The drumbeat was steady. The observers, myself included, were relentless. External pressures on law firm business models were mounting and firms had to act fast. They just weren’t doing enough to meet new market realities—or, for some, to survive.

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Maybe they listened. Maybe they had enough of the talk. But something happened in 2017, particularly in the second half of the year, that spurred law firms to post their best gains in about a decade. Perhaps a proverbial middle finger to the critics? Perhaps the critics were dead wrong? Perhaps the industry is turning a corner that no one saw coming? Or perhaps our definitions of success have shifted in a decade?