There's nothing like the adrenaline rush of starting a new firm. But the roller coaster ride can be stressful: determining which clients make the transition from the old firm to the new one, calculating expected billings and wondering whether profits will materialize. Dealing with banks and firm co-owners regarding paying for everything compounds the pressure. But lawyers can ease the stress of starting their own firms by creating a basic business plan, which isn't that difficult, says consultant Chuck Duff.

Pennsylvania plaintiffs firm Barroway Topaz Kessler Meltzer & Check has opened a patent litigation practice, to be run on a contingency basis, with two partners from Philadelphia-based intellectual property boutique Woodcock Washburn: Michael J. Bonella and Paul B. Milcetic. "I really think this is a model whose time has come," Milcetic says. He notes his clients never explicitly said they wanted to switch from hourly billing to contingency fees, but he got the message based on things like how marketing went.

A California appeals court has sided with Cotchett, Pitre & McCarthy in a dispute over a novel contingency fee deal that called for more legal fees than the amount of money the client recovered. Upholding an arbitration award for the firm of $7.5 million, the court rejected arguments that the award -- based on a contingency fee of 16 percent of the client's estimated damages -- was unconscionable. A lawyer for the Cotchett firm's former client said the case "cries out" for California Supreme Court review.

Attorney Robert J. Ambrogi heard that blogs are dead in the legal profession. Indeed, he declares legal blogging alive, well and thriving. Since the future is foretold by the new, Ambrogi highlights recently launched blogs, all of which show continuing vitality in the blawgosphere.

Rough economic winds battered small and midsize firm revenues during 2009 -- though cuts in expenses helped those firms eke out small increases in profits. That's according to The Survey of Law Firm Economics, a joint project of ALM Legal Intelligence and The National Law Journal. The majority of law firms who take the survey have fewer than 150 lawyers, so the results provide a deep look into the financial state of smaller and midsize players during fiscal year 2009.

Two plaintiffs in an insurance coverage suit pending in a Florida federal court allege Houston litigator Kenneth G. Engerrand coached a witness when he touched her foot with his during a deposition, and they've submitted photo evidence with a disqualification motion. The motion alleges that a paralegal heard a "clicking sound" and "noted that Mr. Engerrand was tapping the foot" of a witness "at different points after questions were asked." In a response, Engerrand's client called the motion "meritless."

The Supreme Court of Ohio last week suspended the law license of Columbus attorney David J. Robinson for one year after finding that he destroyed confidential law firm documents, and later lied about it when he moved to a rival firm. The suspension is half the length recommended by the state's Board of Commissioners on Grievances & Discipline, which found that Robinson had violated two rules of professional conduct when he lied under oath during his deposition and the hearing and when he destroyed the documents.

Four months after Hurricane Katrina hit, 5,352 attorneys had offices in New Orleans. Since then, that number has dropped by 19 percent, to 4,342, as attorneys moved elsewhere to make a living. Even so, membership in the New Orleans Bar Association now surpasses its pre-Katrina levels, if only slightly, said Executive Director Helena Henderson. She's encouraged by the bar association's numbers, but much work remains to be completed in New Orleans, she said. "People have tremendous legal needs. People still don't have homes."

Maryland solo Jonathan Shurberg is suing his malpractice insurer, claiming in an Aug. 19 federal complaint that the Minnesota Lawyers Mutual Insurance Co. improperly denied him malpractice coverage when he was sued by his former client, Rosa de Jesus Peralta, in May 2009. The insurer has countersued, claiming that Shurberg was denied coverage because he withheld information about alleged mistakes he made in handling the Peralta case when he filed paperwork to extend his insurance policy.

Three partners have left Dennis, Corry, Porter & Smith to start their own firm, taking four associates with them. The new firm, McMickle, Kurey and Branch, was launched by Scott W. McMickle, Raymond J. Kurey and Kevin P. Branch in early August. Branch and McMickle said their firm, like Dennis Corry, focuses on trucking defense. Dennis Corry's R. Clay Porter says his firm is now looking to add at least two more associates, and Branch and McMickle said they hope to add more lawyers to their new firm as well.

A Florida appeals court has erased most of a jury award due to an attorney's inflammatory and prejudicial language while representing a man injured when granite fell on his head in an elevator. The unanimous panel said lawyer Michael V. Laurato's theme in arguments was to disparage the defendants as greedy, arrogant and callous corporate types who had no intention of compensating Christian Kowalski for his injuries. Laurato said the defendants kicked Kowalski "out on the street like a dog," according to the opinion.

California Attorney General Jerry Brown has obtained a $1.1 million judgment against a Los Angeles attorney accused of bilking 2,000 homeowners seeking foreclosure relief. Mitchell W. Roth of M.W. Roth PLC operated United First, a Nevada company that claimed to provide help to struggling homeowners, according to the AG's office. Brown alleged that Roth filed lawsuits on behalf of the homeowners but often failed to make additional filings, respond to motions, meet deadlines or appear in court.