Altman Weil has released the results of its 2009 Chief Legal Officer Survey. To my mind, the most telling result is this: The survey asked Chief Legal Officers (CLOs) to rate how much pressure corporations are putting on law firms to change the value proposition in legal service delivery, as opposed to simply cutting costs…. Continue Reading
Monthly Archives: June 2009
Celebrate What You Have.
Posted in People, Places and BlawgsYesterday, I took my soon to a church function that, frankly, neither of us was too thrilled about attending. But lessons are learned in the most unexpected places. We were in a group of about 50, and were treated to a performance by Tony Melendez. Tony is a thalidomide baby–he was born without arms. … Continue Reading
Note to BigLaw: Please Explain
Posted in CommentaryTwo things captured my attention today. They fit so nicely together because I can’t understand either of them. First, I read an Above The Law post about DLA Piper abandoning lockstep compensation for its associates. But it was this quote from co-CEO Lee Miller that struck me so hard: "I don’t think the model is broken,… Continue Reading
NineSigma–Can The Model Be Adapted For Law?
Posted in Client Service, Commentary, Hourly Rates and AlternativesMavericks At Work: Why The Most Original Minds in Business Win is a terrific book, written by Fast Company co-founder William Taylor. The book has many attributes that make it a "must-read," but the one I want to focus on here is a company discussed in the book named NineSigma. Here’s the backdrop to put… Continue Reading
Lawyers Victimizing Clients: Two Models
Posted in Client ServiceI was visiting with a friend of mine recently. He regaled me with a story of a lawsuit he had brought against some entity that had screwed up a service it was providing. He lamented how he had been unable to get the case settled. He told me that the lawyer defending the case had… Continue Reading
“Dedicated to providing thoughtful answers.”
Posted in Commentary, Marketing, Branding and SalesMarketing, to be effective, needs to (1) have a point and (2) not insult the listener or viewer. These things seem to be Marketing 101. So here I am this morning, driving along listening to NPR. The announcer reads the piece that programming is brought to you by "[insert name of large national accounting firm]… Continue Reading
Social Networking And The Law
Posted in CommentaryOne of the points that Mike Dillon, GC of Sun Microsystems, made in his recent post, Change, is that the new generation of lawyers has a different perspective on the practice, which is helping drive change. The career perspective of the newest generation of attorneys is an additional factor in driving these changes. They desire… Continue Reading
The Mastodon . . . whistles past the graveyard?
Posted in Commentary, Leadership and ManagementTwo years ago, Mike Dillon, GC of Sun Microsystems, observed in his post, The Way Of The Mastodon: My point is that the epoch of the current law firm model – which derives its profitability from growing scale and raising hourly rates – will soon be over. The firms that will survive and thrive are… Continue Reading
Skin In The Game: It Causes Behavior To Change
Posted in Commentary, Hourly Rates and AlternativesThe President’s proposed solution to the economic problems created by the easy loans made during the housing bubble requires banks and other lenders to keep 5% of the loans they package and sell. The belief is that if lenders have "skin in the game," they will refrain from making bad loans since doing… Continue Reading
Designing The Nuclear Supercarrier Of The Future and The Practice Of Law
Posted in Leadership and Management"Designing a nuclear powered aircraft carrier is a mindbendingly complex process." I love that sentence–if only because of its understatement (and the use of "mindbendingly"). It is from a fascinating article at FastCompany.com, How Does The Navy Design The Nuclear Supercarrier Of The Future? The answer, of course, is that one designs nuclear supercarriers with the… Continue Reading
A Thought For Law Students
Posted in CommentaryI don’t normally write with a law student audience in mind. The recent spate of terminations (I hate the word “layoff”), my encounters with great law students here at Valorem and at FutureFirm 1.0 and a recent post on Legal On Ramp by Ed Reeser asking whether being a BigLaw associate was worth it anymore… Continue Reading
Thanks To Adrian Dayton For Podcast Interview
Posted in People, Places and BlawgsMy great thanks to Adrian Dayton, the person behind Marketing Strategy And The Law–Social Media Edition. I was honored to be Adrian’s guest on Weekly Voir Dire, a weekly podcast. The interview in available here. I thoroughly enjoyed the discussion with Adrian. Some of the discussion focuses on the billable hour, but also on… Continue Reading
Can BigLaw Afford To Look Askance At Contract Lawyers
Posted in Commentary, Hourly Rates and Alternatives, Leadership and ManagementHere’s a sentence that should scare the bejesus out of every inside lawyer: "Other firms, however, are taking work they would typically farm out to contract lawyers and instead are giving it to associates who might not have much on their plates." So says Raunn Ross of Agency Legal Staffing in Los Angeles. Apparently, some… Continue Reading
Short Time Offer: Creating A Marketing Habit in 21 Days
Posted in People, Places and BlawgsI generally try to avoid pushing books here, even though I read a lot of books. But I was asked to read Paula Black’s The Little Black Book: A Lawyer’s Guide To Creating A Marketing Habit in 21 Days. I read the other books in Paula’s "Little Black Book" series, and they have been very… Continue Reading
BigLaw and Alternative Fees: With Friends Like This, I Can File Chapter 11!
Posted in CommentaryIn February, I posted about The Problem With Most Fixed Fee Proposals. Here was my point: Let’s start with the "what it would cost on an hourly basis" part of the calculus. Hours times hourly rate. See any problem? To start with, hourly rates include a very hefty profit margin. The lawyers also have no incentive… Continue Reading
“Contract Year Phenomenon” And Lawyer-Client Relationships
Posted in CommentaryThere is something known as "contract year phenomenon." Wikipedia describes it: Contract year phenomenon is a term used in North American sports to describe the occurrence when athletes perform at a very high level in the season prior to their free agency eligibility. Most often, these athletes have seasons that are statistically better than previous… Continue Reading
Worst Law Firm Decision Imaginable?
Posted in Commentary, Leadership and ManagementThe title is Fred Bartlit’s take on the recent decision by Pillsbury Winthrop to cut associate salaries between 10-20% based on utilization rates. Fred’s take is ‘this guarantees that more associates will "make their quotas" and that clients will pay much more for no reason." (Fred’s comments appear in a post on Legal On Ramp)… Continue Reading
Excellent Book: Personality not included–why companies lose their authenticity and how great brands get it back
Posted in People, Places and BlawgsI am a big fan of Rohit Bhargava’s recent book, *Personality not included–Why Companies Lose Their Authenticity and how great brands get it back. Rohit provides great examples of the points he is making. The essential point is that companies with personality have a chance of succeeding, faceless companies that try to be all things… Continue Reading
But Who Insures My Profitability?
Posted in Commentary, Hourly Rates and Alternatives, Leadership and ManagementThe AmLaw Daily contains a fascinating post, GCs, Law Firms And Flat Fee Arrangements: A Matter Of Trust. One outside lawyer is quoted as saying that "the single biggest obstacle to flat fee arrangements is fear." The reporter goes on to say that clients worry about the quality of work they will get and outside… Continue Reading
Back Door To ??????
Posted in CommentaryLast week the American Lawyer reported the results of its first "Women in Law" survey. Despite the occasional standout firm, women still account for approximately 1 in 5 big firm partners. The Am Law 200 does much better than the Am Law 100, with 60% of the former reporting an average of 19% women partners… Continue Reading
Cost Certainty Should Not Be Confused With Efficiency
Posted in Commentary, Hourly Rates and AlternativesI read with interest a law.com story, New Approaches, New Firms on Corporate Clients’ Shopping Lists. The story reports on recent findings from a BTI Consulting survey. Here’s the key finding: Clients need new approaches to fees, staffing and billing — including a shift from hourly to flat rates, he said, but when… Continue Reading
Sandra Day O’Connor, Nicole Auerbach and Roberta Liebenberg
Posted in People, Places and BlawgsIt’s not too often that one of your partners is mentioned in the same breath with a legendary Supreme Court justice. But that’s just what happened to my partner, Nicole Auerbach! Here’s the story. A former colleague of mine received a blast email from the ABA Commission on Women in the Profession announcing Ms…. Continue Reading