The Death and Taxes Blog has moved, and is now integrated into my website. Please click here to visit this blog at its new location.
Note to subscribers: to continue to receive updates to this blog, you may need to resubscribe to the blog at its new location. I apologize for any inconvenience.
I've finally finished Step 1 of my probate project -- posting the Illinois Probate Act in its entirety on my website, here. Next up:
1. Putting interactive probate forms for Cook County up on my site. [expected completion date: 1/07]
2. Making another pass through the Probate Act, inserting hyperlinks and some analysis, and fixing formatting problems. [expected completion date: 4/07]
3. Posting an in-depth (i.e. book-length) narrative on probate in Cook County. [expected completion date: 12/07]
I'll probably add other statutes related to probate in the future, but I'm not sure when that process will begin.
Blogging will be light the rest of the week, so as not to interfere with my turkey brining, pie making, etc. etc.
But before I go, let me share my Top 5 recent searches by which people wound up at this blog:
steven+spielberg+cheated+on+amy+irving
health+references+in+shakespearean+plays
federline+prenup+arrangement (and numerous variations thereon)
dumb+laws+in+Virginia
how+can+the+probate+system+be+abused
Chapel Hill, North Carolina-based attorney Gregory Herman-Giddens has started the North Carolina Estate Planning Blog. Mr. Herman-Giddens' blog looks like it is off to a nice start.
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania-based attorney and teacher Neil E. Hendershot has started the PA Elder, Estate & Fiduciary Law Blog -- you can find it here. Welcome to the blogosphere!
And I'm not talking about the Agatha Christie-inspired musical that I appeared in as a high school student (I was Geoffrey, the "foxy Oxford coxswain"). Rather, I mean that I have made a decision to try and update my regular site (www.jas-law.com) more regularly. This is part of my plan (which you can read about here) to establish that site as the go-to place for Illinois probate information. I'm also working with the good folks who created my regular site (Justia) to see if we can integrate this blog into it.
For whatever reason, there aren't very many Illinois lawyers who blog. Perhaps that's starting to change, though -- the Illinois Real Estate Blog is relatively new and has a lot of nice resources for people interesting in buying or selling real estate in Illinois. And I don't say that just because the blog's author, TJ Thurston, has linked to one of my articles!
Just a reminder that this site exists to give general information about probate, estate planning, and real estate matters in Illinois. Because of professional responsibility rules (and the time constraints that come with a busy practice), I can't give legal advice about any specific situations unless I am formally retained to do so. In other words, please don't be offended if I don't respond to your e-mail requesting free legal advice and/or opinions.
In addition, please note that I am only admitted to practice in Illinois, so I can't represent you if you are a resident of another state.
I'll be away from my office starting today. Blogging should resume on Monday, July 24.
I've written extensively about ghostwritten blogs, most recently here and here. Evidently the use of canned content isn't just limited to blogs. In this month's issue of the IICLE Law Office Technology Flash Points newsletter, Alan Pearlman extols the virtues of a product called Custom WebExpress, which is put out by a company called NextClient.com. Mr. Pearlman describes Custom WebExpress as "a unique product that allows you to instantly launch and manage a custom law firm website and includes practice-specific articles that feed directly into your website every week." In other words, you are buying website content from NextClient.com. As Mr. Pearlman puts it, "Like most lawyers, I need to spend most of my time performing billable tasks. However, this does not negate the need to keep my website updated with fresh information. Another way NextClient helps me is by including practice-specific content on my site that updates every week with newsletter articles my clients can understand and appreciate, and believe it or not, is included as part of the basic $99-a-month Custom WebExpress product."
I e-mailed Mr. Pearlman about my concern regarding the use of canned content. I've said it before, but maybe it's worth saying again:
Simply put, if you are using a website to market your practice, then you are at least in some way trying to convince potential clients of your legal abilities. Posting articles you have written is one way to do this. Posting articles someone else has written doesn't accomplish much, although I've heard it argued that you are at least assisting the public by disseminating legal information. The big problem arises when you use canned content and don't identify it as such -- that strikes me as an attempt to mislead potential clients about your knowledge and abilities.
