General counsel can try and reduce costs by demanding discounts or alternative fees from their outside counsel—but at the risk of pitting their own interests against those of the firm. An alternative could be collaborating with outside counsel to streamline processes so legal projects get done more efficiently and at a lower cost.
To that end, Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein is the latest firm to try out Lean Sigma management techniques, originally deployed in the manufacturing industry, for delivering legal services.
