For attorneys on the go, keeping in touch with our offices and clients is critical and we rely heavily on our Treo or Blackberry devices. My Treo shows the scars of being dropped and abused (and its predecessor was dropped in a lake), and I don't think there is a worse feeling than to watch it bounce across the floor because it fell out of its case or was knocked off my desk. I tried a variety of cases and holders and I'm still in search of the perfect case and belt clip. While researching information for a current article for another publication, I came across Otter Box and its product line: Otter Box makes a number of rugged cases and storage boxes for electronic devices including PDA’s, Smart Phones and iPods, as well as cases for general use. 

According to Otter Box, their Treo case "…completely seals device from the elements while providing access to keypad, touch screen, volume and program buttons, saving customers hundreds from having to replace or repair damaged devices." I've watched their demonstration video and it seems they put quite a bit of thought in their case design as it allows use of the phone, all keys on the keyboard as well as recharging and synchronization without removing the Treo from the case.

At $129, these cases are definitely not inexpensive, but if they save your device from damage or destruction it might be a very small price to pay for the peace of mind.  If anyone is currently using one of these cases, I'd love to hear about it.

Atticus, Inc.  has made available for free on its website,  recordings which it bills as “…the top 10 most popular calls conducted for the graduates of Atticus practice management programs.” A complete list of these calls and links and sound files can be found on their website under Graduate Top 10 Calls.

Some of the subjects covered include:

Value-Based Pricing

Communicating for Success

Retreat to Move Forward

Unlocking Your Profit Potential

Marketing “Kick in the Pants”

Presenters include my friend Debbie Foster from InTouch Legal, Ron Baker , Mark Powers (of Atticus) and others.

I took the time to listen to snippets of several of these and found what I heard to be both interesting and of value. Over the next few weeks, I hope to listen to all of them.

If you find yourself with some free time during the workday, why not listen to one or more of these recordings and see if you find something of value in them.