While most legal depositions are conducted face to face, in front of lawyers and a court reporter, an increasing number of depositions are taking place over the phone and Internet with desktop webcams.
Due to the fact that witnesses are scattered over the country and in an effort to conserve time by avoiding travel, many lawyers are opting to just sit at their desks and depose the parties over the phone. It’s easier, much faster, and the results are the same.
While a few high end law firms host full fledged video conference facilities, the vast majority of lawyers have no access to sophisticated equipment. These facilities can cost up to several hundred thousand dollars and require the support of a full time technician. Of course, if the opposing party doesn’t have access to similar facilities in their hometown, then the whole effort is useless.
Regarding video conferencing, the trend is moving away from the expensive conference rooms, video equipment and network connections. With broadband connectivity available to almost everyone, video conferencing is evolving toward the greater use of small desktop webcams that are now routinely included on computer and laptops. These cameras are generally available for less than $50 and webcam conferencing services are available from any number of sources.
Still, 95% of the deposition conferences are conducted over the phone and that seems to be the preferred method at the present time since there is universal access to telephones and no special hardware is needed. It’s the simplest approach and can be set up quickly and easily.
There are several service bureaus who specialize in hosting deposition conference calls. There are no set up fees and generally speaking, billing is done on a pay as you go basis. You only pay for the time on the system you actually use. This is an ideal method of payment, especially for occasional users.
This is how it works: The opposing law firms each set up an account with the selected deposition conference call service. Once the account is opened, the coordinating law firm informs the service the time the call will take place. The service can dial-out and call each participant, or the participants can call into a toll free number themselves. Either way, the conference service will have an operator organizing the call to make sure all the parties are present.
A new feature has been included recently that provides a tremendous convenience to the respective law firms. It’s called “individualized billing.” Each law firm is billed separately for its portion of the cost for the deposition conference call. So it is no longer necessary for one law firm to send another law firm an invoice. Each law firm is billed, and each law firm pays its own share of the conference expense directly to the conference service.
While court reporters are on the conference to record the call for future transcript, the calls can also be digitally recorded for download.
Overall, because of the speed and convenience of conducting depositions over the phone, you’ll see more and more law offices adopting this method to expedite cases. Travel costs will be cut dramatically and lawyers will be able to use their time more productively.
For more information on how to set up a legal deposition conference call, you click here for a service that specializes in this field: http://www.24conference.com/legal_conference_call.php
Rescue data recovery is a valuable service that will help you to recover files and folders from damaged or corrupted hard drives. Although it is true that there are standalone applications that are designed to recover computer data, you will still get the best results from a recovery facility.
Here is a quick overview of the processes involved in recovering data so you can understand how this kind of service works.
The Basics of Data Recovery
When you bring a broken hard drive to a facility, the recovery process is split into two stages. The first involves drive evaluation. Technicians of the service provider will evaluate your hard drive to determine the extent of the damage and to identify strategies to recover your data.
After the evaluation stage, the service will contact you and will tell you about the diagnosis of the technicians. If your computer suffered from very serious damage, the recovery facility will tell you that any data recovery effort will be futile. If the problem can be solved, then the service provider will seek your confirmation for further recovery.
The next stage is actual rescue data recovery. This involves retrieval of lost files and data from your PC or Mac. The service will attempt to restore your files to their original state. If this is not possible, the majority of recoverable data will be restored.
How Long Does It Take
Rescuing your data will depend on the extent of the damage and the number of problematic files in the hard drive. For simple recovery efforts, the process could take at least 1 hour to 5 hours. For more complicated problems, recovery of your data could take days.
If you are going to ship your hard drive to the data recovery facility, the minimum turnaround time is two days. On the other hand, it could take a week of workup if there are big problems detected on your hard drive and file system allocations.
Data recovery is a big life saver especially if you will lose years of hard work due to a computer crash or malfunction. Getting professional service is a good option to ensure optimum recovery of data.
Read more tips on data recovery at http://www.datarecoveryremedies.com, including our wildly popular article “How to Implement a Crashed Hard Drive Recovery.”
Do you find yourself frustrated by long and unproductive conference calls? What reputation do you have for managing conference calls? Establish expectations and a reputation for short and effective conference calls. Get your time back for other activities.
ESTABLISH EXPECTATIONS UP FRONT
If you are the moderator scheduling the conference call, send out a list in advance with pertinent information. This information should contain the Purpose of the call, dial number with PIN code if necessary, the moderator, the start time, the end time, list of participants and specific agenda items. Attached relevant documents to email invitations for the conference call so the participants can prepare in advance. If documents are required from other participants to review on the call, make sure that these are coordinated and completed in advance. The more prepared you are for the call, the productive the time can be and the better able that you will be to stay on schedule.
PURPOSE
List the purpose or topic of the call clearly and succinctly. This should be the goal or objective of the call. Typically a conference call should be limited to one or two specific goals. This enables you to keep the conference call focused and succinct.
In some cases it may be more difficult to keep a conference call focused on a specific topic. For example, when reviewing the schedule for a large project there may be multiple topics that are relevant to time milestones in the project. If this is the case, keep the call focused on specific milestones that are due or relative to the point in the schedule.
Sometimes conference calls are used to gather information from many people in the field. These group calls can be effective if the purpose is for a moderator or manager to disperse information to several people simultaneously. However, if the call is used to gather information from several different individuals as a weekly update to management, is it really an effective use of time for anyone other than the manager? Is it really a good use of time to interrupt the schedules of many people to conduct a social town hall discussion in which each person waits in silent anticipation for peers to give a weekly update? Consider how much more effective it would be to obtain a written weekly report in lieu of a conference call. A written report can be read at convenience, creates a reference document for discussion if necessary, and enables the manager to work with priority or confidential communications in an appropriate manner. If you are already using both weekly reports and conference calls, then it is time to do some soul searching to determine if any of the communication is being treated with value or if it has just become a meaningless routine.
DIAL IN and PIN NUMBER
Always include the conference call Dial In Number and PIN Number on the invitation and any scheduled reminders. Make it easy to find the number. It can be a distraction to have people dial into the conference call late because they could not find the phone number.
MODERATOR
Every conference call should have one identified and assigned moderator. If there is a group of peers, it may be appropriate to rotate the role of moderator from time to time with repeating calls, Typically, the individual creating the invitation is the moderator. The moderator is responsible for making sure that the call starts and stops on time. The moderator is responsible for keeping the call on track and gently guiding individuals back on track in the event that conversation begins to run away on a tangent. The moderator may also be responsible for controlling emotional responses or maintaining a professional level of courteous communications. It may be necessary to encourage some individuals to participate, or discourage some individuals who may have a tendency to filibuster. It is the responsibility of the moderator to keep the call on schedule and focused on the purpose of the call.
It is the role of the moderator to reduce or eliminate distractions or interruptions. It is the role of the participants to remain quiet and respectful unless there is something useful and relevant to add to the conversation. Distractions may sometimes appear as opinions, jokes, anecdotes or personal stories that contribute very little to the progress of the conversation. It is the responsibility of the moderator to control the call and keep it focused.
START TIME and END TIME
Schedule the call to start five minutes past the hour. Most calls are scheduled to start precisely on the hour and the first five minutes of the call are wasted while waiting for some individuals to dial into the call. Sometimes it is difficult to start on the hour because a previous call or meeting may be ending precisely on the hour. Schedule your call to start five minutes past the hour and start precisely at the scheduled time. If you always start at the scheduled time, you will develop a reputation for being precise and the participants will plan accordingly. If you always start late or consistently spend the first five minutes waiting for participants to join the call, then the other participants will become accustomed to this delay. Schedule the call to start five minutes past the hour and start the call on time every time.
Schedule a precise End Time for the call and stick to it. Develop a reputation for ending your calls on time. It will create a sense of urgency and a rhythm for the conference calls as people realize that the purpose of the call must be met in a designated amount of time. It will enable the participants to schedule other activities after the call with confidence. It will keep the call focused. Complete the call with a summary of highlights and action items. If there are follow-up items, or if additional time is required, schedule the next phone call and use the summary highlights and action items as the agenda for the next conference call. Every action item should have name or names of associated owners to complete, or there is no purpose for the list of action items.
ROLL CALL
Conduct a time check near the end of the call and reserve the last few minutes for summary wrap-up and roll call. What, roll call at the end of the call? Yes, do your roll call at the end of the call, not at the beginning. It is inevitable that some individuals may join the call late. Avoid the temptation to wait for participants to join or to introduce distractions and interruptions by late arrivals. Start the call on time and get right to the purpose of the call. Conduct your roll call at the end when everyone has had a chance to join.
YOUR NEXT CALL
Example: Schedule a conference call to start five minutes past the hour and start precisely on time. Schedule the call for 40 minutes, unlike most calls that are scheduled for one hour. The shorter period of time and specific start and stop times will get the attention of the participants. There will be a sense of urgency since the call will not consume an entire hour, regardless of the topic. Do a time check at 30 minutes into the call, reminding participants that the call will have a hard stop at 40 minutes. At 35 minutes begin the wrap-up of the call, restate the highlights or commitments and use this to establish the agenda for the next call. Finish your call with a roll call of attendees and terminate the call at 40 minutes as planned. If you this consistently, the other participants will prepare appropriately in advance of the call for the fast paced rhythm of the call and focus on purpose. Side conversations and distractions will diminish, participants will be timely, and everyone will benefit from better use of time.
INVITATION
The following is an example of a format that can be used for conference call invitations. It is designed to establish the expectations and character of the conference call. Apply structure to your conference calls and earn a reputation for consistent focused punctuality. That is a good reputation to have if you want to have more productive conference calls and more time back to yourself.
Conference Call Purpose: ______________________________
Dial In Number: ____________________ PIN: ____________________
Moderator: ______________________________
Start Time: __(Example: 10:05 AM)__________ End Time: __(Example: 10:45 AM)__________
Participants: ___(Name)___________________________
___(Name)___________________________
___(Name)___________________________
Agenda Topics: ___(First Priority)___________________________
___(Second Priority)_________________________
___(Third Priority)___________________________
* This call will start precisely at the Start Time and end at the designated time. Please be on time. There will be a roll call at the end of the conference call, so it will not be necessary to announce yourself if you dial in late. The last five minutes of the call will be reserved for summary wrap-up and assignment of action items for the next scheduled call if necessary. Please prepare or review any relevant materials prior to the call. In the event that the agenda items are not fully covered in the allotted time for this conference call, another call will be scheduled. Thank you for your cooperation. Let’s get ready for productive and focused communication.
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Words of Wisdom
“A conference is a gathering of important people who singly can do nothing, but together can decide that nothing can be done.”
- Fred Allen
“The ability to focus attention on important things is a defining characteristic of intelligence.”
- Robert J. Shiller
“Energy is the essence of life. Every day you decide how you’re going to use it by knowing what you want and what it takes to reach that goal, and by maintaining focus.”
- Oprah Winfrey
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About the Author:
John Mehrmann is a freelance writer and President of Executive Blueprints Inc., an organization devoted to improving business practices and developing human capital
John Mehrmann is a freelance author, industry expert and President of Executive Blueprints Inc, an organization dedicated to developing human capital and personal growth.
