Why does ABRAMS LANDAU pay for staff to attend Legal Continuing Education Programs?
It is critically important that your lawyer and workers comp team are exposed to the latest updates in the law, medicine and claims handling. So many so-called personal injury & comp lawyers stay “siloed” in their offices, never leaving to interact with the other lawyers, judges, claims professionals and medical expert, but instead getting their mandatory Continuing Legal Education (“CLE”) online from the safety & comfort of their offices. Very few law firms have unlimited budgets for continuing legal education for their lawyers. Even fewer have significant budgets for paralegal and legal assistants to attend out of office educational programs.
Abrams Landau does many things differently from other law firms, and education is another example of this. Unique law firms belief in the importance of continuing education. Every year, senior paralegals, legal assistants, and even new hires attend relevant legal and medical education courses in order to up their game. Doug Landau feels it is extraordinarily important that staff that work with clients are knowledgeable as to the law, procedures and best practices. He scratches his head when he hears about law firms that do not let staff out of the office; or will not pay or reimburse for educational opportunities; and are too afraid to let their employees interact with those from other law firms because of the fear that they might get swiped.
While Doug Landau has generally garnered more CLE credits each year than most law firms have, and rolls a surplus over year in and year out, his staff also enjoy the opportunity to learn and increase their skills annually without having to worry about: not being paid for their time; having tuition, travel and lodging expenses covered; as well as meals reimbursed or advanced, such that they can focus entirely on learning, networking and making themselves the best that they can be. In addition, Doug Landau has often said that he learns more in the hallways and elevators at some conferences than he does in lecture hall.
Lawyer Landau encourages employees to make connections with other paralegals, legal assistants, nurses, doctors, and court personnel. This enables smooth working relationships on behalf of ABRAMS LANDAU clients, especially when there’s a last minute emergency; a need for continuance; additional time for presenting a case; translators or other unique requests. Because the firm has such an excellent reputation with the judiciary, their staff, and the folks that they work with on the other side, it is almost unheard of for there to be problems in moving cases forward, even when there is an unexpected emergency. At the annual program at the Richmond Convention Center, Betty Vargas, Rachel Hirsch, Lisa Goldman, Sofia Bartalone and Melissa Landau attended two days of classes, sometimes going into different lecture halls in order to increase their knowledge in a particular field, relevant to tasks that they are working on in aid of ABRAMS LANDAU clients, and then briefing each other back in Herndon on what they have learned.
Doug Landau was also in attendance and frequently he was in a third lecture hall, as there were some subjects that were directly aimed at law firm personnel and others, such as the ethics program, that were meant for attorneys to attend. Plus, Doug Landau will usually choose a science topic over a legal topic as he did when learning about neuropsychological testing, permanent partial disability rating techniques, brain injury treatment, etc. There were also sessions with the judges to discuss best practices for Mediation. Betty and Sophia were interested in the medical fee schedule updates as it impacts payments to the doctors treating clients, as well as what monies to be seeking in settlement so that an injured worker who settles their VWC claim has sufficient funds to pay for care into the future.
There were also vendors and other presenters in a huge lecture hall where they could learn the latest with regard to pharmaceutical provision companies, durable medical equipment suppliers, orthopedic practices, private investigators, vocational rehabilitation experts, and other others related to the injured worker universe. In addition to the vendors, there was a large silent auction benefiting Kids’ Chance. Kids’ Chance provides scholarships for the children of workers who died as a result of injuries on the job.
Doug Landau has long been a supporter of Kids’ Chance of Virginia, and while he does not play in their golf tournament each year, he has won their DC area foot race named after his friend and former Commissioner Roger Williams. In addition, Landau has contributed a sports related item to be bid on at this auction. In years past, he has donated such things as a Wei system, a GoPro camera, Shokz Bluetooth headphones, and this year, a Theragun massage unit that his wife has found to be very effective for long car rides in reducing post-race soreness. Last year’s donation, the GoPro camera system was won by none other than Full Commissioner Wesley Marshall, who gave it as a present to his son. The Kids’ Chance Auction raised over $16,000 this year, and together with the golf tournament, the running race, and other events is a significant help to those families who’ve lost a loved one due to an industrial accident.
The ABRAMS LANDAU law team has attended the Annual Workers’ Compensation Commission educational program every year since its inception, and Doug Landau has been a featured speaker several times. It is important to participate in Continuing legal education programs. Lawyer Landau firmly believes that law firms should invest not only in the lawyer’s education, but the education of personnel as well. The investment pays off as legal staff that are up on the latest laws, procedures, and are familiar with the staff at the courts where their cases are tried. The ABRAMS LANDAU team is more effective than those firms whose staff stay holed up in their cubicles, or only “attend” remotely and never meet the people that they work with on the other side, or who administer the compensation system from which their clients derive benefits.
If you or someone you know needs help with an on the job injury case as questions about the law, please call or email us.