The Value Is in the IP: Protecting Australian Agritech’s Real Asset
By Julius Melnitzer | July 31, 2026 Once the product is out in the field, the marginal cost of copying it is close to zero. That’s a textbook appropriability problem, and it’s more acute here than in most tech sectors — Dr Chris Vindurampulle Few industries are as woven into Australia’s economy and identity as agriculture, […]
Lead, Follow, or Get Out of the Way
By Murray Gottheil | July 24, 2026 “Lead, follow, or get out of the way” is an expression which some attribute to Thomas Payne. Tommy died in 1809, so this is hardly a new turn of speech. And yet, back in my law firm (and I suspect in many others), there were partners who never came […]
I Heard it Through the Gripe Vine
By Julia Volk at Pexels By Murray Gottheil | July 23, 2026 A long time ago, when I had a modicum of influence in a law firm, I used to include a sentence in every offer letter to associates to the effect that we expected our lawyers to be part of the solution to issues […]
The Co-Applicant Screw Up!
By Andy MacDonald | July 22, 2026 This morning I had the pleasure of waking up just steps from the ocean at my spot in Cape Breton. Picture a travel trailer parked on a rocky beach surrounded by forty acres of forest and about 1200 feet of sheltered and secluded oceanfront. I started the day […]
BARE BONES BRIEFS: Financing retainers | Cellphone ban in law schools? | Cozen beefs up securities practice | Arbitration Place waltzes to Vienna | Yukon law degree on the northern horizon
By Julius Melnitzer | July 21, 2026 CLIO ADDS RETAINER FINANCING CAPACITY Legal technology firm Clio has partnered with point-of-sale installment lender Affirm to incorporate a pay-over-time option for law firm clients who do not have the ability or desire to fund the full amount of a retainer. Pay Later is now automatically available in […]
B.C. court rules remote working arrangement an essential term of employment
By: Julius Melnitzer | July 17, 2026 The British Columbia Court of Appeal has ruled that an unwritten but long-accepted work-from-home arrangement can become an essential term of employment, so that a unilateral return-to-office order — without notice or agreement — can trigger constructive dismissal. “The decision in Cressey Construction Corporation v. Parolin is getting a lot of […]
Unsuccessful political candidate can pursue civil action against Alberta’s Chief Electoral Officer, SCC rules
By Scott Lemke | July 15, 2026 Election officials, including a Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), are not categorically immune from civil claims merely because they are exercising authority under their governing legislation. In Resler v. Anglin, 2026 SCC 23, the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) permitted a civil claim that was brought by an unsuccessful […]
The Implications of My Ice Cream Diet on Law Firm Management
By Murray Gottheil | July 14, 2026 I have been over-weight for a good long while. My wife, Maureen, is not shallow. She loves me exactly as I am. But she is smart, beautiful and talented, and her marketability far exceeds mine, so why take chances? For about 15 years, I stopped eating chocolate, cake, pie, […]
Capital punishment without the Capital
By Marcel Strigberger | July 13, 2026 While in practice, a frequent question laypeople asked me was, “Do you support capital punishment?” My answer is that I am a staunch advocate of capital punishment — as long as nobody actually gets executed. In fact, I believe this is doable. I recently watched a performance of Gilbert […]
More Sinister than Just Hatred
Photo by Cottonbro at Pexels By Murray Gottheil | July 11, 2026 I recently wrote an article titled, Hate Everything or Risk the Consequences, in which I lamented that law firms restrict their lawyers’ social medial activity. But then I spoke to Tony Albrecht, who knows a lot about this stuff and I now realize that […]