Hot propertySurprising though it may seem, this innocent photograph is a good example of the difference between English and US law firms.

When secretary Hayley Moon was looking for a sponsor for her netball team, 'The Chilli Peppers', she turned to her employers, Tunbridge Wells firm Thomson Snell & Passmore.

Rather than just use a 'sponsored by' tag, the firm came up with the idea of 'red hot lawyers' for the back of the players' jerseys.

Whereas a UK law firm would only consider such a thing as a fun bit of marketing, in the US, there is actually a law firm that goes by the name of the Red Hot Law Group.

The firm explains: 'Forgive us if our name seems irreverent but we believe without speed, a technology business has no business.' And the firm's tag-line? 'Red Hot Law - Where Technology Businesses Sizzle.'

Star-struck solicitorsThere is only so much excitement anyone can take, so one wonders how the good folk of Leeds firm Nelson & Co coped last month when the cast and crew of ITV soap 'Emmerdale' used their offices to film scenes of the hit-and-runstoryline involving the ill-fated Reynolds family.

The firm's library was the venue for the family's meeting with solicitors Bradbourne & Abbott.

Nelson & Co was approached to host the scene when location manager Martin Campbell, a client of the firm, was at the offices.

Andrew Linden, managing partner at Nelson & Co, tried to muscle in with his own advice: 'Marc Reynolds and his friends are in an unfortunate position.

Faced with the charge of death by dangerous driving, we can only hope he has a very good solicitor.' If not, they could at least have nicked some books from the library to gen up themselves.

Lawyers for every month of the year: South-coast firm Lester Aldridge has been so pleased by the response to its 'Shockingly normal...' postcard campaign that we now have a calendar full of, and we quote, 'people-oriented lawyers with a great sense of humour who are up for being photographed enjoying themselves.

There's just one thing they wouldn't give up - their suits!' In Obiter's experience, there is something worrying about people who have to make a point that they have a great sense of humour (let alone that they are 'people-oriented' as opposed, presumably, to gun-toting loners).

Nonetheless, the pictures are quite amusing, especially employment lawyers Sue Evans and Tina Bradford in the football shot, while it would have been interesting to see family lawyer Stephen Foster five seconds later, after he'd hit the water.

Toy storyBeing a law firm marketing manager has always seemed something of a thankless task to Obiter, what with unco-operative and unappreciative partners being the norm when it comes to something as distasteful as marketing.

But for Jayne Davies, marketing manager of Shropshire firm Lanyon Bowdler, there is some fun to be had too.

Last month she had the onerous task of spending hours in a toy shop with 500 saved from not sending out Christmas cards.

The presents went to a local radio station's 'Toys for Tots' appeal, and she is pictured here (front) with DJs Mark Peters and 'AJ'.