Q: My attorney says apologizing will be bad for future litigation – that apologizing means we are liable. What do you think? A: We often find ourselves wrestling with our client’s attorneys over the phrase “I’m sorry.” Somehow, through the years, attorneys have come to define the phrase “I’m sorry” as meaning “I’m liable. I […]
From Matt Cavanaugh at McDonald Hopkins: Earlier this week, Rep. Devin Nunes (R-California) sued Twitter, Liz Mair (a republican strategist), and two obvious parody Twitter accounts: “Devin Nunes’ Mom” and “Devin Nunes’ Cow.” A copy of the complaint is available here. Nunes claims that tweets by Mair and the parody accounts were defamatory and “fighting words” and that Twitter was negligent for […]
By Bruce Hennes, CEO, Hennes Communications On September 11, 2001, the world changed. The terrorist attack on the U.S. altered American politics and propelled us into a foreign war, changing government surveillance, our travel habits and even the architecture of our buildings. On a micro-level, it also changed Hennes Communications. For the previous 12 years, […]
Hear Thom Fladung, managing partner of Hennes Communications, talk to the Portage County Safety Council about crisis management here. Hope you agree it’s worth the listen.
Cornell University officials acted instantly when an honoree at an event used a word considered by many to be offensive. Many present were upset but praised the university for not ignoring what happened. The article below, from Inside Higher Ed, details steps taken by the university to address the issue. We believe you’ll also find […]
Can best practices for a garden center help your business or organization? It sure can. Read below. From GardenCenterMag.com: From local newspaper and television stories to social media reviews, coverage of your independent garden center sways the opinions of consumers interested in your store. When press is positive, everyone basks in the warmth. But when […]
By Thom Fladung, Managing Partner, Hennes Communications The Court of Public Opinion is now in session. In fact, it’s always in session – on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and other social media outlets. The practice of litigation communications or litigation public relations is young, as legal and communications matters go, emerging in the early 1980s, according to […]
How do you handle the situation where you’re dealing with a client whose attorney doesn’t want to issue a statement other than, “No Comment”? [By Stephanie York, JD, Hennes Communications] As an attorney, I understand the knee-jerk instinct to say “We don’t comment on pending litigation.” When we are faced with attorneys who counsel their […]
From our good friends at Thompson Hine, attorneys Tom Fehrer and Karen Rubin: Last week the media was abuzz with the allegations made against the National Enquirer by Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon and the owner of The Washington Post. The details in Bezos’ blog post about his ongoing dispute with the Enquirer and […]
Written by Lisa Leopold, Associate Professor of English Language Studies, The Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey, Middlebury. “I’m sorry.” These two words may seem simple, but the ability to express them when you’re in the wrong is anything but – particularly for those in the public eye. Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam, to […]