Ben Cowgill's SoloBlawg

Some time ago, I noticed that Smallfirmlife was getting visits from an address with the word "Cowgill" in it. I regularly visit Sitemeter (the green button at the bottom of my blog), and by clicking on a button called "referrals" it will tell me. I tried visiting the site, but it was "under construction". If you want to see who visits this blog, you can click and explore now. Scroll down and try it. If you want Sitemeter to keep your stats secret, you can pay them $$$.

Well, I kept getting referrals from the same address, and it turns out that an attorney from Lexington Kentucky named Ben Cowgill who specializes in representing lawyers who run into trouble has launched a blog called SoloBlawg. Next time you've had one too many mint juleps at the Derby, you know who to call. Seriously speaking, Ben's blog links to his professional website that reveals a very impressive career in legal ethics and discipline and innovative uses of technology.

Ok, it may be that Smallfirmlife's admiration for Ben and his blog border on jealousy. Let's explore why. The photo is fresh, dynamic and professional. The content is focused, helpful, well written. Useful for the sole practitioner. And the design of the blog itself has a number of well-done features. For example, the nice copyright notice with Ben's signature. Good, clean design.

Even better, Ben's blog attacks and solves the ethical issues of blogging in a confident, lawyerly style. First, he has a box on the blog in his bio section that says:
For information about Mr. Cowgill's services as an attorney,please visit:Benjamin Cowgill, www.cowgill.com This link is an advertisementfor legal services.

Second, his disclaimer reads as follows:

This weblog is published by Cowgill Consulting. It is not an advertisement for legal services.This weblog is a exercise in journalism, not legal advice. It should not be relied upon as a substitute for legal advice from a qualified attorney regarding any actual legal issue or dispute. Nothing on this web site should be construed as legal advice or perceived as creating an attorney-client relationship.

Well done. A confident, simple solution elegantly executed. Smallfirmlife's new rainy day project is to figure out how he did all of that and to shamelessly copy it without giving him any credit. Compare 17 U.S.C. Section 107. More comments on Ben's great new blog to come.