Time is limited, but your success doesn’t have to be. TBA member benefit partner LawPay is committed to helping you achieve your goals with a simple and secure online payment solution. LawPay makes it quick and easy for you to get paid so you can focus on what you are meant to do. Let them help you reach your full potential while giving you time back in your day. LawPay has a special offer for the month November: sign up by Nov. 30 and pay no monthly fee for 12 months! Get started here.

See what is available on the market for your law tech needs. Whether you are growing your practice or starting one, TBA’s Practice Management Center offers comparison charts that include information on providers, cost and features. See this example on Encryption Services. Charts are updated monthly by our law office management experts.

Applications are now being accepted for Scaling Small Law, a three-month-long advanced program for entrepreneurial lawyers, solo practitioners and newly formed solo/small firms. This comprehensive business education and development program program offers training in business planning, marketing, solo/small firm finance and budgeting, client service and experience, ethical considerations, and outsourcing and leveraging technology. To learn more, check out the syllabus and application process. Applications are due Dec. 15. The program launches on Jan. 10, 2023.

The TBA hopes to obtain your input in choosing the second book for its quarterly book club. The three suggested books for the second quarter continue the theme of race relations and divides. Voting is open until Sept. 30. Once the title is determined, we will notify participants and provide more details on participation in the virtual book club. Learn more and vote on the books here. 

Members of the TBA Book Club met virtually today to hear from Law Professor Derrick Beetso, director of Indian gaming and tribal self-governance programs at the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law at Arizona State University. Beetso, a citizen of the Navajo Nation, previously served as the general counsel for the National Congress of American Indians and as an attorney-advisor for the Bureau of Indian Affairs. He shared his insights about David Grann’s book “Killers of the Flower Moon,” which chronicles a string of murders that plagued the Osage Indian nation of Oklahoma in the 1920s, shortly after oil was discovered on their land. The murders became one of the FBI’s first major homicide investigations.

The TBA will hold its first book club discussion event on Sept. 19 at 4 p.m. CDT. Members voted Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann, a nonfiction story on dozens of murders plaguing the Osage Indian nation of Oklahoma in the 1920s, as the first quarterly title. The Osage murders began shortly after oil was discovered on tribal land making them the richest people per capita in the world. The mystery became one of the FBI’s first major homicide investigations, led by a young J. Edgar Hoover. This one-hour event will feature special guest Professor Derrick Beetso, director of Indian gaming and tribal self-governance programs at Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law at Arizona State University, who will lead the virtual discussion. Learn more and register here.

LawPay wants to help you reclaim your time with the ease and efficiency offered by its flexible modern payment technology. As the leading online payment solution for legal professionals for over 15 years, LawPay enables you to accept credit, debit and eCheck payments from clients anywhere, at any time. LawPay is committed to providing an unparalleled experience by protecting your trust account against third-party debiting and offering expert support from real people. As a TBA member, you can open a new LawPay account by Aug. 31 and pay no monthly fee until 2023! Get started here.

The Tennessee Bar Association’s Practice Management Center has resources for every stage of law firm management. Among the newest offerings is an on-boarding plan for firms expanding their employee rosters. A growing firm is a great thing! It's a sure sign that your hard work is paying off with satisfied clients and more opportunities. But as business expands, it is important to bring new people up to speed smoothly and efficiently. Use this checklist to make sure you cover everything without overwhelming the new hire.

The deadline to apply for the award-winning TBA Public Service Academy (PSA) has been extended until Friday. The PSA is a bipartisan, statewide effort to encourage attorneys to take on public service leadership roles in their communities and run for office. Those accepted for the program will take part in a two-day program Sept. 8-9, and a two-day program Nov. 18-19. Both sessions will be in Nashville featuring top political and campaign experts. You can apply online now or encourage your friends and colleagues who have aspirations for public service to apply.

The TBA recently announced it is hosting a book club that will meet quarterly over the next 12 months. After polling members to select the first book, participants have chosen Killers of the Flower Moon — a true-life murder mystery involving the Osage Nation in Oklahoma. Shortly after discovering oil on its reservation, Osage people began dying under mysterious circumstances. Several who investigated the killings also were murdered. The newly created FBI, under the leadership of director J. Edgar Hoover, teamed up with the Texas Rangers to tackle what would prove to be one of the most chilling conspiracies in American history. Start reading now and watch for details about an upcoming discussion on the book, featuring a special guest, in September.