February 4, 2011 nº 1.003 - Vol. 9
"The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to venture a little way past them into the impossible."
Arthur C. Clarke
In today'sLaw Firm Marketing, How to prevent prospects from getting lured away by other offers.
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Vice President would become leader, officials say
Mubarak has balked at leaving, but talks are continuing with Egyptian officials about a plan in which they would persuade the president to step down now and Vice President Omar Suleiman would begin a process of reform, officials said. The proposal also calls for the transitional government to invite members from a broad range of opposition groups, including the banned Muslim Brotherhood, to begin work to open up the country's electoral system in an effort to bring about free and fair elections in September, the officials said. They cautioned that the outcome depended on several factors, not least Egypt's own constitutional protocols and the mood of the protesters on the streets of Cairo and other Egyptian cities. Mubarak said in an interview that he was "fed up" with being president but that he could not step down for fear of sowing chaos in the country. "The worry on Mubarak's part is that if he says yes to this, there will be more demands," said Leslie H. Gelb, president emeritus of the Council on Foreign Relations. "And since he's not dealing with a legal entity, but a mob, how does he know there won't be more demands tomorrow?"
Vodafone network 'hijacked' by Egypt
Mobile phone firm Vodafone has accused the Egyptian authorities of using its network to send unattributed text messages supporting the government. Vodafone was told to switch off services last week when protests against President Hosni Mubarak began. But the authorities then ordered Vodafone to switch the network back on, in order to send messages under Egypt's emergency laws, the firm said. In a statement, Vodafone described the messages as "unacceptable". "These messages are not scripted by any of the mobile network operators and we do not have the ability to respond to the authorities on their content."
Questioning the role of social media in Egypt
Could the revolt in Egypt have happened without social networking tools like Twitter and Facebook? Malcolm Gladwell said: People protested and brought down governments before Facebook was invented. They did it before the Internet came along. Barely anyone in East Germany in the nineteen-eighties had a phone—and they ended up with hundreds of thousands of people in central Leipzig and brought down a regime that we all thought would last another hundred years—and in the French Revolution the crowd in the streets spoke to one another with that strange, today largely unknown instrument known as the human voice." A more nuanced discussion of what role these tools are playing, including how the the government's Internet shutoff could have backfired, is required. Egyptian activists complain that the Obama administration moved too slowly in pressuring the authorities on Internet access. A possible reason is that pushing too hard on one goal might have jeopardized progress in areas like counterterrorism, where the U.S. relies on Egypt's cooperation.
JPMorgan accused by Madoff trustee of aiding Ponzi scheme
JPMorgan Chase & Co. sought to protect only its own investments even as it suspected Bernard Madoff of perpetrating a fraud, said the trustee liquidating the convicted conman's financial-advisory firm. E-mails and other internal documents show that executives at JPMorgan Chase were complicit in Bernard Madoff's massive fraud, lawyers seeking to recover funds for his victims said. Trustee Irving Picard has filed a $6.4 billion lawsuit against the company.
Federal judge rules BP oil spill victim fund not independent entity
A judge for the US District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana on Wednesday ordered the administrator for the Gulf Coast Claims Facility (GCCF) to refrain from characterizing himself as independent from British Petroleum (BP) in communications with victims of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill that occurred in the Gulf of Mexico. Citing an intention to facilitate transparency, District Judge Carl Barbier ruled that the GCCF, a $20 billion fund established by BP to aid victims of the spill, is a "hybrid entity" that is not completely independent from BP. As such, Kenneth Feinberg, the fund's administrator, may not identify himself as a neutral third-party and must make clear that he represents BP in the company's efforts to satisfy its obligations as required by the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA). Feinberg has previously asserted his neutrality to encourage claimants to accept lesser settlements, and it is believed that the ruling will lead to a rise in lawsuits against the company by victims who are less inclined to settle. Barbier also ordered lawyers to prepare briefs by the end of next week on whether BP's actions to this point in processing claims and settling with victims are sufficient to meet its legal responsibilities.
S.E.C. hurt by disarray in its books
If a company's financial reporting were so bad that its auditor had pointed out significant weaknesses in its accounting for seven years running, the Securities and Exchange Commission would most likely be all over it. But what if the company were the S.E.C. itself?
Before you open the door to the boardroom, peek through the keyhole!
Michael Page specializes in the placement of candidates in permanent, contract, temporary and interim positions within client companies around the world. Have a look at the new section of the Migalhas website and discover the professional development opportunities with large corporations, in legal and business fields, presented by Michael Page International. Click here to peep through the hole!
1 - Smoking ban for beaches and parks is approved - Click here.
2 - Visa profit rises by 16% - Click here.
3 - New congressmen inaugurated in Brazil - Click here.
4 - Spammers must pay Facebook more than $360 million in statutory damages - Click here.
5 - US seizes sports piracy websites before Super Bowl - Click here.
6 - Could austerity be a word of the past for Big Law? - Click here.
7 - Sotomayor reflects on first years on court - Click here.
8 - Judge Griesa rules in favour of vulture fund - Click here.
9 - Toshiba faces $100 million gender bias lawsuit - Click here.
10 - Brazil assumes presidency of UN Security Council - Click here.
11 - Wikileaks nominated for Nobel Peace Prize - Click here.
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How to prevent prospects from getting lured away by other offers
by Tom Trush
Think back to the last time you saw a promotional piece urging you to take action with statements such as ...
Do not act now ... This offer will be available forever ... Call whenever you get a chance ... Place your order when you have excess money in your bank account ...
Unless you're exposed to incredibly terrible marketing, you never see these types of phrases. That's because most direct-response copywriters and marketers understand the importance of urgency.
When you create a sense of immediacy, your readers realize they must respond now -- or risk missing out on a valuable opportunity. The shopping rush on Black Friday is a perfect example of urgency in action. Once-a-year deals -- sometimes available only for a few hours on that day -- create a buying frenzy.
If you leave the timeframe for your offer up to your prospects, you greatly reduce the likelihood of getting your desired response. Worse yet, your prospects may get lured away by another offer.
Although people are natural procrastinators, there are several motivational strategies you can use to encourage immediate action.
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Increase your fee. Appeal to people's desire for a deal by offering them one last chance to hire you at your current fee.
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Establish a limited-time offer. Set a deadline and stick to it -- or only have a limited supply available.
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Make action easy. Give simple options that require your prospects to put forth as little effort as possible.
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Entice with extras. Create a sought-after bonus that complements your offer and use it as a reward for immediate action.
In addition to applying these strategies to offers involving an exchange of money, you can use them when encouraging prospects to release their contact information to you.
Regardless of your offer or the quality of your legal services, your prospects will always have objections. When you apply urgency to your offers, you calm those concerns.
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© Trey Ryder
FREE LAWYER MARKETING ALERT: If you'd like to receive Trey Ryder's weekly Lawyer Marketing Alert, send an e-mail to [email protected]. Write "Subscribe LMA" in the subject line and write your name and e-mail address in the body of the message.
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Demanda
La petrolera Shell acudió a la Justicia con el objetivo de frenar la decisión del Gobierno de declarar un "congelamiento" en el precio de las naftas y el gasoil. A través de un comunicado, a compañía dijo que la querella fue presentada ante un tribunal en lo Contencioso Administrativo. (Presione aquí)
Seguridad
Panamá y México crearán una comisión binacional de seguridad. El ministro de Seguridad Pública, José Raúl Mulino, dijo que México ayudará al país a combatir el crimen organizado. (Presione aquí)
Inversiones I
Suramericana de seguros pagará US$100 mlls. por la Asesuisa. El presidente de la entidad, Gonzalo Alberto Pérez, dijo que espera que el 15% de sus ingresos de la venta prima provengan del exterior.
Inversiones II
La estadounidense Cargilll invertirá 350 millones de reales – US$ 210 mlls.- en una nueva planta de procesamiento de maíz en Brasil, con el objetivo de producir féculas y soluciones endulzantes para hacer frente a la demanda creciente en el país sudamericano.
Free diabetes and blood pressure drugs for Brazilians
Brazil is to provide free medicines for everyone suffering from high blood pressure or diabetes. The drugs will be distributed through a nationwide network of budget pharmacies, where many medicines are already heavily subsidized. Dilma said the measure was part of her campaign to end extreme poverty in Brazil. Since 1996 Brazil has provided free anti-retroviral drugs to patients with HIV/Aids, an approach that has been widely praised.
Senate Republicans fail to repeal Obama healthcare law
Republicans in the US Senate have failed to win enough votes to repeal President Barack Obama's landmark healthcare reform bill, passed in 2010. The Republicans, with 47 seats in the Democrat-controlled chamber, had conceded beforehand the measure would not pass but wanted to force a vote. The House of Representatives, led by the Republicans, voted last month to repeal the bill. The Supreme Court is now likely to have the final say on the healthcare law.
"Supremacy clause" or secession?
Arizona lawmakers are considering a bill that puts the state in conflict with the federal government. The bill states that "no authority has ever been given to the legislative branch, the executive branch or the judicial branch of the federal government to preempt state legislation." If passed and signed into law, Senate Bill 1433 would give members of the state Legislature the power to override federal laws and executive orders. It would allow a committee of 12 people — six from the House and six from the Senate — to recommend to the full Legislature which laws they think are unconstitutional. Both new and existing federal laws would be up for debate.
Burma ex-Prime Minster Thein Sein named new president
Burma's parliament has named former general and outgoing prime minister Thein Sein as the country's first civilian president after nearly 50 years of military rule. The military-backed USDP party won a large majority in November's polls. The appointment of a president is the final step in Burma's so-called "roadmap to democracy" - moving the country from military to civilian rule. But a quarter of the seats in parliament are reserved for the military. The election - Burma's first in 20 years - was widely condemned as a sham.
EU one-day summit on energy, the eurozone debt crisis
The summit was called to focus on energy and innovation, which are critical issues for the European Union. The European Commission estimates EU countries will have to spend one trillion euros on energy infrastructure over the coming decade. The union has set itself ambitious energy targets, which will only be achieved by massive investment - some one trillion euro ($1.4tn) - in the region's energy infrastructure. Larger member states want the money to come from private industry; others argue that there has to be some EU funding involved. Germany and France are set to present joint proposals at the summit on improving economic competitiveness and strengthening the euro's bail-out fund.
Lawyers with gadgets: resistance is futile
With Kindles, iPads, and Android phones becoming commonplace, lawyers want the cool gear for their work, too. Now firms must make sure those slick tablets and fab phones have state of the art security and solid tech support. As Alan Cohen observes, today's mobile lawyers have, in short, put the "i" in IT.
Sixth Circuit rules against Ten Commandments in Ohio courthouse
The US Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit on Wednesday upheld a lower court ruling barring the Ten Commandments from being displayed in an Ohio courthouse. The display, called "Philosophies of Law in Conflict," includes two columns bearing the headings "Moral Absolutes: The Ten Commandments" and "Moral Relatives: Humanist Precepts" and was situated above a sign encouraging readers to ask Richland County Common Pleas Court Judge James DeWeese for additional information. The court rejected DeWeese's argument that the display is protected private religious expression and held that despite "replacing the word religion with the word philosophy," the display "sets forth overt religious messages and religious endorsements" in a public forum adjacent to a sitting judge.
Italian MPs block search request in Berlusconi sex case
Italy's parliament has rejected a search request by prosecutors looking into allegations that Silvio Berlusconi had sex with an under-age prostitute. The vote in the lower house followed the request by Milan magistrates to search the offices of the prime minister's accountant. But the lawmakers sent the case back to the prosecutors, challenging their jurisdiction. Berlusconi insists the magistrates are pursuing a political vendetta against him.
Hacker faces jail over poker chip theft
A British hacker has pleaded guilty to stealing more than 400 billion virtual poker chips. In court Ashley Mitchell admitted penetrating the systems of online gaming firm Zynga to steal the chips. He laundered the haul via a series of Facebook accounts in a bid to escape being caught.
Germany's first burka ban imposed by state of Hesse
The German state of Hesse has become the first in the country to impose a ban on the full Islamic face veil for public sector workers. The western state had already stopped teachers and civil servants wearing headscarves to work in 2004. MPs in both France and Belgium have approved bans on burkas but no such restrictions have come into force in Germany until now.
New Start treaty: Obama signs US-Russia nuclear papers
Obama has signed an arms treaty with Russia that would reduce the nations' nuclear arsenals and bolster verification mechanisms. US opponents of the treaty argued Russia would have reduced stockpiles anyway as its arsenal aged, so the US had no reason to agree to scrap its own nuclear arms.
Terror watchdog says UK is 'safe haven' for suspects
The UK has become a "safe haven" for foreign suspects, the outgoing terror laws watchdog has said. In his last report, Lord Carlile said rulings from the European Court of Human Rights meant it was difficult to remove dangerous people. He said the UK was relying on foreign states' assurances about the treatment of suspects that judges may not accept. He also said the political debate over replacing control orders had been "poorly informed" at times.
EU-wide cyber security plan
The draft directive, which replaces a 2005 Framework Decision, includes new measures requiring countries to criminalize "the international interception of non-public transmissions of computer data from an information system". EU states will also have to criminalize "the production, sale, procurement, import, possession or distribution of any device or tool for the purpose of committing any of the offences" contained in the directive. There would have to be maximum prison terms of at least five years if a criminal organization was involved, or where a tool such as a botnet was used with the intention of attacking "a significant number of information systems". Member states who opt-in would have to have a "national contact point" who could provide a response to another member state's request within eight hours. They would also have to collate statistical data on all such offences. The EU says making member states' criminal laws broadly similar would discourage offenders from exploiting differences by basing themselves in states with more lenient criminal laws.
Kenya high court rules judicial appointments unconstitutional
Kenya's High Court of Nairobi ruled Thursday that recent judicial nominations by President Mwai Kibaki are unconstitutional, halting parliament's approval proceedings. Agreeing with an earlier pronouncement by Prime Minister Raila Odinga, Justice Daniel Musinga ruled in favor of eight advocacy groups, largely devoted to women's rights, which alleged that recent appointments violated promises of equality. Musinga found that Kibaki's appointments violated Article 27(3) of the constitution, which states, "[w]omen and men have the right to equal treatment, including the right to equal opportunities in political, economic, cultural and social spheres." Musinga declared that the error lied in Kibaki not consulting Odinga and other officials enough in the appointment process.
News Corp launches daily newspaper for iPad
News Corporation is extending his media empire with a digital-only newspaper for the iPad called the Daily. The Daily represents something far grander and more ambitious than a new business undertaking: it is an opportunity to try to reinvent the business model for news publishing. The Daily will cost 99 cents (60p) a week and will be sold exclusively via Apple's iTunes store. The paper will initially only be available in the US.
Federal appeals court upholds life sentence for Bush assassination plotter
The US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit on Tuesday affirmed the life sentence of Ahmed Abu Ali, a US citizen who joined al Qaeda while studying abroad in Saudi Arabia. Abu Ali was convicted in November 2005 on nine charges related to conspiracy to commit terrorist acts, including plotting to assassinate then-president George W. Bush. Attorneys for Abu Ali argued that the life sentence was unconstitutional and procedurally and substantively unreasonable, though the court ruled that the sentence fell within "well-established boundaries" and did not reflect an abuse of discretion.
AT&T alledged over-charge
AT&T is facing a lawsuit that states iPhone customers are being overcharged for data usage. A firm conducted tests on brand new phones with nothing installed and turned off all services—yet was still charged for over 2MB of data use. This isn't the first time AT&T's billing software has come under scrutiny and could be responsible for millions of dollars in charges.
Harmful TV streams
U.S. law enforcement officials seized 10 popular websites known for illegally streaming live sporting events. Sites like HQ-Streams.com were providing feeds of US broadcasts from foreign countries, allowing anyone to view even pay-per-view events for free. The crackdown comes right before the Super Bowl, as the Department of Justice said these streams are harmful to professional leagues.
Student suspended for insulting teacher on Facebook
A high school student was suspended for insulting a teacher on his Facebook page. The ACLU stated that the suspension is a direct violation of state and federal law and the status update is an extension of the student's free speech. A federal agency already declared that the law protects Facebook statuses as long as no threats are made
New consumer protection agency crowdsources fraud reports
The startup Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, a government agency, aims to be a "21st century regulator" and has launched its website. What's the news? The CFPB will work to promote fair competition for depository and non-depository institutions, large and small. The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 established the agency last year. Republican lawmakers have been highly critical of the powers given to the new consumer bureau, which they say could stifle growth in the financial industry. They want to 'crowdsource' fraud reports and ask consumers to use their YouTube or Twitter account to post recommendations for this new agency.
Egypt set for 'final push' protests
Al Jazeera, Doha, Qatar
4,000 Australian Troops to Help Cyclone-stricken Northeast Coast
Nahamet, Online news portal, Beirut, Lebanon
CRTC delays usage-based billing, to review rules
DMeurope, Online news portal, Amsterdam, Netherlands
US plots Mubarak exit as death toll mounts
The Guardian, Liberal daily, London, England
Illegal RI migrant worker dies in Malaysia
Antara News, News agency, Jakarta, Indonesia
Pro-democracy activists retake lost ground
The Hindu, Left-leaning daily, Chennai, India
7th Heaven Properties enters cooperation agreement with The Sovereign Group
Caribbean360, Online news portal, St. Michael, Barbados
The Senate approves the Deputy Abroad, amends sweeping laws
Dominican Today, Independent daily, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
Screensaver leads to arrest
News24.com, Online news portal, Cape Town, South Africa
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