I admit it. I used to receive a daily newsletter at my last law firm, discussing the latest news and events in the bankruptcy industry, and ordinarily I’d just toss it aside. There was too much work to be done, time to be billed, clients to call, partners to please!

When the work slowed down a little, though, I got wise, started thumbing through these newsletters and began to see what I was missing. Industry publications (whether based in the legal side of an industry or the day-to-day operations and trends within an industry), contain valuable information, including:

• The status of and strategies used in ongoing cases that may be similar or relevant to those you might be handling;
• Recent decisions, deals or settlements that may affect the work on your plate;
• Summaries of industry trends that may be setting industry standards for your clients.

A supervising associate, partner or client will always be impressed if you are able to stay current (or even get a step ahead) on issues in your and your client’s industries. Taking ten minutes in the morning to scan an industry publication will be well worth it.