MTALA Notes

V o l u m e 2 , I ss u e 4
M i d d l e Te n n e s s e e A L A
October 1, 2013
F a l l E d it i o n
NOTES
LOOKING UP AND OUT
INSIDE THIS ISSUE:
Small Town Girl
2
NOTEworthy News
3
Coming Events
3
Chapter Birthdays
3
Platinum Partner
4
Bronze Partners
5
Bronze Partner
6
CLM Exam Dates
7
Bronze Partners
7
Retreat Planning Plus
9
Community Connection
9
Growing Business
10
ALA Job Bank
12
To Buy or Lease?
13
Chapter Leadership
13
Silver Partners
14
ALA Resources
15
Gold Partner
16
Special points of interest:
Business Partners
Appreciation Breakfast
Thursday, October 3, 2013
8:00—9:30 a.m.
Bass Berry & Sims
ALA Region 2 Conference
October 10-12, 2013
The Peabody
Memphis, Tennessee
BY
TERESA WALKER
Just as the legal industry is undergoing a good deal
of change these days, so is the Association of Legal
Administrators. Like any business or organization,
how we respond to these changes will dictate our
success over the next several years. Your Board of
Directors has been busy in the last year or so updating our strategic plan to be one that is focused up
and out, instead of down and in. Our new plan calls us to be more flexible
as an organization, more adaptable. Our mission statement is concise and
to the point.
ALA is the undisputed leader for the business of law, focused on the
delivery of cutting-edge management and leadership products and services
to the global legal community.
We identify and provide solutions to the most critical strategic and operational challenges our members and customers face today, while we prepare
them for the opportunities and challenges of tomorrow.
Through a process involving lots of interviews of members and headquarters staff, an intensive review of our current products and services to be
sure we are delivering an appropriate return on investment for the time and
(Continued on page 11)
THIRTY YEARS
OF
S ERVICE
BY
DAVID EVANS
We congratulate Judi Martin for her more than thirty
years’ service with Gullet Sanford Robinson & Martin
and wish her well in retirement at the end of this year.
Judi is one of the most tenured legal administrators in
Tennessee, and those of us who know her well
respect her talents and abilities, and will sorely miss
her attitude, good cheer and support.
(Continued on page 5)
Page 2
V o l u m e 2 , I ss u e 4
S M A L L T OW N G I R L F I N D S S U C C E S S I N N A S H V I L L E
Dave Evans of Bass, Berry & Sims recently sat for a candid interview with Janice Taylor
The hour I spent with Janice Taylor in preparing this article proved
to be a walk through the development of Nashville law firms. Since
the late 1960’s Janice has worked in and managed several of the
city’s best known law firms and worked with many of its most
respected attorneys. Janice’s story is also one of small town girl
comes to the big city and makes good. It is a good story.
Janice grew up in Norene, Tennessee, about twelve miles south of
Lebanon toward Lascassas. Norene was a typical small country
town in the early 1960’s when local farmers still rode horses to
town, tying them to the barn fence at Janice’s house. Most of her
childhood centered on activities at school and her church, where
she was a song leader. She graduated from Watertown High School
at the top of her class and was offered a scholarship to college, but
only if she would become a teacher for five years. Having helped
raise her three younger brothers and three year old sister, she decided to pursue other options.
Janice moved to Nashville at the age of seventeen, accepting a job as a weekly premium audit clerk
with Life & Casualty Insurance Company. She worked on the tenth floor of the L&C building and that
was pretty high up for a girl from Norene. She lived at the old YWCA on 7th Avenue North for three
years and attended the University of Tennessee at Nashville taking courses in commercial art.
Janice also took shorthand classes at Watkins Institute. There she found a job opening posted for a
legal secretary at Life & Casualty. The job description was written in shorthand and the novelty of the
advertisement interested her. She interviewed for the position and transferred to the Legal Department on the 27th floor. L&C produced a number of attorneys who were significant in the Nashville
legal community, including Alfred Abbey, Allen Steele, Barrett Sutton, Sr., Charles Anderson, Martin
Simmons and Philip Davidson. These young attorneys taught Janice about working with and managing
lawyers. The connections and friendships she made at L&C were important to her throughout her
career.
After nearly three years at L&C, Janice married her high school beau when he came home from a tour
in Vietnam, and moved with him to Charleston, South Carolina where he was stationed in the Navy.
Aside from working various temp jobs and eventually full-time in a one girl office at a men’s clothing
distribution center, the highlight of her time in Charleston was the birth of her daughter Belinda. In
October 1969, Janice and Belinda moved to Mt. Juliet, Tennessee, while her husband finished up his
last nine months of naval duty overseas. She took a job in Admissions and Financial Aid with
Vanderbilt University.
In January 1971, Janice was contacted by Alfred Abbey to work for him as a legal secretary at Trabue,
Minick, Sturdivant & Harbison (later Trabue, Sturdivant & DeWitt/Miller-Martin/Butler-Snow). Janice
completed the trial paralegal program at the University of Tennessee at Nashville and was promoted
into a combination real estate/estate paralegal and office manager, and one of the first legal
administrators in Tennessee. Neither the attorneys nor Janice knew what the job as legal administra(Continued on page 8)
N O T ES
Page 3
NOTEWORTHY NEWS
FROM THE PRESIDENT
COMING EVENTS
With a long to-do list at work and at home, I find it
really hard to take care of the things I want to do for
myself. That leads to feelings of stress, resentment,
fatigue, and a negative attitude. Earlier this week I
read an article titled “Habits of Happy People.”
There was a photo of someone doing yoga on the
beach. I started thinking, when was the last time I
exercised? Or went to the beach? I clicked on the link to find out more.
Thursday, October 3, 2013
Business Partner
Appreciation Breakfast
8:00 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.
Bass Berry & Sims
October 10-12, 2013
ALA Region 2 Conference
The Peabody Hotel
Memphis, TN
The story started with a person who worked a high-stress job in Big Law who
ended up moving to Hawaii for a year. If this is the key to happiness, I’m
sold. I went to Hawaii for a week-long vacation about 10 years ago, and it
was very difficult to get back on that plane. Visions of my own fresh
pineapple stand on the beach kept popping into my head. Intrigued, I kept
reading.
Wednesday, Oct 16, 2013
Monthly Chapter Luncheon
Feat. Alberto Gonzales,
Waverly Crenshaw, and
Heather Hubbard
Basically, the author figured out that plenty of people were wandering
through life, waiting on happiness to arrive once they finished school, got a
job, or got married – but that’s not how it works. You need to work on your
emotional side to create a happy life. He spent a year focusing on himself
and happiness. Then he came up with a list of his habits that contributed to
his happy life.
Presented by:
Hi-Touch Business Services
The list of habits were obvious once I read them, but I ended up copying
them and putting a post-it note on my monitor so I would see the list every
day. Sometimes I need that jarring visual reminder to keep me on the right
path, and at work, this seemed to be the right spot for it. Some of these
habits are easier for me to adopt than others, but I am going to spend the
next year working on a few goals, and this list is one of them. I will share a
few of my favorites:
Diversity and Inclusion Is
Really About Revenues
and Retention
Wednesday, Nov 20, 2013
Monthly Chapter Meeting
Joint Meeting with LMA
Lateral Integration
Presented by: Synergy
Business Environment
CHAPTER BIRTHDAYS
Express gratitude. It’s amazing how often we go through a workday
craving a simple thank you for our efforts. Tell others how much you
appreciate them. I’m not talking about a “thank you” when they set
the mail on your desk. Make a point of stopping by to tell them that
you recognize how hard they’re working and you appreciate them. It
will make their day.
Cultivate optimism. Some days, our entire firm seems to be cranky and
stressed. If you are well prepared for the day’s work, it’s much harder to be cranky and stressed. Spread that feeling to others in everything you say and do.
(Continued on page 12)
Oct 3
Oct 26
Oct 27
Stan Pyrdum
Diane Kiser
Jocelyn Hendrix
Nov 5
Nov 18
Nov 22
Nov 27
Nov 28
Judy Wiens
Vicki Scruggs
Tim Barker
Judi Martin
Jim Roberts
Dec 4 Dave Evans
Dec 27 Tania Freeman
Dec 27 Beth Newkirk
Page 4
V o l u m e 2 , I ss u e 4
PLATINUM PARTNER
N O T ES
Page 5
THIRTY YEARS
OF
S ERVICE
(Continued from page 1)
Judi was born and raised in Motor City, moving from Detroit to Nashville in
1982 when her husband quit his job at Ford to accept a position with
Nissan; he was among their first Tennessee employees. When Judi came to
Nashville, she was already an experienced legal assistant and administrator
with Occidental Chemical Company. Her first and only job in Nashville was
with Gullett Sanford; she accepted a position as a litigation legal assistant
with Val Sanford and Jeanie Nelson in 1983; Mr. Sanford was the Managing
Partner when she accepted the job, and that positioned her well to learn
about managing a law firm.
In 1987 Gullet Sanford merged with Martin & Cochran to form an eighteen
attorney law firm, being a good sized law firm in Nashville at the time. Jack
Robinson, Sr. was elected Managing Partner, and he and Mr. Sanford
quickly asked Judi if she would be interested in managing the administrative side of the firm. Judi accepted the position, not fully understanding
exactly what the position entailed, and has been busily engaged as their
administrator ever since. The opportunities GSRM gave her were more than
she ever dreamed and she is grateful to each of her managing partners for
their trust, encouragement and confidence in her. So many changes, so
many challenges, yet so rewarding time and time again.
In her thirty years at Gullet Sanford, Judi watched
Judi describes her
the firm grow from a small twelve attorney law
largest successes as
firm to a highly successful thirty attorney law firm
an administrator
that is poised to continue growing. During her
being based on her
tenure as legal administrator she has moved the
ALA friendships and
firm twice, most recently to the 17th floor of the
business partner
Pinnacle Tower; the offices are well-designed,
functional and beautiful.
relationships
Judi describes her largest successes as an administrator being based on
her ALA friendships and business partner relationships. Judi indicated that
her business partners, many of whom are MTALA/ALA supporters, have
been especially helpful in learning about available services, cost control and
providing the best services or products for her attorneys; many of them
moved beyond providing services to become valuable advisors. She has
maintained relationships with many of these partners for nearly all of her
professional career, and many have become close friends.
Judi developed a strong relationship with many of her fellow administrators
in ALA. In small to medium sized firms most of the people are either
attorneys or legal assistants, so there is no peer group for the legal administrator to talk or socialize with; it can be a sometimes lonely and isolated job.
(Continued on page 6)
The MTALA welcomes
two new Bronze
Business Partners.
Go to www.mtala.org
for more information.
N O T ES
THIRTY YEARS
Page 6
OF
S ERVICE
(Continued from page 5)
Her local ALA peers became her sounding board, her advisors and her
She wanted everyone
friends. The MTALA group will always hold a special spot in Judi’s heart
to be a success and
and she will be forever grateful for each and every member. She espeworked with them to
cially remembers in those early years that Teresa Walker at Waller,
achieve that goal
Janice Taylor with Cornelius Collins, Dave Evans at Bass, and former
member Betty Oakley willingly gave of their time to her in those first
months as a legal administrator providing advice and direction about how to best support her law firm
and how to avoid those hidden “landmines.”
With the advice of her friends and vendors, there was not much that Judi did not master in her job;
however, she said that the people side of managing a law firm and getting everyone to “play nice”
presented some of the greatest challenges. She wanted everyone to be a success and worked with
them to achieve that goal, but not everyone has what it takes to be a success in this demanding
industry. She indicated that even with many years’ practice, it never became any easier when telling
someone that there were better alternatives for them in life than working at the firm.
Judi was also a long term ALA Chapter member, served as President of the Chapter in 2002 and served
at various times in other capacities as Vice-President, Secretary, Nominating Committee, Community
Challenge Committee, Vendor Relations Committee and Past President’s Council.
I asked Judi why she wanted to retire when she was so young; it would have been easy for her to work
for her firm another five or ten years, and they wanted her to do so. She gave me two pretty sound
reasons. First, the firm is at a good place where she feels it could
easily make the transition without too much problem. The firm is in
With the advice of her
great new office space, is poised for growth, is very solid and stable,
friends and vendors, there and has great group of attorneys and staff. The firm is in a great
was not much that Judi did position for the next decade, and Judi expressed excitement about
the changes a new administrator with new ideas, background and
not master in her job
energy might help the firm accomplish over the next several years.
(Continued on page 7)
BRONZE PARTNER
N O T ES
Page 7
THIRTY YEARS
OF
S E RV I C E
(Continued from page 6)
The second (and most important) reason Judi wants to
retire now is her five year old grandson Cooper in
Atlanta. Judi and her husband both worked as their
son was growing up, and now she wants to move to
Atlanta and be a large part of her grandson’s life. Her
son and daughter-in-law are already planning for
Cooper to have an every Friday night sleepover at Judi’s
once she finds a new home in Atlanta! Being in a fortunate position, the timing was right to take that road to
retirement. It will, however, be bittersweet to walk
away from a job she still loves and a firm she loves too!
As Judi said in her interview, being a legal administrator can be a lonely and
difficult job; however, with the wonderful members of our ALA Chapter, the
hardest part will be saying goodbye to such a fabulous group of people. She
encourages everyone to be more active in ALA, become an officer, and attend the various ALA conferences so they can be the lucky one to find out in
person “What would Travis do!” We want to thank Judi for all she has done
for us, for her great attitude, for her professionalism, for her service to the
Chapter, and for making it much less lonely over the last thirty years. We
wish you only the best!
** Dave Evans contributed this article to NOTES. He is the Executive Director at Bass Berry
& Sims and is a founding member of MTALA.
Upcoming
CLM Exam
Schedule:
EXAM DATE:
May 7, 2014
DEADLINE:
February 24, 2014
EXAM DATE:
November 10, 2014
DEADLINE
September 8, 2014
BRONZE PARTNERS
Page 8
V o l u m e 1 , I ss u e 1
S M A L L T OW N G I R L F I N D S S U C C E S S I N N A S H V I L L E
(Continued from page 2)
tor entailed or how it was supposed to be done. Like most new legal administrators before ALA
developed, she had to figure it out for herself and by herself.
Janice indicated that all of the major law firms in Nashville were about the same size at that time, and
averaged between six to ten attorneys. Technology was in its infancy in law firms, and Janice’s first
experience with it was working on mag card typewriters. Janice met Betty Oakley in 1976, who was in
a similar developing position with Farris Warfield & Kanaday (later Stites & Harbison), while attending
a users’ conference for automated timekeeping. In 1979-1980 both of these women, along with
Teresa Walker, Susan Formosa and a few others, founded the Middle Tennessee Chapter of the
Association of Legal Administrators. Janice indicated that working as a legal administrator was a
lonely job back in those days. Everyone else was either a legal secretary or an attorney, and she had
no one to discuss the opportunities and problems of the profession with until the local ALA chapter
was founded.
Janice remembers that two young partners with her firm, John Roe and Tom Sherrard, were constantly
advocating for changes in technology and procedures, and the older partners were more conservative
in their approach. Janice was often caught in the middle and described her situation as similar to a
“mother with sixty children” shepherding her attorneys and staff through these changes. These two
young attorneys eventually founded the highly successful and technically advanced law firm Sherrard
& Roe.
Janice left the legal industry for a short time from 1982 to 1984 to work with Sports Industries of
America as their Director of Strategic Planning. Late in 1984, she left with its founder to start
Baldridge Development Company, which built several residential projects and was successful until the
bottom fell out of the real estate market in 1986. At that point, Janice interviewed with several firms
about their legal administrator openings and chose the position at Cornelius & Collins, one of the
oldest and more prestigious mid-size firms in Nashville. Janice has spent the last twenty-seven years
with them as their legal administrator. She has moved their offices three times and seen the firm
through myriad changes over the period.
Janice told about how her daughter, at an early age, had asked for career advice, and Janice advised
her to go with her strengths in math rather than into law. Her daughter, Belinda, took this advice and
pursued a degree in accounting at David Lipscomb University, passed the CPA examination, and later
secured her credentials as a Certified Financial Planner. She
“Being a success was up to worked at progressively responsible positions at Caterpillar
Financial, Principal Financial and Deloitte & Touche as a tax
me and no one else.
and financial advisor. She later ran a business with her husI became a get-it-done type band, but eventually decided to get back into her career field.
of person, tried to run a tight She asked Mom for advice. Mom had heard about a position
as a CPA at Stites & Harbison, and after encouraging her
ship and kept a strong focus daughter to apply, she called her old friend and ALA companion, Betty Oakley to see if she was interested in interviewing
on the bottom line.”
her. Belinda now works as a CPA at Stites & Harbison in
(Continued on page 9)
N e w s l e t t e r Ti t l e
Page 9
S M AL L T OW N G I R L
(Continued from page 8)
Nashville, and focuses primarily on tax and financial reporting issues. Old
friends still work the best.
Aside from being a founding member of the Middle Tennessee Chapter of
the ALA, she has served three terms as its president, two terms as its VicePresident, two terms as the Secretary/Treasurer, one term as its Membership Chair and eight terms as the Chapter’s Historian. That is quite a
record of service.
My last question to Janice was how she would describe her approach to
managing a law firm and she responded “Being a success was up to me
and no one else. I became a get-it-done type of person, tried to run a tight
ship and kept a strong focus on the bottom line”.
Sounds like a good blueprint for success.
JOIN
TEAM MTALA
FOR A 5K WALK
NOVEMBER 2
@
LP FIELD
for a
COMMUNITY
CONNECTION
EVENT
P a g e 10
V o l u m e 1 , I ss u e 1
G ROW I N G B U S I N E S S P A RT N E R S H I P S W I T H M TA L A
In 2007, the Middle Tennessee ALA Chapter Board of
Directors approved the adoption of a Business Partner
Sponsorship Program. This new venture for the
Chapter followed a year of study that involved not only
the Chapter’s Business Partner Committee but also
focus group sessions with several local companies
who had maintained long term relationships with
several of our law firms. Since that time the original
goal has received overwhelming response from the
companies through participation.
The Business Partner program began soliciting sponsors in the fall of 2008 for a formal start in January
2009. Since that time the program has grown from 11 sponsors to the current 2013 level of 20. It has
been proven that the participating business partners value the personal relationships and the business
generated by our law firms. And, through these relationships our business partners seek ways they can
better serve our industry.
Dalih Suchet with Whitehall Benefits says, “We have had the privilege of working with a number of law
firms in Tennessee, mainly in Nashville. Our involvement in MTALA has provided us with opportunity to
get to know our business partners even better and meet several new legal administrators and quality
vendors as well. As an added bonus, we have attended several interesting educational sessions!”
Tracy Gibbs with R.J. Young comments, “The ALA Business Partner program has
provided RJ Young with a bridge to business opportunities and long lasting friendships. By incorporating the vendor partners into the ALA establishment, it has allowed
us to network with decision makers in a non-threatening environment. We are there to
help and offer services to a very targeted audience. And, the audience is there on their
own terms, open to ideas, solutions and possibilities. RJ Young is grateful for the
chance to partner with the ALA.”
Through the generous support of our Business Partners, the Middle Tennessee Chapter has achieved
many benefits:

Business and personal relationships among Chapter members and the Business Partners have
been strengthened or established.

Chapter members have been awarded scholarships to help defray the costs of Regional or National
conferences.

Chapter leaders have been able to attend the annual ALA Chapter Leadership Institute

Monthly educational programs have been enhanced.
These benefits would not have been possible with a sole dues based operational program. The
membership now has outstanding benefits to offer all its members and the represented firms.
Page 11
V o l u m e 2 , I ss u e 4
L O O K I N G U P A N D O U T , I N S T E A D O F D OW N A N D I N
(Continued from page 1)
energy we expend in producing these products, the Board developed four goals of our new plan. They are:
Smart, Sustainable Growth
Highly Satisfied Customers
Innovative Product Design and Delivery
Highly Engaged Talent
Smart, sustainable growth will include growth not only of membership but also of revenues. Among some
of the initiatives being currently considered to achieve this goal are exploration of a different international
business strategy, one focused not only on increased membership internationally, but one that allows for
revenue growth through marketing of our products and services. Also, we hope to increase our membership in our Large Firm Caucus through initiatives to bring educational programs focused on the different
challenges presented by running offices in multiple locations and countries, with revenues that have begun
to reach the “b” word (billion) level and personnel counts that resemble the size of some small countries.
Also, we want to do a better job of servicing the different needs of our corporate and government law department members. Our plans also include an initiative focused on our membership engagement model
which we hope to include making different types of membership structure available. Another tactic of this
goal is to once again review our branding as our members continue to question whether our branding as
the Association of Legal Administrators best describes who we are and what we do. Having sustainable
growth means we need products and services that deliver high value to our members. We have assessed
our current products and have a number of changes underway as a result of this assessment.
On the drawing board to achieve our Highly Satisfied Customers goal are strategies such as annual conference improvements, conference enhancements, shared interest groups, and a call for presentations. The
Board is restructuring the process by which the annual conference is planned, adding additional programs
through our strategic alliance partnerships with other legal industry specific organizations. At the 2014
conference in Toronto, we will be offering a certification program in conjunction with the American Records
Management Association. Also, additional conferences around shared interest groups are on the drawing
board. The traditional fall regional conferences will be redesigned also. The use of technology in our conference experience, such as the app that was introduced for our 2013 conference in National Harbor, will
continue to be improved and increased. In order to improve the quality of our programs offered at our conferences, we will move to a “call for presentation” approach allowing anyone to submit a proposal for a
presentation for a conference. A committee will review and select from these submissions those that are
most timely, relevant and provide the most exceptional content for our conference attendees.
Innovative product design and delivery is imperative to keep ourselves on the forefront of being the undisputed leader for the business of law. Through ModernThink we have a legal workplace benchmarking and
trends study underway to help understand how to improve employee engagement. We plan to enhance
and expand our compensation and benefits studies. Other changes will be informed through a legal management practice and needs study; we look to provide additional education programs targeted at our CSuite members and Managing Partners. Other initiatives include functional specialty/practice area conferences, a move to an expanded, digital Legal Management magazine; legal management mobile apps; expanded online educational programs and processes designed for use by our headquarters staff and volunteers to bring innovative ideas to the table more quickly.
(Continued on page 14)
N e w s l e t t e r Ti t l e
NOTEWORTHY NEWS FROM
P a g e 12
THE
PRESIDENT
(Continued from page 3)
Commit to your goals. Do you have a long-term goal? Even a short-term one? The best way to
commit to it and get results is to tell someone about it. Pick someone who will check in with
you, and hold you accountable for getting there.
Take care of your body. We’ve all heard it before, but good nutrition, exercise and plenty of rest are
the best way to live a long, healthy life. I won’t be able to work or take care of my family if I’m
not in good shape, or getting enough sleep. I recognize this, but this may be my hardest habit to
adopt, because someone invented fondue.
Practice acts of kindness. Put your happiness into action and find ways to make others around you
happy as well. This includes your spouse, the managing partner, the bank teller, or a neighbor.
Develop strategies for coping. For me, it might be a pint of ice cream and a little TV time. Others
need a long talk with a trusted friend, a weekend craft project, or a hug. Whatever stresses you
out, figure out how to cope with it, or else it will affect your attitude at work, and your own happiness.
Check out the ALA Job Bank for needed resources
like posting job openings for your firm.
Also, check out over 150 career related articles
in the Career Center. Go to
www.alanet.org/careers/careertalkarchives.aspx
for more information.
I realize that all of us may not be able to take a year in Hawaii to find our own happiness, but I bet we
can make the life we do have a lot happier by following some of these tips. For example, I am optimistic about our chances of having a great time at the Regional Conference in Memphis later this month,
and plan to cope with a little work stress by spending time with my fellow legal administrators. Here’s
hoping you all find a little happiness of your own.
N O T ES
P a g e 13
BALANCING THE NEED TO BUY OR LEASE
Your business needs new equipment. Should you purchase it or lease it?
Although law firms face this fundamental question every day, it can be a
challenging one to answer. Many considerations come into play, including the
type of equipment in question, its anticipated use, your current cash position
and access to credit, as well as your business’s projected financial situation. In
particular, law firms that typically purchase equipment with cash or fund it with
a dedicated loan should investigate the benefits of leasing and how lease
terms can be fine-tuned to meet their specific needs.
Jennie Wyatt
President
Length of use. Though conventional wisdom points to purchase for long-life
items, a long-term lease with a buyout provision is a strong option. All things
being equal, length-of-use may be a neutral factor in your decision.
Obsolescence. Are you buying technological equipment or another type of
equipment that may become obsolete relatively quickly? If you expect to
upgrade or switch platforms in the near future, consider a lease.
Mark Tallent
Vice President
Cash Flow. Preserving healthy cash flow is a paramount concern for most law
firms, and may be a deciding factor in the purchase/lease equation. A no-down
payment lease can free up cash for more immediate needs.
Balance sheet. Taking out a traditional loan to purchase equipment adds to
your total debt picture. If debt load is an issue, consider adding leasing options
to your equipment acquisition strategy.
Depreciation. If equipment depreciation is important, full depreciation under
ownership is a clear option. Depreciation may be useful for tax purposes.
Flexible lease providers, however, will often let you trade the depreciation for a
lower lease rate.
Flexibility. When thinking about what to do when equipment reaches the end of
its useful life, purchasing keeps it simple. You are free to sell it, choose to
spend to maintain it, or dispose of it. Similarly, leasing gives you flexible end-ofuse options, such as purchasing the equipment at fair market value or returning the old equipment and leasing newer equipment to stay up to date.
The information contained herein is of a general nature, based on authorities that are subject to change, and is
not intended to represent accounting, tax or legal advice. Applicability of the information to specific situations
should be determined through consultation with your financial, tax or legal advisor. Prior to entering into any
proposed transaction, you should determine, based on your unique facts and circumstances and without reliance
upon SunTrust Bank or its representatives or affiliates, the economic risks and merits, as well as the legal, tax
and accounting characteristics and consequences, of the transaction. These materials should not be relied upon
for the maintenance of your books and records or for any tax accounting or legal purposes.
SunTrust Bank, Member FDIC
Becky Francis
Treasurer
Vicki Scruggs
Secretary
This article was contributed by SunTrust Bank, a Gold Business Partner of MTALA.
Travis Armstrong
Past President
P a g e 14
V o l u m e 2 , I ss u e 4
LOOKING UP AND OUT
(Continued from page 11)
Initiatives under way to grow and maintain highly engaged talent include such things as changes to the
roles played by our regional leadership teams, with changes such as using technology to allow those volunteers to spend less of their investment time on tasks and to-do lists and more time coaching and mentoring
chapter volunteers within their regions. Also, we have introduced the IDEA awards, which will take the
place of our former chapter awards. The concept behind the IDEA award is to recognize ways in which
groups have introduced innovation into our industry. Any chapter, region, law firm, individual, business
partner, or even just a random team of people can submit their innovative implementations for this award.
Also, a new Professional Development Committee will be created to provide oversight of our educational
offerings. We will continue to review and revise the Association’s form of governance to be sure we are following the highest standards for association management. Also, we are designing programs to help educate our headquarters staff on the changes going on in the industry and how they impact the day to day
functions in our firms.
The Board’s goal is to keep us as an association looking up and out, beyond the horizon, in anticipation of
the additional changes to the legal industry heading our way. To respond to the changes impacting our industry, we cannot afford to be focused inwardly. By educating our members in timely and innovative ways,
we can equip them to help lead each of our law firms with the flexibility to adapt to the changes at hand
and ahead. This is imperative.
Teresa J. Walker is the Chief Operating Officer at Waller Lansden Dortch & Davis, LLP. Waller graciously allows and encourages
her to serve as an At-Large Director for the ALA. Currently, she works with the regional teams of Regions 2 and 6.
SILVER PARTNERS
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ALA Legal Management Resource Center
Get all the answers you need to excel by browsing the following ALA resources:

Research Studies........................................................................ www.alanet.org/research/studies/

Management Encyclopedia Articles .............................................www.alanet.org/research/alame/

ALA Legal Management Resource Center ......................... www.alanet.org/research/directory.asp
Browse hundreds of articles directly related to your management questions regarding:
Facilities & Operations
Financial Management
General Management
Law Firm Management
Technology & Systems Information
Training & Development
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V o l u m e 2 , I ss u e 4
MIDDLE TENNESSEE
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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 3, 2013
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