Law Firm Management

Mind your migrants

By a:1:{i:0;s:1:" ";} | July 16, 2008

Many City employers, including law firms, have come to rely on a readily available turnover of foreign workers. This was particularly the case during the boom years when a shortage of qualified UK lawyers meant many law firms looked to Antipodeans. Although recruitment might have reduced in certain areas due to the impact of the credit crunch and global slowdown, those in charge of recruitment should nonetheless be aware of the effects of the radical immigration changes being phased in this year.

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Value your firm

By a:1:{i:0;s:1:" ";} | July 9, 2008

At the end of last year, the Legal Services Act gained Royal Assent, with provisions for alternative business structures (ABS) heralding opportunities for major changes in our legal services market - currently estimated to be worth £19bn. Although the law - which allows law firms to go into business with other professionals and list on the stock market - does not come into force until 2011, both investors and existing law firms are starting to rethink the delivery of legal services and explore market potential. This is an unprecedented opportunity for financial institutions and retailers to provide a range of legal products and for investors to take equity in existing legal practices.

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Target your future

By a:1:{i:0;s:1:" ";} | July 2, 2008

Readers of the discussions in Legal Week in March on the merits of marketing and business development at law firms could be excused for believing that they had been transported back to the 1980s, as this debate has been around for 25 years. A substantial number of lawyers undoubtedly do not rate their marketing and business development (BD) departments highly, and the role and value of the service seems as low and unclear as ever. With staff turnover in this function as high as 30%-40%, one question clearly emerges: is there a role for professional marketers in the legal profession?

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Upwardly mobile

By a:1:{i:0;s:1:" ";} | June 25, 2008

Ambitious associates are increasingly seeking out direct moves into partnership at a new firm. Sloane Poulton reports on the challenges and potential benefits of such a switch

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Opportunity knocks

By a:1:{i:0;s:1:" ";} | June 18, 2008

The Legal Services Act 2007 will implement fundamental changes to the structure and regulation of legal services in England and Wales. It presents significant commercial opportunities for law firms, as well as their potential business partners and investors. It is vital that, when planning for the exploitation of those commercial opportunities and/or the implementation of the new regulatory regime required by the Act, law firms' management teams give proper consideration to the impact of any proposals on their staff - a professional practice's most valuable resource - as well as their legal obligations to them.

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Substance with style

By a:1:{i:0;s:1:" ";} | June 18, 2008

This year's Intendance 'Fast Fifty' benchmarking of the 50 fastest-growing law firm websites is further proof of how the legal sector is stepping up its online operations. Famed throughout the business-to-business sector, sometimes unfairly, as being among the least innovative of the professional services in terms of harnessing the power of the internet, law firms are now showing signs of shedding that image. Of course, the big news since last year's report is the arrival of the much-heralded Legal Services Act, which will open the sector up to outside competition. It is too early to tell whether the Act has focused partners' attention on developing hitherto untapped business streams, but there are advantages to be had by developing online capabilities. For the past seven years, Intendance has been evaluating how the legal profession presents itself online and how it communicates with a whole host of stakeholders, from clients to potential trainees. The success - and increase in scope - of previous Fast Fifty reports has led to a change in format this year, from a single document to a three-part series.

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Focus on the future

By a:1:{i:0;s:1:" ";} | June 11, 2008

With daily headlines of falling property prices, stockmarket turmoil and rising energy prices, the need for sound financial planning is paramount. Pro-active tax planning and managing investments are an essential part of laying plans for the future. Unfortunately, the typical partners' approach to their financial planning is a last-minute mad rush accompanied by frustration at a loss of control and the mountains of incomprehensible paperwork. Yet all it takes is the disciplined application of a little common sense to put you back in the driving seat.

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The circle of success

By a:1:{i:0;s:1:" ";} | June 4, 2008

What makes a really great law firm these days? What causes them to experience a steady stream of great clients and great work that attract really talented people? In working with law firms for many years, we have come to realise that there are five key areas in which the really great law firms excel. We have combined them into what we are going to describe as the 'circle of success'.

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Banish the boredom

By a:1:{i:0;s:1:" ";} | May 28, 2008

Legal TV dramas have a lot to answer for. Watch any episode of LA Law and you would get the impression that US lawyers have to pass a test for good looks as well as their law exams. It does not fare much better in the UK - Judge John Deed gives the impression that all of the London Inns are actually dens of vice. Perhaps the one thing that all legal dramas do have in common is the way they consistently present lawyers as slick, articulate and never failing in their ability to hold an audience captive. In reality, it is a different story. Most lawyers I have trained - regardless of the size of the firm or the geography - tell me that presenting does not come naturally to them, whether to clients, prospects or even within their own firm. Regardless of the size of their audience, some lawyers find presenting to a group of eight people just as daunting as speaking to more than 500 people.

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Targeting the top

By a:1:{i:0;s:1:" ";} | May 21, 2008

An increasing number of law firms are providing their assistant solicitors with career planning support of some kind, whether internally via human resources or partner mentoring or through specialist external career management coaching. A key message in this approach is that individual lawyers should take responsibility for their own career development and planning and often this will be about making a choice between various career options (e.g. whether they aspire to partnership or not) and making and implementing a plan to achieve their objectives. Making partner in a law firm used to be the only career goal of a solicitor in private practice. Other options are now becoming more openly discussed but, for those who become partners, the paths they can take once they have been promoted are often unclear.

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The Recorder

Should I Include a Detailed Background Summary on My LinkedIn Profile?

By Julie Brush | March 27, 2018

I receive a lot of questions about the value and use of LinkedIn for career success. And as this “social” medium has become a more important tool for professionals, more people wonder about the impact of their information and behavior on the site.

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The American Lawyer

Law Firms Are Investing in Tech Before It Overtakes Them

By Rhys Dipshan | Roy Strom | March 26, 2018

The definition of a law firm is shifting as firms invest in technology to stave off competitors and give clients what they want.

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Texas Lawyer

Even Midsize Firms Look to Texas for Expansion

By Brenda Sapino Jeffreys | March 26, 2018

Firms of all sizes, not just big-name firms such as White & Case and Shearman & Sterling, are expanding in Texas.

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The American Lawyer

Who Gets Credit for Munger's About-Face on Arbitration?

By Miriam Rozen | March 26, 2018

Legal academics showed their clout after Munger Tolles' mandatory arbitration agreement for summer associates appeared on Twitter over the weekend.

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The Recorder

'Half-Assed Innovation': Do Law Firms Need to Change Incentives to Innovate?

By Ian Lopez | March 26, 2018

Former Littler Analytics leader Zev Eigen likens common law firm innovation structure to "a horse-and-buggy company" trying to design cars.

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Legaltech News

'Half-Assed Innovation': Do Law Firms Need to Change Incentives to Innovate?

By Ian Lopez | March 26, 2018

Former Littler Analytics leader Zev Eigen likens common law firm innovation structure to "a horse-and-buggy company" trying to design cars.

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New Jersey Law Journal

Advertising in a Digital Age: The Do's and Don'ts of Attorney Websites

By Glenn R. Reiser | March 26, 2018

What is the moral of the story? Pay attention to how content and graphics are displayed on your law firm's website.

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Daily Report Online

Tips For Cutting the Costs of Professional Liability Insurance

By Shari L. Klevens and Alanna Clair | March 26, 2018

A premium-sensitive law practice may look at these statistics and consider whether it is worth it to continue engaging in a noncore practice area that falls within a high risk category.

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The American Lawyer

Munger Tolles Backtracks on Summer Associate Arbitration

By Meghan Tribe | March 25, 2018

The high-powered Am Law 200 firm quickly apologized for a #MeToo snafu involving mandatary arbitration clauses.

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National Law Journal

Trump Legal Team Reshuffles Again as DiGenova Firm Backs Out

By Ryan Lovelace | March 23, 2018

Joseph diGenova and his wife Victoria Toensing won't be helping the president battle Robert Mueller after all. Plus: Hogan Lovells lures a trademark pro from Finnegan, Arnold & Porter picks up Chris Christie's nemesis, and Squire Patton Boggs defends Cambridge Analytica in the U.K.

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