Home / Commentary / If lawyers lack business acumen, here is one part of a solution

If lawyers lack business acumen, here is one part of a solution

By Patrick Lamb on October 15th, 2009 Posted in Commentary

In this space, I’ve discussed the "4-bucket" theory of law (process, content, advocacy and counseling), and I was visiting with a law school colleague of mine about the missing elements of legal education. I indicated that the single biggest missing element is knowledge of business, since that missing knowledge bears not only on understanding the business of your firm, be it your own or someone else’s, but the business of the profession, and finally, and most acutely, the issues your client is confronting. For those just starting law school, the answer probably is a joint MBA/JD program. But for those already practicing, here are some resources that might be of assistance:

Manager Tools, a website devoted to business types with podcasts on various management issues

University of the People, and open source web education system with a focus on business

One client advisor suggested The Ten Day MBA.

You can listen to a story on 848, a Chicago Public Radio program, about open courseware. If you’re interested about open courseware, read The World Is Open: How Web Technology Is Revolutionizing Education.

Any other suggestions?

http://www.legaladmin.info Richard Wood

Pat, a joint MBA/JD program would be a great start to getting new lawyers up to speed on the business behind running a law firm. What might be an enticing idea as well would be to get the Association of Legal Administrators (ALA) to help create a quarter long course of basic law firm operations. ALA, over the past few years, has created a Certified Legal Manager (CLM) certification program for business managers inside law firms and legal departments. I think the backing of this type of program would be a welcome addition for lawyers to get up to speed on soup-to-nuts law firm management.
Also, the Puget Sound chapter of ALA, where I sit on the Executive Board, has a “Business Skills for Attorneys” quarterly CLE course offered to all member firms. Some of the course offerings are: “Basic Finance for Law Firms”, “Legal Presentation Skills”, “Rainmaking Begins at Home: How to Sell Yourself and Your Skills More Effectively to Clients and Within Your Firm”.