When my firm began its journey to become a "green" law firm in 2003, the question that we received most was, "What is a green law firm?" In fact, people asked the question so much that we actually ran an advertisement that addressed the question. In the ad, we reframed the question from "what" to "why." Why would you do that? For us, it was simple: We wanted to do well while doing good. Making a profit did not have to come at the expense of either people or the planet. We were focused on the triple-bottom line of people, planet and profit.
Now, a decade later, the questioners have caught on. They are no longer asking "what," but they still insist on knowing "why" (and often, "how"). The inherent focus of the question, though, still seems to be on profit and, specifically, whether there is a return on investment for sustainability in a law practice. So how can the greening of a law firm impact or increase business?
