Thinking about annual reviews causes most associates some degree of anxiety. Apart from the fact that receiving constructive feedback is daunting to almost everyone, many associates don’t know what to expect because they haven’t received ongoing feedback. That’s either because they haven’t asked for it at the conclusion of projects or supervising lawyers have failed to give it.

The recent New York Times article, “Is law school a losing game?” has caused quite a stir in the United States. It makes the case that despite rosy stats from law schools, a large number of law grads are mired in debt without any prospect of a decent law job. However, lawyers in Canada should not be feeling smug. We are face a similar problem here — at least in Ontario.

Working in the legal profession for almost 10 years now has, I would think, taught me a thing or two about client relations. I’ve always felt the balancing of client expectations with the practical realities of lawyering was a fine line that I mostly get right — though when it does go wrong, it tends to go very wrong! But, for the most part, I thought I had this client-relations thing in the bag.

This week, we kick off Arguably the Best, our year-long series on improving your litigation skills. We will have the wisdom of practitioners across the country on such varied topics as this week’s oral advocacy, practising in front of civil juries, tax litigation, and more.

Danny Williams: The War With Ottawa by Bill Rowe; Flanker Press, $19.95; 277pp.

Late last year, when Newfoundland and Labrador premier Danny Williams announced his resignation, it was front-page news across the country and one of the most talked-about events of the year. A few months earlier, when British Columbia premier Gordon Campbell resigned, Canadians asked, “Who’s Gordon Campbell again?”

This is a challenging time of year to write for me at least, as the basking in family, friends, food, wine, and gifts readily distracts one’s focus from the environment we will be returning to and embracing once again.

Intellectual property is a business tool. We know it, and our client’s know it. Generally speaking, trademarks are associated with branding, patents with the protection of inventions and the right to a legal monopoly for a fixed period of time, and copyright with the rights associated with the creation of original, dramatic, musical, artistic, and literary works (including computer programs).

Succession planning is a topic rarely discussed by many of us in small practices. In fact, many lawyers don’t even think about an exit strategy until they have made the decision to leave the practice. By that time, while the lawyer may be keen to leave the practice, the many ethical and practical responsibilities associated with closing or transferring it make the departure particularly burdensome and can significantly delay the member’s desire to move on.

The need for retirement planning doesn’t end with the onset of retirement. A new retiree’s focus shifts from building wealth to managing and preserving it. One major challenge is to make the investment portfolio supply cash flow for the duration of life — and through different economic and market conditions.

Now that we are through the season of holiday excess, we now enter the period of new resolve. Even our prime minister shyly gave his tummy a little pat to indicate what his new year’s resolution was going to be. But for a growing number of obese Canadians, a little bit of weight loss will not be enough to rebalance their system towards optimum health.