Everyone -- even notoriously conservative law professionals -- are doing it. Doing what, you ask? Rushing to the Internet/dotcom sector. But there are new issues and rules for attorneys who are excited about the prospect of working for a dotcom company or in the technology arena. Rule number one: You must have passion for the industry.

Consider Bruce Deming, a Washington, DC-based lawyer who has been practicing law for 16 years. After finishing law school at Franklin Pierce in New Hampshire, Deming moved to DC and spent two years as a lawyer with the federal government, eight years with a specialized law firm and four years as an in-house general counsel.

Two years ago, he began to take a strong interest in the Net through entrepreneurial friends who were getting involved in the industry. He made the transition to the dotcom world and became outside counsel for IMC WorldCell, an online provider of wireless services to international business travelers.

"Part of the transition was by choice, and part by evolution," says Deming. Several of his existing brick-and-mortar clients had transitioned decisively into the Internet space. It was shortly after that time that he acquired the skills and subject area knowledge necessary to transition along with them.

Of course, there was also the evolution of the economy. "Many of my friends and business contacts began working for technology companies, or in some cases starting their own. They came to me for advice on starting up, and the relationships grew from there. I shared their enthusiasm for technology, so it was a natural fit," Deming explains.

Even with 12 years experience counseling business clients and four years as general counsel, Deming still needed to learn the ropes of e-business. That included learning how deals are struck, identifying potential risks and how to protect the clients without crashing the deal. Another challenge: how to achieve those goals at warp speed. "A deal that might take eight weeks to close in the brick-and-mortar world may close in a week in the Internet space," observes Deming. "And you can’t make it happen by just working harder. Leveraging technology to maximize your work efficiency is critical."

"If you don’t have a true passion for the technology and the creativity driving it, stay out," warns Deming. He has seen too many traditional law firms that are desperately trying to jump on the dotcom money train. "The problem is that, in the short-term, they are in it for the bucks, and don’t fundamentally care about the long-term interests of the young entrepreneurs they represent.

"If you are truly excited about the Internet space, and really enjoy the company of creative people, it can be tremendously rewarding on a personal level." Here are a few practical steps aspiring Internet-focused lawyers can take:

"You need to be up on areas of law that are changing daily, if not hourly. Attending seminars once or twice a year won’t cut it. You also need to be up on the deals and alliances that are happening, who the big players are, which companies are being funded and all the emerging technologies in your space."

If the question is, "can you get me a draft today?" the answer is always "yes." Deming now carries a cell phone 24/7, and his clients know they can reach him whenever they want, not whenever he wants. "In the old days (i.e. three years ago), you could call a client back midafternoon or at the end of the day. Do that now and you’ll be looking for new clients. The practice of law has never been more of a service business. It’s all about the client, every minute of every day."

Many young companies are cash constrained. "If you like the people and their business plan, be willing to trade sweat for equity. Either that or go with a monthly flat fee retainer that meets the client’s cash flow needs. I personally believe that great things can happen when the interests of the lawyer and client are aligned," he says.

The areas that lawyers should focus on depend on the type of practice you have and the type of company you’re working for. "If you are a counsel primarily to small startups, you need to be up on a broad range of corporate issues -- stock option plans and capital structure are especially critical as is being up on the latest venture capital deals," Deming explains. "Clients will expect you to maximize their company’s long term value."

"More established clients will expect that you are well versed in the critical areas that protect their interests, such as contract law and intellectual property (i.e. patents, trademarks and copyrighting) are obviously highly relevant," Deming says. The day-to-day business issues, like employment law, employee benefits and taxation are also important subjects to know. "Online privacy, data mining and marketing issues are important, especially if your client is a B2B or B2C," he notes.

"Ultimately, you can’t be everything to all clients, because no single lawyer can maintain the level of vertical expertise needed in every subject area. But it is important to be able to spot issues before they become a problem, lose the ego and have the wisdom to consult with other specialized counsel where necessary."

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Bruce S. Deming represents technology and Internet clients in the Washington, D.C. area. He can be reached at bdeming@bellatlantic.net

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Online Law Resources

Law.com, http://www.law.com

Cyberspace Law & Regulation from About.com, http://law.about.com/newsissues/law/msub34.htm

Cyberlaw Encyclopedia (a legal portal), http://www.gahtan.com/cyberlaw/

Cyberspace Law from the John Marshall Law School, http://www.jmls.edu/cyber/index/index.html