UPDATES IN MICHIGAN FAMILY LAW

Readability Redux | Uncluttered web pages

I've been using Readability for two days now. Oh my! What a difference! Imagine web pages that are crisp and clean and free of distracting flash and ads. Here is a link to my earlier post. http://tinyurl.com/y87qjzb  Then there is that little help for old eyes. Hit CTRL and roll the mouse button toward the top to increase font size. I am in heaven! [For Apple folks, it's Command and roll]

Try this. You are going to love it! [I wonder how long it's gonna take the people who sprinkle liberally all that ad content around to figure out how to beat this. Sigh.]

Getting rid of ad content on web pages

I owe a debt of gratitude to Elizabeth Sadowski for calling this extremely valuable tool to my attention. Readability allows me to "filter out" all of those pop-ups and other advertising material that I find so annoying on websites. Even websites that are too valuable to disregard have what is for me unacceptable levels of ad content.

Liz says:  "In the words of my hero, Rocket J. Squirrel, 'Now here's something you'll REALLY enjoy.' Readability is a free download that lets you read web articles free of all that commercial junk flashing around the periphery and distracting your concentration from the text. It's like TIVO for your computer. You simply drag the "readability" word to your toolbar and drop it there. Then, whenever you want to read a webpage's text only, just click on the toolbar. If you want to get back to the original webpage, simply refresh the page."

The link to Readability is: http://lab.arc90.com/experiments/readability/
I tried it. I liked it. I am sure you'll find it very helpful. Please consider subscribing to email updates to this blog so that you don't miss any of these tech updates. There is a space to enter your email address in the upper left-hand corner. When you get an update that isn't of interest to you, simply hit the "delete" button.

Unaccompanied minor flights | Tech tools for parents

Many family lawyers assist their clients in learning more about long distance parents and about how major airlines unaccompanied minor programs work. While researching the David and Sean Goldman case, I learned about a very helpful Internet tool that allows parents on both ends of the flight to keep track of where their children are in the journey. See Flight Aware at http://flightaware.com/live/flight/XFL5

Should your lawfirm upgrade to Windows 7?

In the January 2010 issue of the ABA Journal, Dennis Kennedy addresses the question whether law firms should upgrade their computers to Windows 7. After all of the criticism of Vista and the startup problems with Windows XP, you will likely find this article interesting. It's titled Lucky No 7?

PC Magazine's article Who Should Upgrade to Windows 7 -- and Who Shouldn't has more technical information.

Had I read Scott Bassett's blog post PCLaw Announces Windows 7 Compatibility and realized that I would have to upgrade my PCLaw . . . I guess I would still have done it. I also had to upgrade other software related to my scanner. So the upgrade turned out to be much more expensive than I thought. But then I've never been one to stay current on upgrades.

I am not sorry. I love Windows 7, now that I am becoming more familiar with using it. In many ways, it will be a time-saver.

Federal judge orders lawyers to stop using legalese

The ABA Journal reports that U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Robert Kressel of Minnesota is fed up with lawyers who use superfluous words and too much capitalization, and he has directed them to stop it. Taking a stand against legalese such as "Now comes the Plaintiff . . . " and in favor of plain English, Judge Kressel has written some guidelines for lawyers preparing proposed orders in his court.

Kressel also observes that “lawyers love to capitalize words. Pleadings, including proposed orders, are commonly full of words that are capitalized, not quite randomly, but certainly with great abandon. Please limit the use of capitalization to proper names. For example, do not capitalize court, motion, movant, debtor, trustee, order, affidavit, stipulation, mortgage, lease or any of the other numerous words that are commonly capitalized.”

You may not practice in Judge Kressel's court, but his argument for plain English is worth reading and is guide is excellent. You can download his PDF handbook here in Jeanne's Toolbox. The ABA Journal article is here: 'Judge Orders Lawyers to Stop Using Capitalization 'With Abandon.'

UIFSA | Links to State IV-D office home pages

The Federal OCSE is attempting to bring together links to State IV-D office home pages all in one place. You can find the information here. http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cse/extinf.html

In addition, there's a link to contact information for the regional offices.

Interpretation of Statutes | Jeanne's Toolbox

How many times have you needed to cite some legal principles regarding interpretation of a statute in a brief? Can you find that brief you wrote last year or the year before? Did you address the specific interpretive rule? Can you import this to your new brief or will you have to spend time researching the law?

Here's a very handy tool that I found the other day using Google "on my way to the Forum . . . " It's a memorandum published specifically for Michigan state legislators, many of whom are not lawyers. The memo cites the rules for statutory interpretation, giving case cites for each principle.You can save it to your hard drive.

You'll find it now in Jeanne's Toolbox on Updates in Michigan Family Law.  http://tinyurl.com/ye6ycq6

While you're on the Blog, consider subscribing to the Blog by email so that you get an email alert when a new article is posted. If the topic doesn't interest you when you see the email alert, simply hit the delete button. The email subscription service is accessed in the upper left hand corner of the Blog.

Legislative history | Toolbox

A reporter for the Detroit News asked me recently how she could look up the history of certain legislation. I referred her to the law library. On my way to something else in Google today, I came across this valuable website at the University of Michigan. It contains all kinds of information about where to get legislative histories -- some of it available online.  See the University of Michigan Documents Center, Michigan Legislative Histories.

If this is your first visit to Updates, check out the other items in Jeanne's Toolbox. To continue to obtain items from Jeanne's Toolbox as published, consider signing up for email alerts to Updates in Michigan Family Law. Put your email address in the upper left hand corner. If the topic isn't of interest to you, simply hit the delete button.

Digital lipstick on the collar?

 According to a New York Times article today:

"Text messages are the new lipstick on the collar, the mislaid credit card bill. Instantaneous and seemingly casual, they can be confirmation of a clandestine affair, a record of the not-so-discreet who sometimes forget that everything digital leaves a footprint.

"This became painfully obvious a week ago when a woman who claims to have had an affair with Tiger Woods told a celebrity publication that he had sent her flirty text messages, some of which were published. It follows on the heels of politicians who ran afoul of text I.Q., including a former Detroit mayor [oh, him!] who went to prison after his steamy text messages to an aide were revealed . . . "

See my earlier post about discovery - how to subpoena ISP providers, phone companies, etc. here.

Lorne Gold did a terrific ICLE seminar recently about Kwame Kilpatrick's test messages and about how family law attorneys can discover and use text messages in a divorce case to prove infidelity, among other things. As for those texting steamy sexually-charged messages? The phrase "serial stupidity" comes to mind . . .

The NY Times article "Text Messages: Digital Lipstick on the Collar" may be read here.

Cell phones - Hands free or "My brother's keeper?"

Many people are addicted to talking on their cell phones while driving. Worse yet is texting while driving.  Not enough hands . . .  I confess to having used my cell phone when lost (before I got GPS) so that someone could "talk me in" to a location . Some new cars have a hands-free device option. Maybe that makes you feel safer about talking and driving, but the data is not reassuring.

Studies show that even when using ear pieces or hands-free sets while driving, there is still a heightened risk of being in an accident. A study from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration shows that drivers are four times more likely to have an accident if they are talking on the phone - hands-free or not - while driving. See my earlier post about testing while driving . . . a public service announcement out of the UK. Now there's a wake-up call.Are there safer options?

Store, share, send files online

Ben Stevens, South Carolina Family Law blogger and also a tech blogger [http:themaclawyer.com] suggests the following two services for storing and sharing files online.

• Drop.io – This service allows you to send and share files with clients and others quickly, securely, and privately.  You select the data to upload, set the password, and share with your desired recipients.  By doing so, you can collaborate via web, phone, email, mobile, & more.
• Evernote – This free service enables you to easily capture, organize, and store information using whatever device or platform you find most convenient, and it makes the information accessible and searchable at any time from anywhere.

Facebook - Guide to Internet privacy & safety

I've written previously about Internet safety for those in the middle of a divorce or post-divorce difficulties. In particular, I've warned about use of Facebook and MySpace. These social networking websites can offer a wealth of information that might be used against someone who's battling for custody of children or have other issues (such as spousal support) that can be impacted by disclosure of activities.

The New York Times has published a terrific list of ways folks can protect their privacy while using Facebook. I am sure they also apply to sites such as MySpace.

You can read the NY Times article 5 Easy Steps to Stay Safe (and Private!) on Facebook here.

Earlier articles about protecting your privacy when online or using a computer another might have access to (or might have had access to) can be found here.

People searches - Toolbox

Pipl – This online people search engine enables you to look up information by name, email address, username, or phone number, and it pulls all of the information together into a nice report.  Search engines for many other types of data can be found at LifeHacker.   

Or use zabasearch.com -- a neat service. Use the free search on this page. You can get names, addresses and phone numbers, search by  state or by all 50 states. Some returns give you the date of birth, which can assist in confirming that the contact information is relevant to the person for whom you are searching. Then there is the link to the sattelite map, giving you a bird's eye view of where he/she lives. Scary!
                       

Vehicle valuation websites - Toolbox

 When working on a settlement proposal, it is helpful to have some idea of what the parties' vehicles are worth. There are many Internet websites you can use to help determine the value of any make or model of automobile, truck, etc. You'll want to know the mileage, condition, and what specific options the vehicle has in order to get a more relevant appraisal.  You can ask a dealer Some of the leading sites include Edmunds, Kelly Blue Book,  and NADA.

Meetways - Calculating distance for parenting time exchanges

Meetways is a free online resource that helps people locate a convenient halfway point between two locations.  For parents who meet halfway to exchange children, this is quite an easy tool, offering options for places to meet, using or avoiding major highways, etc.

Multi-tasking | Increasing your productivity or not?

Two articles caught my eye today. Both concern multi-tasking. As one who usually keeps 6 or 8 programs open at any given time, frustrated because my IT person can't get me more RAM, I have to wonder whether I am farther ahead or farther behind.

My friend and mentor, Dr. Wendy Harpham of Dallas, Texas, author of seven books about getting good care and living as fully as possible as a modern patient, wrote in her Blog On Healthy Survivorship "Healthy Hang-up:"

According to an article in today's Houston Chronicle, "Driving while using a cell phone incurs a fourfold greater risk of crashing, equivalent to driving while drunk (with a 0.08 blood-alcohol level). For texters, the risk is eight times greater. A recent study by the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute, which videotaped truck drivers over 18 months, showed that texting made them 23 times more likely to crash or narrowly avoid a crash."

LinkedIn, social networking for professionals

       LinkedIn is a Social Networking Technology website enabling users to create a profile to summarize their professional accomplishments.  Your profile helps you find and be found by former colleagues, clients, and partners. You can add more connections by inviting trusted contacts to join LinkedIn and connect to you.

       The Boston Globe said recently in its Business section: "Your network consists of your connections, your connections’ connections, and the people they know, linking you to thousands of qualified professionals." See the Globe's tips for effective use of LinkedIn.

Free telephone information calls

What a great tip from Michael Morse today! It's really aggravating to have to pay to call Information to get a phone number when you're traveling and don't have access to the Internet to look up the number.

Michael says:

If you don’t already know, there are several free numbers you can call to get that residential or business number.

1-800-BING-411.  This is Microsoft’s number.  In addition to phone numbers, you can also get step by step driving directions and weather information too. [Guess we can throw away the GPS! I just hate it when the automated voice gets crabby the second or third time she says: "Missed your turn. Re . . . CAL . . . culating."]

Calculator for deadlines

Nervous about that deadline for submitting your claim of appeal? Not sure if you have to have it filed on Monday or Tuesday? Or are you nervous about when you have to get that motion filed and served on opposing counsel in order to be heard by the Court on the date you've secured from the court administrator?

Take all the guesswork out of it. Use this handy calculator.

Going paperless | By Michael Morse

Someone recently sent me a copy of Michael Morse’s article “Going Paperless: A Practical Guide.” Morse is enthusiastic about the potential to become 100% paperless. This article was written after Morse, the sole partner of Michael J. Morse, P.C., a 13-lawyer firm specializing in truck, motorcycle and auto accident cases, returned from the American Bar Association’s annual Tech Show.

I’ve attended the Tech Show also where I, too, attended several paperless office seminars. My goal, as well, is to become a paperless office. I am getting there. I asked Michael to allow me to share his tips with you as part of my toolbox.

Michael writes:

SmartDraw, the Swiss army knife of document making software

Today's guest blogger is Elizabeth A. Sadowski of Rochester, Michigan. See the footnote for Ms. Sadowski's bio.

Welcome to SmartDraw, the Swiss army knife of document making software. Just like that nifty little knife, this utility program has a host of functions including graphs and charts, time lines, floor plans, maps, calendars, fliers and much more. Through the use of very elastic templates, you can customize your own models, or create your own image from scratch. Charts, graphs, and time lines are especially useful to the Family Law attorney because they let you see past dates and numbers into their underlying meaning. The point is to transform ideas into images; to visually communicate a complex thought into a simple, understandable message.

Citing to electronic materials

I often cite electronic material in briefs, in Blog articles, in chapters I've been asked to write for the Institute for Continuing Legal Education and in continuing education seminar materials. The question is: How does one educating the sitting trial judge and also protecting the record on appeal, cite to an online authority? While Googling for a resource to explain the fine points of citing to a Blog article, I had many choices. One of them led me to an article on the State Bar of Michigan website: "Citation of Legal and Non-Legal Electronic Database Information." What a fine resource this is -- an excellent tool to put in my toolkit.

 Candace Elliott Person*, author of "Citation of Legal and Non-Legal Electronic Database Information", states:

Subpoena ISPs and more

How many times in your practice do you wish that you could subpoena a telephone company, a cellular  provider, an ISP providing email and Internet service? EBay and PayPal? The list goes on. Finding the right office or person to serve can be pretty frustrating, if not downright impossible.

The ISP List in the toolbox is, therefore, a very valuable tool. You'll find contact information for those who can accept service of subpoenas for cellphone and regular phone service, for Internet service providers, credit card companies, etc.

Inflation Calculator

How is inflation affecting your client? Is a reduction in support appropriate? Or should there be an increase in support? A picture is worth a thousand words and I've found a terrific way to show the Court the effect that the economy is having on a client.

Example: My client receives $250/month in spousal support under a 2003 Judgment of Divorce. The Judgment says that her spousal support is modifiable, and that it terminates upon her death or remarriage, but survives the death of the payor. Three weeks after the payor dies, a motion is filed by the estate (i.e., the greedy kids) to terminate Mom's support. A Consumer Price Index Calculator shows that it would take $293.06 in 2009 dollars to be equal the $250/month payment.

This calculator is found on the website of the United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics. The CPI inflation calculator uses the average Consumer Price Index for a given calendar year. This data represents changes in prices of all goods and services purchased for consumption by urban households. This index value has been calculated every year since 1913. For the current year, the latest monthly index value is used.

FOIA Request Generator

FOIA Requests, Freedom of Information

Family lawyers often need public records. Sometimes there are police reports or protective service worker's reports that can be helpful or harmful to a client. Either way, to be fully prepared for a custody or parenting time hearing, you've got to have them.

Other times, you may need information about a serviceperson in the armed services.

The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) compels the agency or governmental department holding the records to produce them within ten days of the request.

Here's a very easy tool to use to generate a FOIA request. It even writes the letter for you! This is compliments of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press.