It helped to know that I am not alone and that there are other like-minded women leaders out there.
Capital Partner | Linebarger Goggan Blair & Sampson
New York, NY
New York, NY
It helped to know that I am not alone and that there are other like-minded women leaders out there.
The Managing Partner Forum is a go-to resource for not only what’s currently important to law firm leaders, but how law firm leaders are dealing with the issue of the moment and preparing for those of the future.
We have enjoyed working with John Remsen and his talented team. The Managing Partner Forum provides excellent content that truly assists in operating a successful business in today’s challenging environment.
The MPF programs always provide relevant, timely educational content. They are high energy and interactive which makes them fun to attend, too.
Great conference, thank you for the invitation.
The information sharing at the MPIEs is especially valuable.
My partner and I really enjoyed the conference and we look forward to attending again next year.
Connecting with other firm leaders, as it felt more like a ‘retreat’ than a ‘conference.’ Fantastic format allowed for great information and advice sharing.
I go to a lot of conferences, and your event is the one I look forward to and gain the most from each year. The power of this group is incredible. So privileged to be a part of it. Thank you for what you do for our industry.
Connecting with other firm leaders, as it felt more like a ‘retreat’ than a ‘conference.’ Fantastic format allowed for great information and advice sharing.
ATL was a great time, and I really enjoyed the conference, as always.
That was my first experience at the conference, and it was tremendously valuable.
Great job! Keep it going. Thank you for the excellent work you do for the profession.
The collegiality and brainstorming opportunities can’t be beat.
The MPF Conference is always a great event. The MPIEs and Workshops were really good this year.
The program topics are timely and well presented. Every time I attend, I learn something new.
MPF is on top of the issues facing firm leaders, often before we even see them coming in our own firms, and provides timely advice from industry experts to see us through them.
I highly recommend the MPF Leadership Conference. I’ve participated many times, as have several of my partners. We leave with new ideas and fresh perspectives every time.
Hands down the best leadership conference for managing partners I’ve ever attended.
This is my 12th or 13th time attending, and it’s always the best conference I attend every year.
The MPIEs are interesting, informative and very useful!
I look forward to this Conference every year. It really helps me to be a more effective firm leader.
MPF provides tremendous value and excellent resources. Great information. Great speakers. Great networking opportunities.
This provocative four-page article raises real leadership concerns, and the opening paragraph captures its central argument:
“95% of legal professionals believe generative AI will be central to their organization’s workflow within five years. Yet, according to the same Thomson Reuters report, more than half of firms have no AI policy, nearly two-thirds have had no training, and few firms have articulated a coherent leadership stance. This is not a technology gap. It is a leadership gap – and it is already undermining client trust, talent retention, and competitive positioning. The firms that lead the next decade will not be those with the most advanced software, but those with the most effective leadership response.”
We are seeing the same data points and thought patterns in MPF Surveys and Zoom discussions among law firm leaders. Definitely worth a read – and yet another critical responsibility being added to your already full leadership plate!
According to Jordan, we don’t know exactly what Gen AI will do to the legal sector, but it seems safe to assume that many tasks lawyers have performed in the past will in the future be carried out, in whole or in part, by machines. Lawyers will still be busy, but not with the things they used to do or, often, the things they loved to do. As always, Jordan writes a great article that really gets you thinking!
This recent Thomson Reuters study points toward a future where AI becomes deeply integrated into legal practice, but with a major advantage for organizations that approach adoption strategically and systematically. For legal professionals, the question is no longer whether to adopt AI technologies, but rather how quickly and effectively organizations can integrate them while maintaining their high professional standards. Those who master this balance will likely have the competitive upper hand.
We have admired Jordan’s work for many years. His insights are spot on, and here is what he has to say about the law office of the future:
Strong advice for law firm leaders in a changing world.
Every January, we can count on the annual publication of the 2025 Report on the State of the US Legal Market by our friends at Thomson Reuters Institute. Among its contributors is MPF faculty member Bill Josten, Senior Manager for TRI’s Enterprise Content. The report runs 20 pages, and its key findings are consistent with what we are seeing among smaller and midsize law firms.
If you have not already done so, we recommend that you distribute this report to your partners and discuss its implications for your firm at an upcoming partnership meeting.
In case you missed it, 2024 Bright Insight, the annual legal benchmarking survey published by Cushman & Wakefield. The 45-page report is an easy read, with plenty of charts and graphs, and is divided into four main sections:
As the market leader in tenant representation of law firms, here are CW’s key findings about the workplace evolution in the legal sector.
This is among the handful of annual reports that every law firm leader should read, digest, and share with others at your firm. The report runs 30 pages, including illustrative charts and graphs about demand growth by practice area, law firm profit drivers, and other key statistics. Here are some of its findings:
Much of this report was authored by Bill Josten, Legal Marketplace Innovations Strategist of Thomson Reuters Institute, who was a guest speaker in this month’s MPF Webinar on law firm profitability. Bill will also be joining our faculty for The MPF Leadership Conference in Atlanta.
One of the “state of the legal profession” reports that we classify as “required reading” for law firm leaders. For 16 years, our friends at Citi and Hildebrandt have published The Client Advisory and it is packed with important benchmarking data. The report runs 30 pages, and here are some of its highlights:
Looking ahead to 2024. law firms face these five challenges:
This report also includes some interesting data about growth opportunities broken down by geography, by industry, and by practice area. This is another important report to circulate within your firm and discuss at future partnership meetings.
This report is based on interviews with more than 1,500 in-house lawyers and professionals through 2022, and here are a few note-worthy highlights:
This a good report to digest if your firm works (or strives to work) with larger corporations and in-house legal departments.
As you know, we believe every law firm should invest in a Firm-wide Strategic Plan that articulates the firm’s five-year vision and three one-year goals to get there. Short of that, why not rally your firm around a “BHAG”, which is one single vision that aligns your firm and its people? By the way, “BHAG” stands for “Big Hairy Audacious Goal,” a term first coined in the legendary business book Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies. In her five-page article, Cosper covers three main points:
It’s a great article with many lessons for law firm leaders.
The first part of the report focuses on the first nine months of 2022, and offers little new insights beyond what other reports have provided. The “meaty” part of this year’s report starts on page 10 (Section B) which focuses on their insights and projections as to what will happen in 2023. While you may not agree with all of their conclusions, they should not be discounted without some serious contemplation.
This annual report is among a handful that we strongly recommend that you review, digest and circulate to your partners and colleagues. It reflects data collected primarily from BigLaw, but its relevance is important for leaders of smaller and midsize law firms, as well. It runs 28 pages, including plenty of charts and graphs. Among its highlights:
The 20-page report reflects survey results from 50 firm leaders – mostly, managing partners, COOs and CFOs at midsize firms – that was conducted in October 2022. Among its key findings:
Our MPF Featured White Paper is the 2022 Report on the State of the Midsize Legal Market published by our friends at Thomson Reuters institute. Overall, it presents good news for midsize law firms, and here are a few highlights:
This is an excellent report to circulate within your firm and discuss at an upcoming partnership meeting.
This is one of a handful of annual reports that we recommend every managing partner and law firm leader read, absorb, and share with other leaders of their firms. It runs 25 pages and, at the end, dispenses some great guidance to firm leaders. Here are a few of our take-aways:
An MPF Featured White Paper, Clio’s 2021 Legal Trends Report, a 70+ page survey report reflecting data collected from 1,056 US lawyers and law firms earlier this year. Predictably, it looks at the impact of the pandemic on the practice of law in several areas including technology, client communication, service delivery and law firm economics. As well, the report includes lots of charts presenting hourly rates and other key performance indicators (KPIs) broken down by state, practice area and other variables.
All in all, the 2021 Legal Trends Report presents some nice chunks of well-organized benchmarking information for law firm leaders to check out.
We feature a collection of articles by Ida Abbott and August Aquila, two faculty members at The “Virtual” MPF Fall Symposium held earlier this month. Our MPF Featured Articles are:
We encourage you to take a look at these resources and circulate the ones you like among your partners…especially if succession is among your firm’s current priorities.
Although geared toward law firms with 30 or fewer lawyers, we thought it relevant to many of our readers. It runs 28 pages with lots of charts and graphs. Generally, there is good news in its findings, including:
There are much better times ahead! And, according to our research, most firm leaders participating in MPF programs are on the right track in leading their firms through and beyond the pandemic.
This is the lead article in this month’s issue of Legal Management magazine published by the Association of Legal Administrators. The article includes quotes from Robert Young, Managing Partner at English Lucas Priest & Owsley (ELPOLaw) in Bowling Green, Kentucky; and Neil Kardos, a partner at Harrity & Harrity, an IP boutique in Northern Virginia. Both John Harrity and Bob Young have been participating in MPF programs for many years.
The ABA 2021 Profile of the Legal Profession is a snapshot of the legal profession in July 2021. It includes data and trends in 11 subject areas, including demographics, law schools, the judiciary, technology and, of course, the pandemic. The report runs 140 pages with Chapter One dedicated to how the pandemic has impacted lawyers and law firms. Among the findings:
We recommend that you circulate this year’s report to your colleagues. The ABA has produced a four-minute video capturing report highlights and worthy of presenting at your next firm meeting.
Smock and his colleagues conducted 25 interviews with CEOs and COOs of a wide cross-section of law firms ranging in size from 18 to 1,000 lawyers. They asked how COVID has impacted their firms, the steps they have taken to deal with them, and plans for the future. The findings are very consistent with what we have learned, as well. The sky has not fallen, and most midsize law firms have adjusted quite well.
This article by Neville Eisenberg and Richard Susskind was recently published by Harvard Law School. It is a short article and raises some very interesting points about future business models for law firms. The authors challenge us to think beyond the “old law firm” model and consider a more full-scale vertical integration of the practice of law – a true transformational and fundamental change in approach to the delivery of legal services.
Since COVID sent everybody home last March, the vast majority of smaller and midsize law firms adapted quite successfully to working remotely. As we emerge from the pandemic, many firm leaders are starting to recognize what is possible. This excellent article will help clarify your thoughts and perspectives on remote working and hybrid models. This article encourages leaders to consider flexible work schedules from four main perspectives:
Lynda is a professor at the London Business School and founder of HSM, a future-of-work consultancy.
An MPF Webinar Originally Broadcast on February 25, 2021
Presented and facilitated by John Remsen, Jr., this 60-minute session takes a look at the future of the legal profession as we emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic. During this fast-paced, interactive session, John shares plenty of recently collected benchmarking data on how law firms are adjusting to the current situation, and provides his thoughts and perspectives about how law firms are planning for the future. We discuss firm culture, marketing and business development, training and development, technology and much more!
Click here for On-Demand Webinar.
Click here for Handout Materials.
Using core values to help make decisions that will impact your firm and its culture long into the future is an important way to ensure you’ve carefully considered not only the facts, figures and data involved but also the people, relationships and underlying values that matter to you and your law firm.
There will always be times when the way ahead is rocky and uncertain. That’s an unavoidable fact. But the great separator will be between those law firms that can adapt and forge ahead into the unknown and those that can only go as far as the paved road lets them. Encountering rocky terrain does not mean you’re inevitably going to crash. It just means that you need to be using the right piece of equipment to navigate it. Thank you, Roger, for your perspective.
This paper is among a handful of similar reports that we recommend law firm leaders read, digest and discuss every year. Change and disruption is everywhere, yet law firms are notoriously slow to evolve and adapt. When asked why their firms were not doing more, 70% said “partner resistance to change.” As has been the case for many years now, the top three challenges most law firms face in 2021 are:
The report runs just 20 pages and is an easy read, with enough industry intelligence to make it worthy of your time and attention.
The ABA’s 2019 Profile of the Legal Profession, a 97-page report that draws from numerous surveys, studies and reports about today’s lawyers and law firms in the Unites States. As we read through it, we found some real “eye-openers” about what’s going on out there. Here are a few factoids:
You’ll find a treasure trove of data in this report.
Sharon dispenses some great advice in this two-pager, including the importance of finding and sticking to a routine. After having served as Director of Practice Development at three AmLaw 25 law firms, Sharon has recently formed Legal Talent Advisors, a consultancy to help law firms attract and retain talent. She has been on the MPF Faculty for more than 15 years.
Our MPF Featured Article “20 Top Strategies in ‘21” highlights many of the discussion points from The MPF Virtual Conference held earlier this month. One hundred ninety-five (195) managing partners and firm leaders participated, and we plan to present more virtual programming in 2021. Here are a few article highlights:
Leah offers two short articles that will also help your folks adjust to their new work environments. Leah is a California-based consultant who specializes in organizational leadership. We had the pleasure of working with her earlier this year and we share similar philosophies and approached about law firm leadership and management.
A Special ALA Webinar Originally Broadcast on March 12, 2020
Pillsbury’s David Klein, a Partner specializing in insurance, and Kathleen Pearson, Pillsbury’s Chief Human Resources Officer, will offer practical approaches law firms can take in this uncertain time. They will address business insurance, workers’ compensation, risk management and crisis communication and leadership. Click here for the recorded webinar.
As the pace of change accelerates, law firms need to acutely define their core competencies and align business strategies, talent and resources to differentiate themselves in today’s market. Centers of Excellence (CoEs) just might be the way to go! In essence, CoEs are teams of experts that provide leadership, research, guidance and best practices to help your firm implement scalable and nimble approaches to changing market conditions. This practical article offers interesting insights.
The ALA has created a robust webpage featuring the latest information that can help you make fact-based decisions about topics like workplace preparation, transmission prevention and business continuity.
Every year, there are a handful of “state of the profession” reports that we think every managing partner and law firm leader should read and digest. This is one of them. This report presents the dominant trends impacting the legal market in 2019, and the key issues influencing the market in 2020 and beyond. We’ve highlighted sctions of the report to make it easy reading!
We’re a big proponent of law firm networks. Of course, the keys are to find the right one and then get actively involved. If your firm has found the right network, you’re confidently able to serve clients almost anywhere on the planet; you’re able to share and learn best practices with other similar, non-competing law firms; and you’re likely to enjoy a steady stream of inbound referrals. This handbook is an invaluable resource if your firm is researching such organizations. It profiles more than 75 networks, and includes full contact information for each one.
This article sure grabbed our attention when it appeared in Forbes Magazine on August 19th. It ponders the question: Which law firm–or legal service provider– models will thrive in the digital age? (SPOILER ALERT: It’s the client-centric, collaborative, data-driven, tech-enabled, multi-disciplinary, diverse, agile, constantly improving, scaled, capitalized, and digitally transformed ones!)
Published by Acritis and Thomson Reuters in collaboration with the Corporate Legal Operations Consortium and the International Bar Association. The report reveals that diversity initiatives, collaborative partnerships, as well as innovation in project management and process improvement, are in full swing within-house legal departments. Do you talk about these things in your law firm? More importantly, what are you and your law firm doing to keep up with the incredible pace of change? This article is must reading for leaders of forward-thinking law firms. We’ve highlighted the report to make reading it easy!
A 60-minute Webinar for ALA presented on July 17th, 2019
Each year, The Managing Partner Forum conducts several surveys about issues important to law firms and their leadership. In April 2019, we surveyed 167 managing partners and law firm leaders about their leadership and governance models. At the MPF 2018 and 2019 Leadership Conferences, we deployed audience polling technology to capture data from 100 managing partners and firm leaders about what their firms are doing to invest in the future. In late 2017, we partnered with the Association of Legal Administrators (ALA) to survey Chief Operating Officers and Executive Directors, in which 254 law firms participated.
In this timely, fast-paced session, John highlights the key findings of these and other recent surveys, providing his thoughts and insights along the way.
Click here to hear the Webinar.
Click here for handout materials.
According to recent MPF surveys, two of three mid-size US law firms have moved some or all of their IT systems to the Cloud. And one of our most-read articles in many months discussed the ethical considerations of cloud computing for lawyers and law firms. Among the myths Morris addresses in the article:
Morris is the founder of Tabush Group, and was on the faculty at our MPF Leadership Conference in May.
Cloud computing is becoming increasingly commonplace, with 46% of smaller and mid-size law firms now using the cloud to store most of their data and IT systems. Another 34% say they’re moving in that direction. Along with cost savings, flexibility and agility, cloud computing presents many ethical issues when lawyers seek to store confidential client data on servers to which third parties have access.
MidLaw enjoyed solid growth in 2018, and client-driven trends may hold even more opportunities for well-run mid-size US law firms.
This annual report does a great job highlighting significant trends that are reshaping the market for legal services, including observations that future success is unlikely to be achieved by traditional strategies and approaches. Here are a few of the report’s highlights:
Times are changing. Is your firm keeping pace?
Now in its tenth year, Altman Weil’s annual survey documents the forces reshaping the landscape for legal services and provides insight on how the nation’s largest law firms are responding. 398 firms with 50 or more lawyers participated, including half of the country’s top law firms. The full survey report runs 128 pages and contains lots of charts and graphs. The more digestible Executive Summary runs just fifteen pages.
Key Findings:
MPF Recommendations to Firm Leaders
This is one of the best “state of the profession” reports out there, and we strongly encourage you to share it with your partners and senior staff.
Earlier this year, we partnered with Thomson Reuters to conduct the largest and most comprehensive survey on the state of smaller and mid-size US law firms. One hundred and forty five managing partners and firm leaders participated, representing firms with 10 to 174 lawyers. This ground-breaking White Paper highlights many of our survey findings, including:
Every law firm leader should carefully read this report, digest it, and consider its implications for his/her law firm. Beyond that, firm leaders should distribute the report to partners and discuss what it means to the firm at an upcoming partnership meeting. Importantly, the firm must develop strategies and action plans to capitalize on the opportunities in the market. Although the overall demand for legal services remained flat in 2015 (as it has since 2008) there are exciting opportunities for firms willing to break the mold and try something different. Here are some the report’s highlights:
Each year, John Smock and his colleagues conduct an online survey, as well as series of interviews, with leaders of large and midsize law firms. Among other things, they ask about financial performance, hot practice areas and strategic initiatives. Seventy-four (74) firm leaders participated in the online survey and forty-three (43) participated in the interviews. Here are a few highlights:
This is a solid, well-researched survey report that mirrors much of what we’ve been reading in other “state of the profession” reports published so far this year.
Now in its eight year, Altman Weil’s annual survey continues to document the forces reshaping the landscape for legal services and how law firms are responding. 356 firms with 50 or more lawyers participated, including half of the country’s top law firms. The full survey report runs 132 pages and contains lots of charts and graphs. The more digestible Executive Summary runs just twelve pages.
Key Findings
Recommendations to Firm Leaders
This is one of the best “state of the profession” reports out there, and we strongly encourage you to share it with your partners and senior staff.
Click here (or above) to download the complete 132-page survey report.
Click here to download the 12-page executive summary.
Earlier this year, the ABA’s Commission on the Future of Legal Services issued its long-awaited report on the future of the legal profession. Its findings and recommendations should be of little surprise to those who read our newsletter and attended our conferences.
We encourage you to take a look at the attached report and consider its implications for your firm. We’ll be discussing the fall-out of this report in future issues of The MPF Weekly.
We’ve been including the annual Client Advisory by Hildebrandt/CitiBank as an MPF Featured White Paper for many years. Why? Because it’s a darn good report! Although focused primarily on BigLaw, the information presented in this 10-page report is timely and relevant for smaller and mid-size law firms, as well. We recommend that you and our firm pay special attention to the last few pages that focus on how law firms will succeed in 2017 and beyond. Going forward, the most successful firms will adhere to a model that:
We talk about these issues all the time at MPF programs and conferences. We hope that you and your partners talk about (and act on) them, too.
As always, John Smock and his colleagues, have produced an accurate and insightful report on the legal services marketplace, mostly from the perspective of the mid-size law firm. This year, they conducted 35 interviews with managing partners and executive directors from law firms across the US. Here are some of its highlights:
Smock’s analysis and conclusions are consistent with what we presented in MPF Insight, the report we published in December. See below.
The past decade has seen unprecedented change and disruption in the legal market. Sparked by the Great Recession of 2008, the pressure on today’s law firms is more intense than ever. As the market evolves over time, there will be winners and there will be losers. According to this year’s report, here are four important areas to which your law firm should pay close attention:
This is a great report to circulate to your partners and discuss what it means to your firm at an upcoming partnership meeting.
As Charles Darwin observed in his theory of evolution, the species with the best chance of survival are not always the strongest and the smartest. They are the ones most adaptable to changes in the environment.
Now in its ninth year, Altman Weil’s annual survey continues to document the forces reshaping the landscape for legal services, and how the nation’s largest law firms are responding. 386 firms with 50 or more lawyers participated, including half of the country’s top law firms. The full survey report runs 124 pages and contains lots of charts and graphs. The more digestible Executive Summary runs just eight pages.
Key Findings
MPF Recommendations to Firm Leaders
This is one of the best “state of the profession” reports out there, and we strongly encourage you to share it with your partners and senior staff.
Click here (or above) to download the complete 124-page survey report.
Click here to download the 8-page executive summary.
Since 2000, our friends at Altman Weil have conducted an annual survey of general counsel about the state of in-house legal departments. This year, the survey drilled down on what they’re doing to improve efficiency and control costs. 280 in-house counsel participated in this year’s survey.
Here are a few highlights:
The pressure on corporate in-house legal department to reign in the overall spend and provide predictability on the overall spend for legal services is intense. And it’s growing.
At MPF, we believe that these trends present exciting opportunities for smaller and mid-size firms willing to look forward and adapt to the marketplace. It’s up to you to go seize the day!
For nearly three decades, Bob Denney has been sharing in insights in an annual report he calls “What’s Hot and What’s Not in the Legal Profession.” As always, we’re happy to share it with our readers, and here are a few highlights for 2017:
Bob says this will be his last “What’s Hot” report, and we’ll certainly miss it.
Twice a year, Patrick publishes a collection of articles written by him and others on law firm leadership. He calls it International Review. One of the articles we especially like in the current issue is entitled “Confronting the Underperforming Partner: A Persistently Unmet Challenge.” This topic is much discussed MPF conferences, as well.
Twice a year, Patrick publishes and distributes International Review, a magazine featuring insightful articles on law firm leadership. This issue examines compensation systems, retirement plans for senior lawyers and several other thought-provoking ideas and concepts. There’s some good stuff here, and much of it is worth circulating to your partners.
Twice a year, Patrick McKenna distributes International Review, a magazine for law firm leaders. Although most of his work focuses on Am Law 100 firms, much of what he writes is also timely and relevant to leaders of smaller and midsize law firms. His spring 2013 does not disappoint and includes four articles. Perhaps the most interesting of the bunch is one entitled “Malignant Leadership,” which was also published in American Lawyer earlier this year.
Twice a year, Patrick publishes a great set of articles in a magazine he calls International Review, and he distributes a hard copy to selected leaders of the very largest law firms. He also provides us an electronic version to include on the MPF Website and pass along to our readers. Of particular interest in this edition are the articles entitled “Are You Developing a Star Culture?” and “The Hurdles to Initiating Change.”
Collectively, MPF Faculty member John Smock and his colleagues have more than 150 years’ experience working with professional services firms. They draw on this experience to regularly publish thoughtful articles on law firm leadership and planning. This one sets forth a strong approach to whip your firm into shape, including planning, governance, compensation and dealing with partners who aren’t pulling their weight.
In recent years, we’ve been helping quite a few firms with succession planning issues on the consulting side of our business. Consequently, we’ve done extensive research on the topic and this is by far the best White Paper we’ve read on succession planning for professional services firms. Although geared toward CPA firms (which I believe are paying more attention to succession than law firms), it discusses the same issues to which law firms should be paying diligent attention, including:
Nearly 1,000 CPAs from 500 multi-owner firms participated.
Back in the go-go days of the 80s and 90s, law firms built pyramids and it was all about leverage to ramp up firm profitability. Back then, it was a seller’s market. There was plenty of work. Partners brought it in and fed it to a growing legion of highly profitable associates.
But times have changed, and US law firms are now facing the stark realities of a buyer’s market. As a consequence, many firms now find themselves with a “diamond” structure characterized by a small number of junior associates at the bottom and a growing number of non-equity partners, of counsel and staff attorneys in the middle. But is such a model sustainable over the long term? This paper says no.
Twice a year, Patrick publishes his International Review, a collection of articles on law firm leadership and management. It’s geared mostly toward those who lead larger firms, but its teachings apply to managing partners of law firms of all types and sizes. The Spring 2014 edition includes articles on the following topics:
You’ll notice that we feature a number of Patrick’s articles on the MPF Website. It’s good stuff.
For several years now, Patrick has been kind enough to share his bi-annual collection of articles with our readers. It invariably includes some of the best, most thoughtful articles on law firm leadership and the role of the managing partners. This issue includes five articles, and the one I liked best is entitled “When Firm Leaders Transition.” His advice for the incoming leader includes:
He also dispenses guidance to the outgoing leader to effect a smooth, easy transition when law firms change leaders.
Over the course of the year, Smock Law Firm Consultants has published and distributed a series of reports on four major US legal markets. The markets they cover are Chicago, New York, Cleveland and Atlanta. To develop these reports, John and his colleagues conducted numerous interviews with managing partners and firm administrators to learn about current trends and happenings, and hear their predictions for the future. The consultants also provide their analysis and commentary, as well. Here are a few highlights:
These reports contain some great insights and recommendations, even if your firm has no presence in these four markets.
Click here for Chicago Legal Market Report.
Click here for New York Legal Market Report.
Click here for Cleveland Legal Market Report.
Click here for Atlanta Legal Market Report.
We surveyed law firm leaders earlier this year about strategic planning and implementation. 120 managing partners, mostly from mid-sized law firms, participated. As this White Paper reveals, more and more small and mid-sized law firms are getting into strategic planning and they report good results. Consider these findings:
Imagine the positive impact on performance if law firms did a better job on the implementation side of the planning process! In addition to fresh data on the topic, we share the keys to success.
This issue of Internatinal Review, published by Patrick McKenna, runs 24 pages and features five great articles every firm leader should read. They include numerous practical ideas, tips and techniques that will make you a more effective firm leader and that you can put to use immediately. The articles in this issue are:
We especially recommend the fourth article and its ten important questions.
Over 90 managing partners, firm leaders and top consultants to the legal industry participated in The MPF 2010 Annual Conference on April 29th in Atlanta, Georgia. This comprehensive White Paper summarizes the key findings revealed through the use of state-of-the-art Audience Participation Technology. It focuses on how law firms approach strategic planning and the role of the managing partner; including what they do, how much time they spend in the role and how they get paid for all that non-billable effort. This is really good stuff.
Twice a year, McKenna Associates publishes a magazine called International Review. Each issue strives to contain a “balanced blend of contributions covering the subjects of law firm strategy, economics and leadership,” and this issue includes articles by David Maister, Patrick McKenna and others.
It is distributed in hard copy format to firm leaders of US and Canadian firms with more than 50 lawyers. Going forward, we’re pleased to make a PDF version of the magazine available to our readers, as well.
Twice a year, MPF faculty member Patrick McKenna publishes and distibutes his magazine called International Review to leaders of firms with 50 or more lawyers in the US and Canada. He is kind enough to make it available to our readers, as well, in PDF format. This issue includes articles about strategic planning, leading change and handling difficult partners.
A 60-minute Webinar for TAGLaw presented on Sept. 27, 2017
On September 27, 2017, we presented a 60-minute Webinar for TAGLaw, a global law firm network with 290 member firms in 100 countries. It’s a hard-hitting session covering a variety of important topics for firm leaders, including:
We’re delighted to be a featured speaker at TAG Alliances’ 2018 International Conference, which will be held October 24-26, 2018.
Want to know who’s really driving change in the legal industry? Check out the Corporate Legal Operations Consortium, a relatively new organization that’s already driving impactful and lasting change. These are the MPAs and CPAs imbedded within in-house legal departments, their mission is “to help legal operations professionals and other core corporate legal industry players (e.g. tech providers, law firms, LPO’s, law schools, etc.) optimize the legal service delivery models needed to support the needs of small, medium and large legal departments and government entities.” That means innovation, technology, metrics, process improvement and value-based billing like we’ve never seen before. Get ready for change!
Click here for CLOC's Website
Click here to learn about CLOC 2019 Vegas Institute
Not long ago, two of the country’s leading law firm consultancies conducted ground-breaking research to identify what highly profitable and fast-growing mid-size firms do that make them so successful. They identified forty mid-size US firms that were significantly out-performing similar firms. They conducted a series of interviews with the leaders and administrators of those firms. Through these in-depth interviews, they identified twelve characteristics that directly contribute to these firms’ success. Using audience polling technology, The Managing Partner Forum then asked 180 managing partners who attended recent MPF Leadership Conferences to grade their firms’ performances in these twelve critical areas.
Earlier this month, I had the pleasure of presenting a 90-minute web seminar for the Center for Competitive Management with Andy Jillson, co-founder of Hayse LLP in Dallas. We’re pleased to feature our handout materials for the session. Among the issues we discussed:
This 18-minute podcast analyzes the marketplace for legal services for mid-size law firms in 2015 and the news is pretty darn good. It explores key performance measures and their impact on demand, growth and profitability of midsize law firms in the US. Among the highlights:
Citing the research we conducted in partnership with Thomson Reuters earlier this year, it concludes that strategic investments niche practice areas, technology and marketing are really starting to pay off for midsize law firms.
Succession planning is a hot issue for many smaller and mid-size law firms – both working with senior lawyers to transition their practices as they move toward retirement and grooming the firm’s future leaders for success. To assist with the former, check out our Senior Lawyer Transition Plan. It looks our five years and includes transitioning client relationships and passing on experience and know-how to younger lawyers.
The Association of Legal Administrators (ALA) has been kind enough to allow us to share the recording of a 60-minute Web seminar we presented for its Cyber Chapter on January 19, 2016.
It’s a sad fact that 70% of first generation law firms do not survive their founding partners. The primary reason? No proactive, orderly succession plan. According to our research, succession planning is the most neglected area of law firm management.
Senior lawyers often won’t let go and, in many cases, junior lawyers are ill-equipped to assume the responsibilities of firm leadership and management. This 60-minute Web seminar shares our insights into how best to plan for the future, including the departures of valued lawyers and other professionals.
Click here for recording of Webinar.
Click here for handout materials.
A 30-minute podcast with John Remsen, Jr. for Legal Talk Network
How do attorneys create a strategic business plan for their firm and what are the best ways to implement that plan? In this 30-minute podcast, Sharon Nelson and Jim Calloway talk with John Remsen, Jr. about the benefits of creating a firm-wide business plan. It’s critically important that firm leadership recognize that they’re running a business, and that it’s difficult to run a successful business without a plan of where it’s going. Among the highlights:
The podcast concludes with some practical advice to help firm leaders start the strategic planning process.
On August 29th, we presented a Managing Partner Breakfast Roundtable in San Diego. The meeting attracted 20 firm leaders from the region and was sponsored by UPS. The topic was “How to Be a More Effective Firm Leader.” These handout materials include some terrific benchmarking data on how 160 managing partners rate their firms in twelve critical areas.
Each month, John Sterling offers insightful analysis of his “Law Firm Strategy Question of the Month” and presents a new question for the coming month. Recent topics include:
• Partner Compensation System Satisfaction,
• Profit Improvement Strategies, and
• Creating the Model Partner.
It’s good stuff and we encourage you to check it out.
This nifty document includes key facts and figures about the country’s legal industry. You probably know many of them already, while others will add to your knowlegde base. Why not rattle off a few of this stats at your next partner's meeting? They’ll be impressed.
Here's a sampling:
We believe that every law firm, regardless of size and practice mix, should have a firm-wide strategic plan. The plan should set forth where the firm will be in five years and the initiatives it will implement to get there. For successful implementation, the plan should be short, realistic and achievable. Strong and effective leadership is also required. This brief interview was conducted on March 31, 2014 and includes discussion about:
This recorded session will be invaluable to you if your firm is considering strategic planning for the first time, or if you’ve been struggling with implementation. We encourage you to share it with your partners and/or your management/executive committee and discuss at one its upcoming meetings.
We presented a 90-minute session at the ALA (Association of Legal Administrators) Annual Conference in Toronto on May 20th with about 200 law firm administrators in attendance. As part of the session, we used audience polling technology to survey participants on a myriad of issues relating to the business side of running their law firms. Firms ranged in size from 10-1,000 lawyers, with most in the 25- to 150-lawyer range. Among the highlights:
There’s some great bench-marking data here that you and your partners need to know. We suggest that you use it to inform (and perhaps persuade) the skeptics and nay-sayers at your firm about the importance of running the place more like a business…with goals, a plan, team-work and accountability.
We’re pleased to share a second set of audience polling results we collected at the ALA (Association of Legal Administrators) Annual Conference in Toronto on May 21, 2014. This session drilled down on strategic planning, including making the case, setting up the process, the ingredients of a good plan and keys to successful implementation.
The bench-marking data in this slide deck is especially relevant to leaders of smaller and mid-size firms as 60% of participating firms had fewer than 50 lawyers. An estimated 225 law firm administrators attended the 60-minute session.
Among the highlights:
In today’s highly competitive and rapidly changing market, law firms must develop and implement firm-wide strategic plans if they want to thrive, prosper and get where they want to go. Absent a plan, any path will take you there.
It’s a good idea for firm leaders to look outside the legal industry from time to time to gain leadership and management perspectives and ideas. This is the best place to find them. The Harvard Business Review ($79/year for 12 issues; $129/year includes HBR online) sets the standard when it comes to monthly business newsletters.
Even today, 60% of mid-size commercial law firms do not have a written strategic plan. Among those that do, 90% report that it has led to improved firm profitability and performance. Why, then, do most firms still not have a firm-wide plan? The reasons vary…but it’s not really that hard if you go about it in a thoughtful, systematic way.
MPF CEO John Remsen, Jr. led a Web seminar presented by the ABA’s Law Practice Management Section in September 2011. Panelists included MPF Advisory Board member, Vince Valenza, Managing Principal McNamee Lochner in Albany, New York, and Bob Young, Managing Partner of English Lucas in Bowling Green, Kentucky. Allison Shields was the moderator.
This is a timely and helpful program if your firm is thinking about embarking on a strategic planning initiative. Click here for more information and to download the session.
If we've heard it once, we've heard it 1,000 times. Leading a law firm is by no means an easy task…and they certainly didn't teach you much about it in law school. Thank goodness for the MPF faculty members Brian Burke and Patrick McKenna, who have once again joined forces to provide an invaluable resource for today's firm leader. Serving at the Pleasure of My Partners ($49, West Publishing) is packed full of real-life scenarios and provides proven, practical guidance for today's exceptionally busy managing partner.
We've partnered with West/Thomson Reuters to extend a 20% discount off the cover price to our readers. Click here for more information and to download the table of contents and a free chapter.
According to the authors, recognition that the old model is broken, and a willingness to accept change and take risks are what’s required for law firms to be successful in the future. This easy and entertaining book runs 128 pages and is available in paperback for $14.95.
Susskind has written much about the changing legal profession, including The End of Lawyers? and The Future of Law. In his most recent effort, he writes about the pressures for law firms to deliver more for less, thus changing the way that lawyers will work. And what’s the future of the almighty billable hour? Published by Oxford University Press, this book runs 224 pages and is available in paperback for $18.95.
Harper’s sobering assessment of the industry will surely make you stop and think. He writes quite a bit about how both law firms and law schools can deflate the bubble. Published by Basic Books/Perseus, this 272-pager is available in hardcover for just $26.99.
In October, we led a panel presentation at LMA’s Annual Meeting in Nashville during which we discussed practical tips to create an actionable, measurable and effective strategic plan. We also shared our experiences and case studies of how we’ve worked with law firm leaders to share their vision, engage others and lead change in their firms. It was a lively session.
The panel included:
After the session, we decided to create and distribute a list of recommended reading on the topic for those who attended.
This 240 pager ($79.95, ABA Publishing) emphasizes practical applications, rather than theoretical approaches, to strategic planning in a law firm environment. It includes a CD-ROM that contains numerous policies, statements and sample documents. The book is co-authored by Tom Grella, a member of the Forum Advisory Board member.
In the US (except for the District of Columbia), non-law firms are prohibited from providing legal services and non-lawyers are prohibited from law firm ownership. In the meantime, law firms in Canada, Europe and elsewhere are taking advantage of their more lenient rules and regulations that allow for MDPs in their jurisdictions. Up until now, the ABA has repeatedly struck down MDPs in the US, but are things likely to change in the foreseeable future?
In this set of articles, Susan and her team break the subject into three areas:
Although some large firms are testing the waters, we believe that fully integrated MDPS are not likely to be widely embraced by smaller and mid-size law firms in the foreseeable future.
Click here for Part One – A Primer
Click here for Part Two – Subsidiaries
Click here for Part Three – Integrated Multi-Disciplinary Practices
Your law firm runs on computers and, over time, your firm’s IT systems become outdated and security risks develop. Therefore, it’s critical that your firm undertakes a periodic evaluation and examination, so make sure all systems are working properly and risks are not left unchecked for extended periods of time.
In many cases, you’re relying on your COO, your IT Director and/or your outside service provider to manage the situation. However, that reliance does not replace your ownership of this responsibility. As the firm’s chief executive officer, you are the person ultimately responsible to ensure that the IT systems and controls are aligned with the firm’s goals and legal requirements and are being managed, maintained, updated and kept current.
This short article, written especially for managing partners, outlines what an IT audit covers and the questions you should be asking your COO and/or IT Director on a regular basis.
In this thought-provoking article, Wisconsin Lawyer magazine carries on the annual “What’s Hot, What’s Not “ report published by Bob Denney for more than 20 years. In fact, we featured it in The MPF Weekly every December for more than a decade.
The article covers a variety of topics important to smaller and mid-size law firms including strategic planning, talent development, business development, leadership and technology. Its contributors include:
In December, we published MPF Insight (see below), a report that summarizes results of our Leadership & Governance Survey and presents recommendations to law firm leaders. Since then, The National Law Review has written a series of four articles presenting its analysis of and commentary about the report. The final installment covers succession planning, an often neglected aspect of law firm management. Consider the following:
If you and your partners care about legacy and the long-term sustainability of your firm, succession planning should be an ongoing process, and planning around the retirements of your key people should start much earlier than you think. Now is the time to start planning for the future.
Although we’re seeing a gradual uptick in law firm strategic planning, fewer than half of mid-size law firms have them. Of those with a plan, firm leaders report improved firm performance despite so-so implementation efforts. Click here to read an article that John Sterling and I wrote for Legal Management magazine a few years ago on this topic.
So how is BigLaw doing when it comes to strategic planning? In this article, we learn that although almost every large US law firm has a strategic plan, they struggle with implementation, too. Here are some of the finding in the article:
As you know, we believe that every law firm, regardless of size and practice mix, needs a firm-wide strategic plan that sets forth where the firm wants to go and how it plans to get there. Importantly, we advise firms to keep the plan simple, realistic and achievable focusing attention on just three short-term goals and objectives.
Adhering to the concept that bigger is not always better, Roger leads a team of former “BigLaw” partners who’ve built an exceptional 30-lawyer firm in New York, one of the most competitive legal markets in the world. They are exceptionally client-focused and perform highly sophisticated work.
Roger’s article examines what tomorrow’s lawyers and law firms must do to adapt to the changing marketplace. Noting that BigLaw’s ability to change is akin to “turning an aircraft carrier,” he sees significant opportunities for smaller and mid-size firms to emerge as the real winners.
Ed has served as Managing Partner of Brooks Pierce, a 90-lawyer firm with three North Carolina office locations, since 2000. He focuses on law practice management and strategic leadership, and is especially interested in the evolution of the legal profession. In the face of unprecedented change, he likes MidLaw’s chances and discusses ten challenges for which they are well-positioned, including:
Managing partners of the nation’s largest law firms are bullish about 2016 according to this annual survey of leaders of AmLaw 200 law firms. One-hundred four 104 firm leaders participated and were asked about overall conditions of the legal industry and their firm’s outlook for the coming year. This five-page article discusses survey’s findings. Among the highlights:
What’s your firm’s outlook for 2016? We hope it’s looking good!
The major accounting firms sell their brands. Not so at the big law firms, where the individuals are the brand. Consider how attractive law firm leaders would find a firm whose brand – its name, its systems, its process, its procedures, its consistency – trumps that of its individual lawyers. A firm that thrives despite partner defections because the individual lawyers follow a script orchestrated by senior management. Are “lawyer-proof law firms” the wave of the future?
Bob thinks a lot about law firm leadership. He’s former Chair of the ABA’s Law Practice Division and the ABA’s Diversity Committee. He also served as Managing Partner of his law firm, English Lucas Priest Owsley (ELPO Law, for short), for many years. In these roles, he thinks a lot about the unparalleled changes occurring in the legal profession, and he writes about what firm leaders can and should be doing to encourage change and drive innovation within their firms.
“In many ways, we’re our own worst enemy when it comes to advancing our law firms and in keeping up with what clients want and need,” says Bob. “We are truly in a change or die scenario. The sooner law firms realize this, the better prepared they’ll be to thrive.”
This is a strong, powerful article written by one of your peers. It should grab your attention.
This article discusses the difference between legacy law firms – those where the firm comes first and where there’s sharing, teamwork and investment in the future – and mercenary firms – those that operate more like a collection of sole practitioners sharing office space. August believes that law firms that lean toward legacy are better off in the long run. We agree. In the article, he offers suggestions on how you can move your firm in the right direction.
When it comes to succession planning within a law firm, we often hear from managing partners: “I’m concerned that our young partners don’t have what it takes to run this firm in the future. They lack the drive, commitment and work ethic to become owners of the business.” And from young partners, we hear: “The senior partners won’t let go. They cling to control and won’t introduce us to their clients and referral sources.” Firms need to find ways to bridge the gap if they want to be around in 2020 and beyond. Sue shares her advice to help your firm manage its succession process.
In this short article, Michael shares five emerging trends he’s been seeing in the marketplace for legal services. These early seeds of change present new opportunities for those law firms that act now and seize the moment. Here are the five trends he discusses in the article:
Michael contends that these five "early trends" will snowball into big trends, and that opportunities abound for those firms that get a jump on the competition.
Two MPF Advisory members – Mitchell Roth of Much Shelist and Ray Werner of Arnstein Lehr – are featured in this article appearing in the March 2014 issue of Chicago Lawyer. The article discusses a dramatic shift in the number and importance of legal work that traditionally went to BigLaw that is now finding its way to smaller and midsize firms. The reason? Not only a significantly lower rate structure, but also more flexibility and improved service. The article mentions a recent LexisNexis survey analyzing the legal spend of corporate America and we’ll feature the survey in a future MPF Weekly Update.
As Larry Richard’s extensive research reveals, lawyers hate change. They’re not too wild about risk either. And the characteristics that make them really good lawyers tend to make them not-so-good business people. But, as we all know, change is all around us. Globalization, technology, demanding clients and competition are having, and will continue to have, dramatic impacts on the business of law.
In this article, Aric reflects on the future of law and suggests that the wave of change affecting the legal profession has just begun. Is your firm ready?
Although the overall demand for legal services in the US has been flat (at best) since 2008, there are two ways that mid-size firms have outperformed BigLaw according to this report published in late March.
First, the demand growth for midsize firms is less volatile than for BigLaw and, second, realization rates are significantly better for mid-size firms than for AmLaw 100 firms.
The report also finds that there are opportunities for mid-size firms to capitalize on the increasing willingness of in-house counsel to feed work to smaller and mid-size law firms.
If you’ve been following us over the years, you know that we regularly survey firm leaders about topics relating to law firm leadership and management. And we consistently find that succession planning – in areas such as firm leadership, legal knowledge and expertise, and client relationships – is among the most neglected aspects in the business side of running the firm. In fact, most firm leaders give their firms poor marks in this most important area. In this article, we highlight finding of our most recent survey and offer best practices for succession planning and management. Here are few highlights of the article:
These are good ideas to transition a law firm into the future. What is your firm doing to ensure its long-term success?
Here's a short but hard-hitting video that hammers home the dramatic changes in the legal industry over the past decade. We suggest that you play it at your next partnership meeting and ask your partners what they think. If this doesn't get their attention that your firm needs to change, nothing will.
The video is produced by Re-ThinkLaw.org, an initiative launched by an outfit called Axiom. Stay tuned.
We’ve recently seen several high-profile cases where the US Government, along with companies like CitiBank, Target, and American Express, have fallen victim to cyber criminals. There have also been a few instances involving prominent law firms. Can you imagine having to tell your clients that your firm’s data has been breached?
So, just how vulnerable is your law firm? To find out, read this article. Then schedule a meeting with your IT Director to make sure your firm is doing all it can to assure a safe and secure working environment.
Of the dozen or so characteristics of today’s most successful law firms, succession planning is perhaps the most often neglected. Yet, succession should be an important element in many firm-wide strategic plans. Succession can be viewed in the context of firm leadership, client relationships and organizational involvement. It involves identifying and grooming future firm leaders, and rewarding retiring partners for successful transition, not just personal productivity.
In this thoughtful and well-researched article, Jim writes that law firms would benefit greatly from long-term planning and that succession – critical to sustainability – should command leadership’s full attention. We couldn’t agree more.
Along with Robert Young of Lucas English in Bowling Green, Kentucky, I was featured in this article that appeared in a recent issue of LawyersUSA. In it, I talk about research we’ve conducted at MPF affirming that law firms that develop and implement strategic plans outperform those that do not.
After 25 years in the legal industry, I often find myself working with firms that are long on planning, yet woefully short when it comes to implementation. My advice? Pick just three meaningful initiatives, dedicate the required resources, and assign a responsible partner – not a committee – to make sure each initiative is accomplished. And follow the advice is Gerry’s brilliant article.
This short article provides some practical guidance on how to transition the role of managing partner through thoughtful policies procedures to encourage a smooth, efficient, multi-year transition of leadership.
There is no definitive answer to the question of exactly how long an outgoing leader should stay in office after announcing his or her departure. Many management experts advocate a swift transition to avoid lame-duck syndrome or firm drift. However, one-on-one interviews with dozens of firm leaders reveal a very different approach.
For new managing partners, the responsibilities are multi-faceted and the stakeholders are diverse, both within and outside the firm. This article looks at the most common mistakes, the biggest challenges, some unanticipated surprises, and how to avoid them.
In working with hundreds of law firm leaders over the past twenty years, McKenna has observed several warning signs that often lead to weak or ineffective firm leadership.
“A leader’s lasting value is measured by succession,” says leadership author and guru John Maxwell. Tom Grella, a long-term member of the MPF Advisory Board, puts his spin on the topic from the perspective of managing partner of a mid-size firm. Importantly, he writes about the role of current firm leadership in the process. Tom is Past Chair of the ABA’s Law Practice Management Section. This article appears in the May/June issue of the ABA’s Law Practice magazine.
Peter Marlette, Managing Partner of Damon Morey in Buffalo, New York, has recently joined the MPF Advisory Board. This outstanding article, which originally appeared in the New York Law Journal, is must reading for leaders of mid-size law firms. It discusses the exciting opportunities for mid-size firms in today’s marketplace for legal services. Among his recommendation: Adopt and implement a firm-wide strategic plan, and become active in the right law firm network. His firm is a member of ALFA International.
David Maister writes some really good stuff and you'll find lots of his books and articles featured on our Website. This particular article discusses things like mission, vision, values and culture in the context of a law firm. It's a great article to circulate among your partners in advance of your next Firm Retreat. It will get them thinking about a whole bunch of issues, including the rules and codes of conduct (if any) by which your firm and its professionals live.
There are three common reasons why law firms fail, says this article that appears in the June edition of ABA’s Law Practice magazine. Lack of leadership. Lack of strategic focus. Lack of financial discipline. Don’t let your firm be among those that fall apart or seek refuge through an acquisition.
Here’s an interesting study that puts law firm billing practices under the microscope. It examines invoices received by 36 large corporate clients finds that location and firm size – not lawyer expertise – are the biggest determinants of a lawyer’s hourly rate. It also concludes that 75% of proposed rate hikes are accepted, and that a lawyer with the title of "partner" can charge up to $100 more per hour than an "associate" with the same experience.
Over half of in-house counsel – 56%, to be precise – say there has been a "sea change" in how fees are paid to outside counsel. Prompted by the pressure to reduce the overall cost of legal services and fueled by the ACC’s Value Challenge, the time seems right to affect change. Yet, the gap remains wide between the perception of fundamental transformation and the actual practice.
Much ado has been made over the new partnership between Best Lawyers in America and US News & World Report to present their version of law firm rankings. We’ll be writing more on that topic in a soon-to-be-published MPF White Paper. In any event, there are a few thoughtful articles on their website including this one. And it’s good news for smaller and mid-size law firms.
We are strong advocates for strong, competent, business-minded administrators in law firms. Management. Marketing. Finance. Human Resources. Technology. They make the trains run on time, and they make the firm more money. This article talks about the critical role of firm administrators from the perspective of three managing partners – from small, mid-size and large law firms. One thought we especially like: "Acting like a partner, that is like an owner not an employee, goes a long way toward helping the administrator get a seat at the table."
From strategic planning to effective committee structure, this two-pager gets right to the point. Although simple in concept, these rules are not always easy to apply and follow. But the most successful organizations do….including law firms.
Our friends at LexisNexis have published a series of papers on best practices in the “business of law.” This one looks at best practices in the accounting profession that can be helpful to law firms, especially smaller firms.
Henning asks "Will it take a revolution to change the way law firms operate?" Will today’s current economic crisis force law firms to rethink the old model of annual hourly rate increases? Radical ideas may not only require a change in business model, but a change to the code of professional responsibility.
The law firm merger market is starting to reawaken according to separate reports published by Hildebrandt International and Altman Weil. Although both reports show that firms aren’t ready to resume the highly aggressive growth strategies contemplated just 18 months ago, the market has started to heat up again. However, "it has turned from a seller’s market to a buyer’s market when it comes to acquiring small firms,” says Altman Weil consultant Bill Brennan.
Recession or not, this article from Law Practice magazine includes fifteen really good ideas for lawyers of law firms, regardless of firm size or practice mix. Many of Linda’s suggestions focus on client service and business development. None of them involve rocket science.
According to research conducted by Samford University’s Cumberland School of Law, 55% of lawyers in private practice admit to overbilling on occasion. The temptation only becomes more severe as there is less work to be dome. Don’t let this happen at your firm! Not only is the practice unethical, it may also cause irreparable damage to one of your firm’s most valuable assets – its reputation.
In this recently published article, MPF Faculty member Bob Denney says more and more law firms are focusing attention on leverage, associate development, alternative fee agreements and firm management. In our travels about the country, we see the same trends, as well.
Does this recession remind you of anything? Perhaps it’s the same phenomenon we experienced 15 years ago when the dot com industry went bust? Learn what’s changed in the legal marketplace since the last recession and what lessons remain the same.
This fascinating article from the Wharton Business School asserts that the global recession is forcing law firms to change the way they do business.
A great article for firm leaders about the implementation side of the strategic planning process. Giuliani says fuzzy goals, a lack of genuine commitment and an unwillingness to deal with tough issues often hamper successful implementation.
If your firm has never gone through the strategic planning process, this is the article for you! It starts off explaining the basic "whys" and "hows" of planning, but goes deeper into the importance of focusing externally as well as internally. Mudrick was a member of the MPF Faculty for several years before joining Phoenix-based Jennings Strauss as COO in 2008.
Most firms don’t utter the "s" word — succession — until disaster strikes. This article leads off with a great example of that. Don’t let your firm fall into the malaise and wait until fate forces your hand. Succession planning benefits firm leaders of today and tomorrow.
Do you and your partners have a written, cohesive firm strategy? Or are you merely sharing office space with other sole practitioners? Strategic planning is the key differentiator, but it’s not for the faint of heart.
This report summarizes the findings of Smock’s annual Survey of the Legal Marketplace in which John and Peter interview managing partners and leaders of thirty large US law firms. They report that 2018 was a very good year for most law firms. The booming economy and much improved attention to firm management issues are leading to record years for many large US law firms. Here are a few strategies, they say, that are really paying dividends:
Nothing new here, but it underscores the importance of running your firm as a business, not a hotel for lawyers.
This is one of a handful of “state of the legal profession” reports we look forward to every year. Like the 2019 Client Advisory featured last week, it says that 2018 was a good year for many law firms. Yet, some firms, especially the AmLaw 50 and well-run midsize boutique firms, performed much better than others. That is exactly what last week’s report said! This paper challenges firms to get really clear on their “position” in the market and build a model accordingly. It divides the market into “Unique Legal Expertise” (about 20-25% of the market); “Comprehensive Legal Services” (60-70% of the market); and “Ancillary Support Services” (10-15% of the market). It’s an interesting way to look at things and, as we sometimes do, we’ve highlighted the report so you can browse through it quickly and easily. Here are some highlights:
We recommend that you read it, distribute it, and talk about it with your partners.
The Client Advisory is the first of several “state of the legal profession” reports we look forward to every year. It says that times are pretty darn good for the AmLaw 200 law firms, especially the top 50 firms, which continue to improve running their law firms as businesses, including strategic planning, empowered leadership and partner accountability. Yet, not all law firms are performing well in the strong market. We’ve highlighted the report so you can browse through it quickly. In addition, here are some of its highlights:
We strongly recommend that you read and digest this report, distribute it to your partners and discuss its implications at your next partner meeting.
BigLaw, with their highly paid recruiting and professional development staffs, is doing a pretty fair job articulating and enforcing the criteria to become an equity partner. Unfortunately, this is not the case for many smaller and mid-sized firms. In this brief article, David does a nice job outlining some of the best practices in this critically important area. Here are four of them:
How is your firm doing at grooming its future owners?
This short article (about 1,200 words) sets out what I’ve learned over the years about what law firms must do to attract and retain younger lawyers. Like it or not, today’s younger lawyers tend to want different things from their legal careers than their senior counterparts. Here are four of the things we recommend that law firms do:
Check out the article to read all 13 of them.
According to our research, succession planning has emerged as one of the top areas of concern for managing partners of smaller and -mid-size law firms. Generally, we break succession into three main areas — ownership, leadership and client transition — and here’s a snap-shot of how law firms are doing:
Succession planning should start early, and its expectation should be woven into your firm’s culture if you and your partners care about legacy and the long-term sustainability of the enterprise.
On occasion, we kick off the MPF Leadership Conference with a keynote presentation to set the stage for the Conference. In 2018, we invited Patrick Fuller to present an overview of the legal industry based on data collected by ALM Intelligence. It’s a tough market place out there, full of change and volatility. Here are a few highlights:
At MPF, we believe that these and other long-term trends present exciting opportunities for well-run smaller and mid-size firms with focused plans and effective leadership.
If you have not yet heard about CLOC, it’s time for you to check it out. Among other things, its mission is to bring leadership, knowledge and experience necessary for corporate legal operations officers to drive peak in-house legal department performance, including implementing policies, processes, and technologies to increase value to the company while driving down costs and fostering a globally connected culture. Yikes!
There’s some fascinating information in this report, in which 156 companies in 32 industries participated. Here are a few of the highlights that caught our attention:
We keep hearing more and more about CLOC, and we think there’s much more to come.
In many smaller and mid-size law firms, more than half of the owners are in their 60s and 70s. They typically generate most of the firm’s business. They handle leadership and management responsibilities. And they possess decades of wisdom, knowledge and skills. Yet, most smaller and mid-size firms have no formal succession plans in place. And 70% of first generation law firms do not survive their founding partners.
As we all know, succession planning is important if your firm is to survive and prosper in the coming years. It involves difficult – often emotional – issues for many firms. Too often, these issues are never discussed, and succession is neglected.
Ida’s four-page article eloquently addresses some of the challenging issues with succession planning and the retirement of senior partners. We encourage you to read it if you’re dealing with succession and transition issues at your firm.
Here’s another annual report – this one published by Smock Law Firm Consultants – that we call to your attention. It’s based primarily on interviews with CEOs and COOs of 41 large and midsize law firms, along with review and analysis of recent reports on the legal marketplace. We especially like the one-page overview that presents lots of information in a simple and focused manner. Here are few of the report’s major findings:
John Smock and his colleagues bring a hard-nosed approach to how a successful law firm needs to operate, and we agree with almost all the comments and recommendations they make at the end of the report.