatility and the uncertain credit markets. Other market participants are less enthusiastic.

Bar Exam Question!

The State of Cascadia has a mandatory organization for butchers working in the state: the State Sausage Symposium. The CSSS takes care of many administrative functions, oversees meat-products safety efforts, and operates various public-interest programs to improve the quality of salami and to make excellent bacon available to all Cascadians.

Cascadia law governing meat processing is very complex and ever-changing: a butcher who has to work with a new type of carcass could easily spend a couple of hours figuring out what he’s allowed to do, what precautions must be taken, and how to package and label the meat. Fortunately, the CSSS offers a book — updated annually — that sorts out the statutes and presents the information in a well-indexed form. Even better, the CSSS has a website where one can “slice & dice” by selecting an animal and a desired product, and learn what knives are authorized for use, any special processing steps, and so on. (Naturally, a careful butcher will double-check the website’s information, but it’s usually very accurate, and always gives good pointers to the most relevant portions of the state laws.)

HIRING A CONTRACT ATTORNEY

HOW DO I GET THE MOST OUT OF USING A CONTRACT ATTORNEY?

Submitted by: Heidi Strauch

The first step in getting the best results from using a contract attorney is to choose the right one (or ones) to hire. Whom do you trust to be competent, fit well within your firm culture, be honest, serve your clients better, and increase your profit? Once you’ve chosen a contract attorney, the most effective tool for getting the most out of the relationship is to identify and communicate clear expectations. This article provides tips on how to find the right contract lawyer and what issues to consider as you articulate your expectations.

VETTING FOREIGN ATTORNEYS

Vetting Foreign Attorneys: How Do You Say “Surprise” in Spanish?
Submitted by: Raoul Rodríguez-Walters, CFP®

What do you know about foreign legal systems and attorneys practicing abroad?

Like most, probably not much. Yet when a client needs legal help in a different country they often look first to their US attorney for a recommendation. And what do we do? If we do not have someone already in mind our inclination is to seek a referral, maybe from one of the list serves, and send it along to the client. We can do better than that. The first question to ask is what qualifies the referral to practice law? The answer may come as a surprise.

LAW OFFICE BOOKKEEPING

Getting Help with Office Bookkeeping
Submitted by: Belinda Bixby

So when are you going to get help with your bookkeeping?

It is natural to resist investing in a bookkeeper and bookkeeping software if you are not required to do so. But the cost of errors and oversights can be far greater. And that’s not just the money, but reputation, image, credit rating, and ultimately your business itself.

You tell your clients that investing in a lawyer can save them in the long run. The same applies for you and bookkeeping. You are an attorney. That’s where your talent lies. You did not put in all of that time and effort obtaining your degree and building your practice to now spend it wrestling with your bookkeeping.

Coming to a Town Near You: Tips, Sites and Gadgets Hits the Road in April

TIPS, SITES and GADGETS – sponsored by the Professional Liability Fund and featuring Dee Crocker and Beverly Michaelis, PLF practice management advisors. 1.5 General/Practical Skills Credits. Includes tips to keep your office up-to-date and running smoothly, useful Web sites and resources, and gadgets that any lawyer can use to improve his or her practice. Registration $15 (includes lunch.) Program runs from 12:00 pm to 1:30 pm on the dates noted below. Check-in at 11:45 am.

This traveling CLE will be taken throughout the state, beginning next month. Cities and dates include:

BEVERLY MICHAELIS: FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT 101

Financial Management 101
By Beverly Michaelis, Professional Liability Fund Practice Management Advisor

According to the American Psychological Association almost three-quarters of adults report that money is a “very significant” source of stress. Add the pressure of running your own law practice, and financial worries can quickly spiral out of control.

How can you get on track? Meet your goals? Create a vision for the future? It starts with planning and a little number-crunching.

BarBooks: Statement from the Board of Governors

Kathy Evans, President, OSB Board of Governors, has issued the following statement in response to our section’s request for immediate action on the issue of equitable BarBooks pricing among Oregon lawyers: