Get your financial life in order
February 5, 2019
What goals have you set to put yourself on more solid financial footing in the year ahead? BDF’s Attorney Practice Group Leader, Justin Peacock, shares a few suggestions to consider in “Get Your Financial Life In Order.”, Law.com, January 30, 2019. (free subscription required to view article)

How Wise Lawyers Think About Their Money
January 22, 2019
It’s human nature to wonder what other successful people are doing. This is especially true of lawyers where precedent is such a powerful concept. With that in mind, here are some key habits of the most financially savvy lawyers I’ve known. 1. Focus on what you can control So much of our lives, especially our […]

“The Process” for Lawyers – Part II
November 20, 2018
It’s college football season, which is my favorite time of the year. When football season rolls around I tend to make everything into a football-based metaphor – even retirement planning. In my last blog post I wrote about “the process” for lawyers to help build a strong financial future which centered on a couple of […]

What Happened to Emerging Markets?
October 25, 2018
Emerging markets has had a tough year. Since Late January 2018, emerging market equities have shed over 20% in value and are likely the biggest red number in your portfolio. During the nearly two-year period from March 2016 to the end of January 2018, emerging markets returned over 75%. What happened? There are a number […]

Volatility Strikes Again
October 12, 2018
Yesterday marked the second straight day of a Dow drop of more than 500 points. And while we have been talking about the return of volatility for quite some time, it still hurts when it actually shows up. So here we are with the S&P 500 having fallen over 7% in the last week. […]

“The Process” for Lawyers
September 18, 2018
Fall is here which, for me, means one very important thing… college football season! For my money there’s nothing better than sitting on my couch on a crisp Saturday afternoon and watching my favorite sport. Over the past decade, success in college football can be summed up in a single word: Alabama. Head Coach […]
BDF named to 2018 Financial Times 300 Top RIA
September 12, 2018
Balasa Dinverno Foltz is pleased to announce it has been named to the 2018 edition of the Financial Times 300 Top Registered Investment Advisers. The list recognizes top independent RIA firms from across the U.S. This is the fifth annual FT 300 list, produced independently by the Financial Times in collaboration with Ignites Research, a subsidiary […]

Put Your Money to Work
July 24, 2018
This is the fourth installment in a series of blog posts on “The Big Five of Retirement Planning” which are the five factors that will most profoundly impact how successful your retirement plan will be. Today, we will focus on factor #4 – How hard your money works for you. Saving for retirement is not […]

What’s your burn rate?
March 20, 2018
Recently I wrote a blog about “The Big Five of Retirement Planning” which are the five factors that most impact how successful your retirement will be… at least financially. These are: How long you work How much you spend How much you save How hard your money works for you How long you live Other […]

4 Critical Issues Facing Law Firms Today
January 23, 2018
Over the past couple of years our firm has conducted over 200 interviews to better understand the challenges facing lawyers and law firms in today’s environment. The most commonly-cited challenges I hear from law firm leaders and individual lawyers are (in no particular order): Rainmaking Attracting and retaining talent Succession planning, and Retirement planning and […]

The Big Five
November 21, 2017
Have you ever been on an African safari? Sadly, I never have. Hopefully, someday… maybe once my kids are a bit older and the thought of a trans-continental flight isn’t quite so painful. For those who have been on a safari, you’re no doubt familiar with the concept of “The Big Five.” The Big Five […]

Catching the Rain
September 19, 2017
Every lawyer knows the importance of rainmaking. It’s a ubiquitous discussion topic in law firm land. Virtually every legal industry conference features sessions on rainmaking best practices and consultants crisscross America training the future rainmakers of Big Law. Rainmaking matters. It greatly impacts your compensation and capacity to create wealth. While rainmaking largely drives how […]