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International Edition

Management: Career makeover

As the effects of the economic slowdown take their toll on all aspects of UK industry, an increasingly negative atmosphere has begun to pervade the legal workplace. In a lot of firms, staff may well feel insecure about their position and feel the need to show their skills to the best of their ability, in order to become indispensable to the business and avoid possible threat of redundancy.
6 minute read

International Edition

Management: Ready, set, audit!

When law firms first considered the move to limited liability partnership (LLP) status, one of the barriers cited was, somewhat euphemistically, 'disclosure'. In reality this was the disclosure of partners' remuneration. Other aspects of disclosure were either just accepted or, possibly, not contemplated at all.
6 minute read

International Edition

The domain game

In June 2008 the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) announced a process for applying for new generic top-level domains (gTLDs). A TLD is the last part of an internet domain name; that is, the letters that follow the final dot of any domain name, including .uk, .com, .net and .org.Alongside the TLDs we have all grown familiar with, consumers and businesses will need to be aware of potentially hundreds of new suffixes. Law firms will need to be up to speed with the applications process for and the implications of the new gTLDs before this raft of new domains is introduced. Companies may well need to adapt their clients' domain name strategies in order to protect their online brands from being compromised or diluted by opportunists wishing to profit from making speculative registrations
6 minute read

International Edition

All for one?

As the economic turmoil intensifies and law firms face up to the possibility of further job cuts at increasingly senior levels, partners need to rapidly develop a more complex and subtle understanding of their partnership. Now more than ever law firms need to take a long-term view and appreciate the intricate system of fine checks and balances that partnership creates. Partnership can be a very special relationship, developed gradually over time and carefully nurtured. But it can be destroyed by careless action on the part of management, and the relationship could prove impossible to rebuild.
6 minute read

International Edition

Management: A chance to leave the merry-go-round

There is no doubt that the UK legal sector is facing significant upheaval with employees being affected at all levels. Firms are announcing restructurings and redundancies on an almost daily basis, with the total number of redundancies across UK law firms now standing at well over 2,000 - and there is little optimism about the immediate future.
5 minute read

International Edition

Management: Betting on the big four

The big four magic circle firms (Allen & Overy, Clifford Chance, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Linklaters) have had an incredible run over the past 15 years. All of them achieved the benchmark of extraordinary success for a large law firm - profits per equity partner (PEP) near or over $2m (£1.4m) and gross revenues of around $2bn (£1.4bn). What made their success all the more impressive was that in the early 1990s their standing was less than 'magical' relative to premier US firms. As much as these firms achieved over these last 15 years, the current economic crisis raises real questions about how they will fare in the future.
5 minute read

International Edition

It's automatic, baby

As 2009 ushers in new regulations as part of the Legal Services Act (LSA) 2007 to support multidisciplinary partnerships and firm-based regulations, understandably there is apprehension among some segments of the industry in terms of its implications for law firms. However, regulation is the catalyst for change, which, if dealt with in the right spirit, is usually for the better. In the current economic climate, the LSA is a positive development for the UK's legal sector. For instance, it will allow law firms to receive inward investment from other sources including national and international businesses.
5 minute read

International Edition

Managing a downfall

The role of every managing partner changes as his firm grows and evolves, but his focus is always on building a sustainable enterprise - except when the firm's future clearly becomes unsustainable. The notion of a firm's failure can be so disturbing that it escapes planning until the 11th hour.As is the case with all unanticipated events, though, the conflicting interests that arise in a firm's failure are best managed with careful forethought.In every firm failure there is a window - sometimes called the 'death spiral' - between the moment when a law firm leader realises that the firm will likely not survive and the moment the firm votes to dissolve.
7 minute read

International Edition

The new bargain hunters

FTSE 100 companies are telling us they aren't looking to reduce the number of firms on their panel, but they will be spending less and driving a harder bargain. As work becomes scarce and firms ready their scalpels to slash marketing and business development (BD) budgets, the key is to cut in a way that will help the patient recover more quickly, not threaten recovery
5 minute read

International Edition

Management: Recruitment rewards

Sourcing high quality candidates has never been more important. Whatever its size, if a firm cannot attract the best talent then its ability to compete will be severely compromised. In an effort to ensure its hiring processes are as efficient as possible, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer appointed Alexander Mann Solutions (AMS) to implement changes that would reduce costs and strengthen the business. Freshfields' decision to seek a recruitment process outsourcing partner followed the firm's 2007 restructuring programme. These changes required rationalisation of recruitment costs, particularly for business services staff, and for greater efficiency throughout the process.
4 minute read

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