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May 25, 2007 n^o. 494 - Vol. 5
 

“If you pay peanuts, you get monkeys.”

James Goldsmith

In today's Law Firm Marketing: doing marketing with household items?

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Read our new section: Crumbs!

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• Top News

SEC approves new Sarbanes-Oxley compliance guidelines

The SEC voted to approve  new interpretive guidelines for Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, relaxing previous guidelines which critics have called inflexible, burdensome, and wasteful. Section 404 requires public companies to continually evaluate the internal controls they have in place to ensure that external auditors provide accurate financial reports to investors. Accounting firms, which have profited from tough control standards, have supported stricter guidelines, while public corporations have argued that they impose too high of a burden on small companies. The relaxed guidelines will apply to businesses with a market value of under $75 million, and will focus on areas more prone to potential fraud. US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said last November that Sarbanes-Oxley raised the cost of doing business in America  and cited the decline of stock transactions since 2002 as an example of its impact. A report  released in May 2006 by the Government Accountability Office (GAO)  found that many small business have gone private  to avoid the costs of compliance. Other officials, such as then New York state attorney general and current Governor Eliot Spitzer, have warned against easing the standards , saying that many of the efforts to soften corporate accountability reforms are being pushed by the same corporations that employed questionable accounting and business practices before Sarbanes-Oxley was passed.

Corruption 'undermining' justice

Russia and Argentina have been named by a corruption watchdog as countries where political interference in the judicial process has risen recently. Berlin-based Transparency International says corruption is also undermining justice in many parts of the world. In a new report, the group says corruption is denying people the right to a fair and impartial trial. Corruption also impedes economic growth by lowering the trust of the investment community, the report says. In its report, TI says that judicial systems are being corrupted in two ways - through political interference and bribery. When courts are corrupted by greed or political expediency, the scales of justice are tipped, and ordinary people suffer.

Date set for Gonzales Senate vote

The US Senate has scheduled a vote of no confidence in the Attorney General, Alberto Gonzales, for June. Gonzales, one of Bush's closest allies, has been under fire for his role in the dismissal of a number of federal prosecutors. Congress' highly unusual no-confidence vote has now been scheduled for next month. Although the US attorney general is appointed by the president alone, those senators who want Gonzales to resign hope the prospect of an embarrassing public reprimand might focus his mind.

World Trade Center claims settled

A lengthy legal dispute over insurance claims for the old World Trade Center has been settled, clearing the way for the site to be rebuilt. Seven insurers have agreed to pay an extra $2bn to the group seeking to redevelop the site, destroyed by the 11 September terrorist attacks. The deal was brokered by New York state officials and Larry Silverstein, who held the lease to the Twin Towers. Silverstein has now secured more than $4.5bn in insurance payouts. This is less than the property developer, who held a $3.5bn insurance policy on the World Trade Center at the time of its collapse, was awarded following a 2004 trial.

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Before you open the door to the boardroom, peek through the keyhole!

Have a look at the new section of the Migalhas website and discover the professional development opportunities with large corporations presented by Michael Page International. Click here to peep through the hole!

• Crumbs!

1 - Banks 'exploit charges judgment'. (click here)

2 - McDonald's begins McJob petition. (click here)

3 - U.S. expert panel urges regulation of tobacco. (click here)

4 - Years ago, agency was warned of a drug’s risks. (click here)

5 - Insurers agree to pay billions at ground zero. (click here)

6 - Drug Agency reaffirms ban on gay men giving blood. (click here)

7 - City to pay $2 million to parents of man fatally shot by an officer. (click here)

8 - Brazil, Mexico approve use of GM corn seed. (click here)

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• MiMIC Journal

Greenspan fears China market fall

Chinese shares have fallen after former US Federal Reserve head Alan Greenspan said its stock market was overvalued and due for a "dramatic contraction". His remarks had an impact on markets in the US, Europe and Asia, fanning already prevalent fears of a slowdown in China's booming economy.

• Law Firm Marketing

Green plants add security to reception area, office

If you're looking for ways to make prospects and clients more comfortable, fill your reception area, office and conference room with green plants.

I'm not talking about one hanging plant over the magazine table in the corner.  I'm talking about serious green plants.  Lots of them.

Plants have long been used in client areas because they cause people to feel more comfortable, relaxed and secure.

For design ideas, call in an interior decorator, your local nurseryman or a plant service designer.  They can help you choose the right plants based on the size of the rooms, the amount of available sunlight and the amount of care they need.

If you don't want to care for plants, you can hire a plant service to take care of them for you.  Or, instead of live plants, you could always use silk plants.

Personally, I much prefer live plants because they give off oxygen and because their moisture keeps the room cooler -- two benefits you lose with silk plants.  Still, for a purely visual effect, silk plants work fine, as long as you remember to dust them.

People, not buildings, create eye-catching photos

When preparing a brochure, display ad, Web site, or anything else that involves photographs, keep people in your photos.

Lawyers often show their building, office or conference room.  These are fine as backdrops, but what prospects and clients want to see are your people.

People like to look at people.  They like to read about people.  They like to build relationships with people.  That's why People Magazine is one of the most successful magazines in history.  That's why most popular magazines feature people on their covers.

While you may want to show your facilities, realize that most people don't care what your building looks like.  They care about who you are, who they will meet when they come to your office, and who they will work with.

"Who's" are far more important than "what's."

Keep people in your photographs.  And in at least some photos, show them sporting warm, engaging smiles and looking directly at the camera.  This will seize your readers' attention, hold their interest and make an immediate emotional connection.

© 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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• Historia Verdadera

• Brief News

Sarkozy rejects Turkish EU place

New French President Nicolas Sarkozy has said he will stand firm in his opposition to Turkey being allowed to join the European Union. He said the issue should be debated once the EU reformed its institutions. Sarkozy said a simplified treaty was the only way forward to replace the stalled EU constitution.

Wal-Mart to sell Dell computers

Dell's profits and sales miss analyst's targets and the computer firm warns earnings will remain under pressure.

Turmoil Over Fees

A US federal appeals court said the district judge in a case involving former KPMG executives doesn't have jurisdiction to determine whether the firm should be required to pay legal fees for the executives facing criminal charges related to the sale of allegedly improper tax shelters.

Virtual Kidnappers Get Money With a Call

''Virtual kidnapping,'' is a scheme aimed at quickly extracting ransom without an actual abduction. The weapon used is not a gun or a knife, but a telephone. Anyone with a telephone is at risk in Latin American countries including Mexico, Brazil, Argentina and Guatemala, where high crime rates lead people to think the worst when a supposed kidnapper calls. They make them believe they know everything they do, where their children study, where they work and all their daily movements. Reliable statistics don't exist because most police forces register virtual kidnappings as robberies or assaults. Many victims also don't come forward at all because police are often unresponsive, inept or corrupt. Some people fear revenge for going public, while others are embarrassed about falling for the hoax. But anecdotal evidence suggests virtual kidnappings are big business. In the Brazilian state of Sao Paulo, police reported at least 3,000 virtual kidnapping complaints between Jan. 1 and Feb. 14. A Mexican citizen's group used polling to estimate that in 2004, 36,295 kidnappings took place in the country. They haven't reported newer data. The criminals often get household details by hacking into databases or posing as service workers. Then they monitor the family's habits and choose a moment when the family is separated to make the call demanding money.

US minimum wage to get $2 boost

The minimum wage in the US is to rise by $2.10 per hour, to $7.25 from its current level of $5.15, the first time it has increased in a decade. The increase will be phased in over a two-year period and will accompanied by tax breaks for small businesses. The White House negotiated a $4.84bn tax break to help employers pay for the increase in wages.

US checks toothpaste for toxins

Health officials in the US say they are checking all shipments of toothpaste imported from China for contamination with toxic chemicals. Panama and the Dominican Republic have reported finding diethylene glycol, a chemical used in engine coolants, in toothpaste from China. The toothpaste scare is the latest involving products from China. Earlier this year, contaminated pet food ingredients killed a number of cats and dogs in North America.

US may back carbon deal

The US may be willing to back an agreement at next month's G8 summit on cutting carbon dioxide emissions. Up to now, the Bush administration has championed voluntary agreements as an alternative to imposing binding caps. Germany has made climate a priority for its G8 presidency.

• Daily Press Review 

Africa

Mukula greets wife Gladys at the High Court.
Daily Monitor, Independent daily of Kampala, Uganda

Mugabe: Shame of Africa
East African Standard, Liberal daily of Nairobi, Kenya

NPP gurus scramble for GRC properties ex-party chairman says
Ghanaian Chronicle, Independent, published  in Accra, Ghana

Hope faces literary 'rip-off' claim
Mail and Guardian, Liberal daily of Johannesburg, South Africa

... as leaders endorse Customs Union
Times of Zambia, Government-owned daily of Lusaka, Zambia

Americas

More Help for BDF
Barbados Advocate, Independent daily of St Michael, Barbados

Airport workers get pay hike
Buenos Aires Herald, Liberal daily of Buenos Aires, Argentina

Canadians lead major assault on the Taliban
The Globe And Mail, Centrist daily of Toronto, Canada

'They can't do it' - Public not convinced PNP, JLP able to tackle crime
Jamaica Gleaner, Centrist daily of Kingston, Jamaica

Some say no to army's war on drugs
The Guadalajara Colony Reporter, Independent weekly of Guadalajara, Mexico

Asia Pacific

6 arrested over J-Green bid-rigging
Daily Yomiuri, Conservative daily of Tokyo, Japan

Chinese, German presidents hold talks in Beijing
People's Daily Online, Pro-government daily of Beijing, China

Girls struck by runaway van
The Sydney Morning Herald, Centrist daily of Sydney, Australia

Former VDC Chairman Shot Dead in Siraha
The Himalayan Times, Independent daily of Kathmandu, Nepal

Proclamation on Saturday scrapped
The Manila Times, Pro-government daily of Manila, Philippines

TheSun scores at SOPA Awards
The Sun, Independent daily of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Europe

'Mass Doping is Now the Order of the Day'
Deutsche Welle, International broadcaster of Cologne, Germany

86 face trial over Smash ASEM riot
Helsingin Sanomat, Centrist daily of Helsinki, Finland

Ukraine's prosecutor general opens criminal case into coup attempt
Interfax, Government-owned news agency, Moscow, Russia

Estate agent fee increase of 50% is 'naked greed'
Irish Examiner, Centrist daily of Cork, Ireland

38 Dead in Siberian Coal Mine Disaster
The Moscow Times, Independent, English-language daily of Moscow, Russia

So you think you're as clever as a 10-year-old ... think again
The Scotsman, Centrist daily of Edinburgh, Scotland

Terror alert in the nation
Turkish Daily News, Independent daily of Istanbul, Turkey

Middle East

Lebanon's new war?
Al-Ahram Weekly, Semi-official, English-language weekly of Cairo, Egypt

Citizens Want Recommendations of Rights Body Carried Out
Arab News, Pro-government, English-language daily of Jidda, Saudi Arabia

North braces for next round at Nahr al-Bared
The Daily Star, Independent, English-language daily of Beirut, Lebanon

Bombs cannot bring security - Al Baradei
Gulf News, Independent daily of Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Informal team advised PM on Lebanon war operation
Ha'aretz, Liberal daily of Tel Aviv, Israel

Supreme Leader visits Defense Self-Confidence, Power Expo
Islamic Republic News Agency, Government-owned news agency of Tehran, Iran

Damascus peace overtures stir new interest in Jerusalem
The Jerusalem Post, Conservative daily of Jerusalem, Israel

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Copyright 2007 - Migalhas International

The messages that appear in this newsletter are for informational purposes only. They are not intended to be and should not be considered legal advice nor substitute for obtaining legal advice from competent, independent, legal counsel in the relevant jurisdiction.

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