What Steps Should You Take To Start The Whistle Blowing Process?

The whistle blowing process is one that can seriously affect a career and even the safety of one's quality of life. There can be many reasons to go through with it. The most common is to right some type of perceived wrong. But you must be careful before you initiate the process, because companies, jobs, and livelihoods, could be at risk. Even your own. It is a delicate legal matter that requires a delicate legal solution. To initiate the process and successfully navigate it, you will want to follow the steps below. Ignoring them can be a major setback in your life and career. Following them will make certain you are protected.

1. Contact a lawyer.

Don't go with just any lawyer. Some lawyers have experience with divorce law, some with tort reform, some with criminal justice. Not all of these specialists would be particularly good candidates for you as a whistleblower. However, they are worth checking out if they have experience similar to the one that you will be going through. The most important thing that you can do is make use of the free consultation that most attorneys provide, and use that time to question them about their past with the whistle blowing process. Also, it never hurts to listen. Attorneys want to make money, but they will not take on a lost cause, and they can give you confirmation of your case ahead of time.

2. Fill out the appropriate documentation.

With any legal action, there are forms and paperwork to fill out. Do not hesitate to get yours to your attorney, so you can expedite the whistle blowing process. At this point, it is best to say nothing to anyone but your legal representation. You don't want to jeopardize your case before it even gets off the ground, so play things close to the vest between yourself and your attorney.

3. Ensure your own protection.

When blowing the whistle on a company or employer, it is also important to make sure that you are protected. So many people, who resort to this practice, are only able to do so because they are close to the company and its practices in some way. It takes a lot of courage to point out things and call people or organizations on it. Make sure that you are not violating any laws in the process.

4. Be non-reproachable.

To have the most success blowing the whistle, it is important not to be guilty of any wrongdoings yourself. Guilty people blow the whistle all the time, and are able to do so in exchange for lighter punishment or immunity. Still, you are in the best position if you keep your hands clean of any questionable practices to begin with.

Learn from someone who has substantial experience litigating medicaid fraud on behalf of medical employees nationwide. Someone who has studied and examined every aspect of medicare fraud.

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Why and How to Start With Legal Knowledge Management

Legal Knowledge Management (LKM) refers to the collection, organization, dissemination, and reuse of knowledge contained within documents and inside individuals' heads, and it includes the development of standard forms, tools, and templates to streamline the delivery of service.

Even though LKM is often thought of in the context of larger firms, its promise is easy to grasp: greater efficiency, higher quality work product, and higher profits (depending on the fee arrangement). But because Legal Knowledge Management (LKM) will continue to be driven by fast-evolving technology, it's very difficult for most attorneys to get a handle on it (much less stay current with it).

Indeed, as Dan Kennedy wrote several years ago in a post on Do-It-Yourself LKM, "For the average lawyer who needs a time management tool just to schedule some time to learn the differences among case management, document management, litigation management, customer relations management and practice management, the introduction of KM into the mix may be the 'management' straw that breaks the camel's back."

Yes, it's daunting. But think about that promise for just a second: what if you didn't have to start from scratch as often as you do now? That is, what if you didn't have to figure out, re-think, re-create, or re-find something good and smart that already exists somewhere in your firm or your practice group - such as memos of law, pleadings, opinion letters, contract provisions - all sorts of "go-by's"?

So, setting aside the IT dimension of LKM execution for a minute, what can you do to capture more of the knowledge in your organization, your practice group, or your team?

The first step is to find the low-hanging fruit by asking the members of your group the following question: "what knowledge, information, processes, or work products do we use that, if captured and made easily retrievable, would make your job easier?"

The second step is buff your understanding of KM - and LKM specifically. Here are the two resources we recommend: the first is an excellent easy-to-understand overview of KM, The Complete Idiot's Guide to Knowledge Management. The second is an older resource, but it's targeted to LKM and is useful for both small and large firm practitioners alike, Knowledge Management and the Smarter Lawyer.

As Kennedy's post suggests, you can go a long way to realizing the benefits of LKM without having to undertake expensive deployments of complicated, expensive platforms. For example, the following four step process will set you on a solid path.

1. Determine what knowledge you and your team would like to have easier access to
2. Have your IT person set up a designated space on a shared server as your LKM repository
3. Set a few meetings with your team to establish folder and document naming conventions (see this ABA article to get you started. NOTE the link displays oddly so make sure to scroll down to see the article)

Of course, getting your team to use the system once it's established is a matter of culture and leadership. So start small. Let people experience the value in accessing knowledge this way. The two books, above, provide excellent suggestions for getting buy-in from your team.

Website: http://successtrackesq.com/

Bill Jawitz, Practice Advisor with SuccessTrackESQ, has been consulting with lawyers to become more profitable and enjoy a higher quality of life since 2002.

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