ABA releases several new books

From time to time it is necessary to periodically set out the current condition of the administration of justice and attempt to point the way to new directions that the courts could take to make improvements. The ABA’s book, “The Improvement of the Administration of Justice, Eighth Edition,”  is a broad overview of various elements of the judicial system, mostly from a judge’s perspective, and how things have been improved and can be further developed. This new edition is divided into six sections: The Judicial System, Judicial Officers, Court Operations, Case Presentation, Specialized Courts, and Serving the Community.

 The edition is an excellent resource for judges, court administrators, lawyers, and others interested in the improvement of our justice system.

“The Improvement of the Administration of Justice, Eighth Edition” is edited by Dr. Peter M. Koelling, the director and chief counsel of the ABA Judicial Division. He holds a PhD from Northern Illinois University; a JD from St. Mary’s University School of Law and a BA from Trinity University. Koelling was a law clerk for the Texas Supreme Court and has worked in court administration at the trial and state levels in Texas, Washington, D.C., and Colorado.

Another new ABA book helps lawyers navigate through challenging new digital world. “E-Lawyer: A Guide to Legal Practice in the Internet Age,” provides a nuts-and-bolts roadmap for lawyers on how to create effective digital relationships and build modern leadership competencies. More than just a how-to book, its author offers a framework to understand how internet developments are rapidly changing the practice of law.

Backed by extensive research, this book presents a pioneering strategy for success amid the turbulent change that has redefined the global legal profession. To take advantage of today’s opportunities, author and attorney Adam Newhouse suggests lawyers must first face the truth in the new world and change or die. An international attorney, Newhouse guides the reader through this new legal landscape, sharing a firsthand understanding of the challenge of being a global lawyer in the digital age.

“Twenty years after the advent of the ‘digital age,’ some of us think we got it. But placing a state-of-the art digital device on our desks will fool but a few,” said Newhouse, a seasoned business lawyer based in Tokyo. “It’s an age of digital leaders, and unless we integrate digital values and best practices into our psyche, there will be no one to lead. There is no time. Other legal providers are knocking on the doors professing to do our work better. Let’s throw away the tyranny of tradition and engage modern clients in dialogue reflecting the spirit of the rapidly changing times.”

“E-Lawyer: A Guide to Legal Practice in the Internet Age” will help to bring lawyers’ attitudes into sync with the realities of today’s marketplace and unravel the sometimes daunting and unfamiliar legal landscape of the internet age. After reading this guide, for instance, lawyers will know how to navigate the new paradigm of law practice; create successful digital relationships; and build effective, modern leadership competencies.

“We are well and truly in the digital age, but in many ways, the practice of law has not fully come to grips with the new paradigm,” said Trevor W. Morrison, dean and professor of Law, New York University School of Law. “To be successful in coping and thriving in the midst of these changes, attorneys must take a broad, strategic view, adapting not just to new gadgetry but to the mindset, economics and ethics of the digital age. For those prepared to undertake such work, ‘E-Lawyer’ is a superb guidebook.”

With life insurance issues rising, a new ABA book provides steps to gain comfort. For many decades, life insurance was considered one of the most ethical and stable financial services businesses. But this reputation gradually changed. Today, there is a life insurance policy crisis developing, and it requires individual attention in order to avoid the pitfalls associated with lapsing policies and deceptive and misleading practices.

A new ABA?book, “The Life Insurance Policy Crisis: The Advisors and Trustees Guide to Managing Risks and Avoiding a Client Crisis,” pulls back the veil on this looming crisis and explains the solutions for fixing it. The 244-page book covers many topics, including a history of the lapsing life insurance policy crisis, the new combination policies that include long-term care insurance, a fresh look at the sustainability of existing policies, reforms that can help all policies remain solvent and best practices in litigating against the predatory practices of the life insurance industry.

Authors E. Randolph Whitelaw and Henry Montag bring their 75 years of combined experience to explain the intervention process that trusted advisors can recommend to policy owners to avoid unexpected lapse, obtain creditable fact-based risk management and to ensure a favorable planning outcome.

Whitelaw is the founder and managing partner of The TOLI Center, LLC (TTC) and Trust Asset Consultants, LLC (TAC), based in St. Louis; and Montag, a principal of the TOLI Center East, which has offices in Long Island, N.Y., and New York City, has been in practice since 1976.