Section News

Spend Part of Your Fall in Montreal at the ABA Family Law CLE Conference
Get your passport, pack your bags, and book your flight to attend the ABA Section of Family Law Fall CLE Conference in Montreal, Canada, October 7-10, 2009!

CLE begins on Thursday, October 8, and continues through Saturday, October 10. Choose from over 16 programs, including special plenaries, and 4 sessions on Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART).

Courses include:

*Not Quite a Ménage à Trois: The IRS and Divorcing Spouses — An Overview of Divorce Taxation

*What's Parentage Got To Do With It? Custody and Visitation Claims by Functional Parents and Third Parties

*The Hague Convention: A Parent's Salvation or a Wolf in Sheep's Clothing?

*Fertility Tourism: What Happens When Infertility Crosses the 49th Parallel, the International Date Line, and Other Navigational Markers?

A full schedule with all course descriptions will be available on our website soon.

Opportunities for networking, relaxing, and seeing the sights of Montreal are also on tap. And don't miss out on the Friday evening black-tie optional "Dancing with the Lawyers" event featuring the live music of Blush.

For more information about making your hotel reservations, see middle column or visit the website.

Fall CLE Conference website

Section Election at Annual Meeting

If you're attending the Family Law Section Annual Meeting in Chicago (July 31-August 2), don't forget to vote for officers and new Family Law Section Council members at the Second Business Meeting on August 2.

Meet the nominees

All Section governance meetings will take place at the Westin Michigan Avenue; CLE sessions will take place at the Hyatt Regency Hotel.

Don't forget to join us for the Section Dinner on Friday, July 31, at Greek Islands Restaurant in Greektown. Tickets are $60 and are available for purchase when you register. The Section's Annual Awards Luncheon will be on Saturday, August 1. Tickets are $60. (If you didn't select these events when you registered, you can always update your order).

For more information about our CLE offerings at Annual, or to register, visit our Annual Meeting website.

40-Hour Family Mediation Training
November 9-13, 2009
Boston, MA

Interested in mediation? Attend the 40-Hour Family Mediation Training this November. The program is designed to provide you with an overview of the mediation process, including the various types of mediation and mediators, as well as strategies and skills you might use. You'll learn how mediation is used to address a variety of family law issues, including divorce, post-divorce modification, asset division, and custody and parenting arrangements.

The training will involve active participation in addition to lectures and multimedia presentations. Training and role-play coaching will be provided by experienced practitioners and mediators.

Discount on registration is available to ABA Section of Family Law members. Early-bird deadline is 8/31/09.

This program is presented by the ABA Section of Family Law and Boston Law Collaborative, LLC. For more information or to register for the program, please visit the Mediation Training website.

2010 Trial Advocacy Institute
Mark your calendar for the 24th Annual ABA Family Law Trial Advocacy Institute, May 22-29, 2010, at the University of Denver Sturm College of Law. Those who have attended past TAIs often cite the intensive boot-camp training as the highlight of their career. The Institute accepts a limited number of family lawyers each year so that faculty members can work closely with each student.

We will also be offering an Advanced Trial Advocacy Institute (May 26-29). Past TAI participants are highly encouraged to attend. The focus of the Advanced Institute is "Mental Health Experts & Psychological Testing."

Registration will open November 15, 2009.

For more information about the Institute visit the TAI website.

Publications

The Complete QDRO Handbook, Third Ed.
David Clayton Carrad


Product Code 5130166

A comprehensive resource for effectively handling QDROs and working with all of the parties involved, this updated bestseller provides basic knowledge of all aspects of the substantive law of QDROs plus valuable, step-by-step guidance and advanced techniques for all stages of the drafting and approval process.

This updated edition features an added chapter on current trends and predicted developments in the area, as well as a new analysis of the QDRO Provisions of the Pension Protection Act of 2006. This edition also includes major changes that discuss the effect of the Federal Defense of Marriage Act on QDROs, coverture fractions, and the use of QDRO experts.

Includes cd-rom. More information

To order today, call the ABA Service Center at 800-285-2221 and request Product Code 5130166 or order online.

Best of the List Serve

This month's Best of the FamLawEsq looks at immigration and abuse; UCCJEA; bankruptcy; and international parenting time provisions. Read more about this month's topics. (You will need to log in to the ABA website.)

Not on the list? All of our lawyer members are encouraged to join this popular discussion list. Read more about How to Join FamLawEsq in the Members Only section of our website.

CLE Calendar

Get CLE Credit on Wednesday, July 1 (see below)

Teleconferences
July 1, 2009
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Assets: Forensic Accounting Techniques and Methodology

In family law cases, forensic accountants often "make or break" cases. Income always seems to be lower in the year following divorce and assets seem to disappear. CPAs are uniquely qualified to assist lawyers by suggesting discovery and reviewing financial statements and tax returns. Sifting through the endless financial figures, forensic accountants can make numbers speak their uncovered truth. This presentation describes in simple terms the most important methodology and techniques used by forensic accountants in family law cases.

Register today!

Keep an eye out for these teleconferences:

August 5, 2009
Ten Ways That Attorneys Kill Their Own Experts

September 2, 2009
How to Develop an Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) Practice

ABA Section of Family Law Annual Meeting
July 31-August 2, 2009
Westin Michigan Avenue
Chicago, IL

Don't forget to spend part of your summer with us in Chicago! Register for the ABA Annual Meeting now.

Fall CLE Conference
October 7-10, 2009
Hilton Montreal Bonaventure
Montreal, Canada

We'll have great CLE and social events (as well as a city tour of Montreal), so book your hotel room and take a peek at the (tentative) schedule to help you figure out your dates of travel. Visit the Fall 2009 CLE Conference website for more information.

40-Hour Family Mediation Training
November 9-13, 2009
Boston, MA

See column at left for more information, and register now by visiting the Mediation Training website.

Stay up-to-date on CLE offerings with our CLE Calendar.

Unable to attend a teleconference or a Section CLE conference? Not to worry, you can learn on your own time when you purchase the CLE materials.
See a listing of available CLE materials

AICPA Corner

A column by members of the AICPA's Forensic and Valuation Services Section
This month's column is by Brenda M. Clarke, CPA/ABV/CFF, CVA Brenda.Clarke@CPAValue.com.

Read this month's AICPA Corner: Balance Sheet Adjustments in Valuation (You will need to log in to the ABA website.)

Tech Corner

Understanding "The Cloud": The Pros and Cons of Web-based Software for Attorneys

If you've attended a technology CLE or read a technology publication over the last year, chances are good you've at least heard of "the cloud" or cloud computing. Cloud computing is a term that's used to describe a spectrum of services, software, and infrastructure delivered over the web rather than installed on a user's computer or server.

One of the better-known forms of cloud computing is software as a service (or "SaaS"). SaaS aims to mirror (or even improve on) the experience of traditional software without requiring the user to buy expensive software licenses, struggle with complicated installations, or manage upgrades and updates.

SaaS has proven both popular and controversial among attorneys. While some have adopted it wholeheartedly and swear they'd never go back, others have chosen to steer clear, claiming the risks outweigh the benefits.

To help you better understand SaaS and to decide whether it has a place in your practice, here are a few of the pros and cons:

The Pros: * It "just works." With SaaS, you avoid the headaches of installation and maintenance. As long as you have an Internet connection and a web browser (like Internet Explorer), using your software is as simple as logging in. Furthermore, most SaaS products have been built with usability as a high priority, making them easy to learn and use.

* Mac friendly. Because SaaS products operate through the web browser, they usually run just as well on a Mac as they do on Windows.

* Lower up-front costs. Add the price of software licenses, new servers and other hardware, and the hourly rates of the consultants needed to put it all together, and buying traditional software can be tremendously expensive. Most SaaS products require a relatively low monthly fee for each user and can be cancelled at any time.

* Mobility. Traditional software is tied to the computer it's installed on. If you don't have your computer with you, you don't have your software. With SaaS, your software is available anywhere that you have an Internet connection--your home, a relative's home over the holidays, even the train via a Smartphone. This can be particularly helpful if you're forced from your office due to a natural disaster like a flood or hurricane.

The Cons:

* Lack of control. You, and your data, are at the mercy of your vendor. If the vendor suddenly goes out of business or goes offline for any reason, you could find yourself without access to your client files and unable to work. Similarly, the security of your data is entirely in the hands of your vendor--a significant concern for attorneys.

* Internet is a necessity. If your web connection goes down, you lose access to your software and your files. If you live in an area where your web connection is unreliable, SaaS may not be a realistic option.

* Lack of features. Most SaaS products are newcomers to the legal market, and as such their features are limited. Traditional software developers have spent years--even decades--adding features and functionality to their products.

If you're ready to learn more about SaaS and want to know what kind of questions to ask when evaluating a SaaS vendor, visit the ABA Legal Technology Resource Center's FYI: Software as a Service (SaaS) for Lawyers.

   —Joshua Poje, ABA Legal Technology Resource Center

Ask Us! Have you found a great technology deal somewhere? Is there a technology question that's been on your mind? Tell us or ask us about it! We may feature your info or answer your question in a future edition of the eNewsletter. If there's some other technology you would like us to investigate, just e-mail glazerh@staff.abanet.org. Keep the Tech Corner working for you!