How Law Firms Are Managed Depending on Firm Ranking

The next one that's important to cover is how the law firm is managed. Law firms that are ranked differently typically will make decisions in a different way. As you get into rank one firms they're often run by individuals that are trying to make ends meet same thing with rank two.

And then when you get into rank three firms, they start getting more, to be more highly developed business. As more highly developed businesses, they're able to more often than not start having executive committees. So decisions aren't just random. They're made by groups of individuals and that's a sign of a maturing business.

And typically there's benefits of that as well. And then professional managers and all only manage typically what happens a lot of your one or two firms. And your three firms is the, if attorneys inside the firm are doing all the managing and making all the decisions. Now, what that means is that means that a lot of risk are happening.

So decisions may not be the best attorneys are not always the best business people and a [00:01:00] maturing business typically will involve people coming in that help make very good management decisions. When you get under your rank five firms, they may have professional CFOs. They may have professional operations people.

They may have all sorts of people that are helping them to make decisions. The same thing with the rank four firms. But in your rank, one for three firms, it's almost the attorneys are still doing it. And, uh, and many times it's. Decisions that may be holding the firm back. These, again, there's a performance and evaluation systems.

Many, one firms and two firms are so busy that they don't want even evaluate you and give you evaluations, or they don't know how to do them. But when you start getting to rank three firms, things get more, a little bit more advanced. And so what starts happening is that will often be some sort of evaluation system that they realize is necessary to keep the quality of the attorneys up.

And then in your rank four and your rank five firms, typically, it's very important for, for the people to be to for formal evaluations. So in the rank five firms, there will almost always be some sort of [00:02:00] check in that's happening, uh, with attorneys and things constantly that at a, some sort of you'll you'll be evaluated.

Um, and when you get into rank one through, uh, five firms, uh, the decisions that the firm. Can often seem to people working there, uh, irrational and unpredictable. That means things like layoffs decisions to go into new lines of business decisions, to go into office space or move offices or close offices, and just things that make it very stressful for people working there.

So in the rank one firms, because they're individuals making them, you don't know what they're doing in the two firms, so that there's a high likelihood that the people working there will feel like that as you start getting into rank three and rank four and rank five firms, people start to have a lot of confidence and more confidence in the business.

And that's something that helps grow. But the decisions that you're ranked five firms typically are not, would not be irrational. And then as again, the port, the management quality of the firm, meaning how are things managed? How are, what is the perception of [00:03:00] outside clients? What is the perception of people working there?

What is the perception of the marketplace as you move up again and you rank four firms, you're typically going to believe that the management is very good and they will have very good responses and things to issues and, and. Probably pretty good management there as well, which can benefit the people working there.

And this is, again, you can see here as you move up, the rankings, the rank one firms are typically going to be owned by. One are just a few people, same thing with rank two firms, you rank three firms. As they break out of this two, typically start bringing in lots. They have more partners and they have lots of people that the firm's accountable to, not just a few people.

And then as you get into the four, it's typically lots and lots of partners and other people that are honoring it and rank five it's, lots and lots of people as well, lots and lots of partners. And that will result in a different style of management. And again, these are the firm going outta business. You rank one firm go out of business all the time.

They changed names all the time. Same thing with do rank two [00:04:00] firms, cuz they're they don't have the management strength. Typically the same thing with the rank three firms, they are much less likely to go out of business, but they still can make mistakes. And they're often regional and they may be concentrated too much and more practice area.

So that can also affect them negatively in the same thing with the rank four firms and five, they're very unlikely to go out of business. It's very rare for rank five firms to ever go out of business because they have such strong institutional clients. And uh, and they're just, they're run by a lot of people and a lot of people making decisions and the same thing.

When you look at the owners of the firm, where do the profits go? Typically in you're one and two firms, they may go to one or a few people which can influence a lot of. Someone could wanna buy a boat. Someone can get sued and have to pay a judgment. You just never know. And you're one and two firms, but in you ranked three, four firms, typically the money that's coming and flowing to a lot of different people and the profits are, and that's how that works.

Now, this is also something to consider. If you are working in a one or two firm, the benefit is that you could potentially be one of the [00:05:00] people that all that money is flowing to. If you do a good job, that's something that I consider as well. Okay? So the employment security working at the firm, depending on the ranking, these are just some things here to understand how that works.

So your rank one firms are typically hiring, firing as business slows down. As they make financial mistakes. They typically do not have a lot of financial training. They're not run by professional managers. Your employment security can be very weak at your one firms. Most people that work at one and two firms are always very nervous about their employment security.

I would say the rank three firms is more moderate than high, but, but if the business slows down, they may many times be concentrated in one practice area, which is less likely to happen in your rank four firms. And then in your rank, four and five firms, the four firms do let people go, meaning they have corporate departments, slow down and things, but the rank in the rank four and four firms certainly lay people off, but they're also very aware of their brand in the market.

So I've seen some firms that were. I would consider rank [00:06:00] five firms in the past, even as recently, as 2001, lay people off and their brand is permanently tainted in the market, it would be unheard of for most rank five firms, lay attorneys off. Now they mainly stay at the staff box, but it's almost unheard of, or rank five firms do that.

Now your rank four firms, uh, do, and when things slow down, a lot of do, I would probably say rank four is more moderate, but you're, that's one of the benefits of working in a rank five firm is you do have a lot more employment security, but than you would. And then again, it's the same thing with cash reserves and lines of credit, but your rank four, one and two firms are often just working with very little money.

They don't have as much access to cash. You rank three firms and four firms at five firms. Typically we'll have a lot more money sitting around or access to giant lines of credit rank. Four firms certainly do get in trouble with that as do rank three firms, but you rank five firms typically are in a position where regardless of what happens, they could probably weather most serious issues in the markets.

[00:07:00] That's uh, good thing for. And, and also for the people working there so they can afford to have you sitting around without work in the middle of a recession, they can, they're just in much better situation. So if you work in a one or two or three firm that you have less security, and that's one of the reasons that a lot of times it's, it is for many people considered much better to work at your higher rank firms for the lower ones.

And then this is just some other stuff here about financial issues, different firms experienced financial issues, but one or two firms often do go through a lot of financial cycles. And that can be very difficult for the people working there, delay your paycheck, almost unheard of. And, and you're four and five firms, very low chances of that happening and, or even your three firms, but in your one, two firms, that sort of stuff is often very frequent as, and it's, again, it's not, it's the likelihood compared to other rank firms.

So it's not necessarily your firm, but it's other firms as well. And then here, again, going out of business, very rare [00:08:00] for, for, by going of business. And you're one, two firms not do. And then this is another kind of thing here. Sometimes if you're working in a one or two firm and you're, and you manage to negotiate a raise, get a good raise.

If they see someone cheaper come along, they will often let you go save money because it's money in the owner's pocket, this, but if you work in a three or four firm, that that starts to become much less probable and especially in your five firms, it's just not something that they wouldn't even consider even at your four firms.

So. It's just not how that works. Now, I've seen four firms do things like this, and they immediately become three firms in my book because of that behavior. So these are all clues that I look for when I'm working with people because, and working with firms and how they're ranked. And a lot of times they will not know why they've been ranked a certain way.

And then here's other ones, firms push you out if you're not gonna be a partner. So in your one or two firms, they're just hiring people to do the work. They don't necessarily care as much. If you're gonna be a partner, they don't, [00:09:00] they're not taking it account, trying to create a upper out thing where everyone's very doing the best work they ask, same thing.

We do two firms, the three and four firms. They start definitely you're much more likely to get pushed out a rank free firm may keep you around to do the work they're much more likely to do so than a four firm, your four firms. Most of them do have that whole system in place where you bring in junior associates and another associates and expect them to advance.

And, and if they don't then that, then they, at some point are asked to leave and your five firms, it's almost certain, regardless of how good of an attorney you are, that if you're not partner, that they're going to have you leave. And that's just how they operate. Then, then this is the, a younger hungrier version, which I don't.

This is just something to think about when you're working. And then these are the difficulty that the firm's going to have, uh, replacing in a one firm. They cuz they're just hiring anybody many times and that is concerned about your qualifications. They're not gonna have as much difficulty replacing.

Four and five [00:10:00] firms will often get a lot of applications, but they're looking for a certain type of person. So they may have a little bit of difficulty replacing you, but not always. I, I would say in the rank five firms, it is difficult because they're looking for a certain caliber person. I would actually say that's probably highest.

And this is about the support and trade secretary. You're almost always gonna have that kind of BI firm in a core firm. You may not always have a most of the time. You are. That's important to a lot of people, the love of support they get. That means that if you're there someone to help you with everything you're doing dedicated things like librarian it staff and so forth, you're much more likely to get that in you rank one firms, less likely to get it than five firms.

You are things like perks like dinner and cars, home a you work late. That's also very important for some people and the clients, the buy firms really do not care. Same thing with four, they will. They expect you. If you're working late, they will reimburse the firm for that sort of thing, client development budget.

You're much more likely to see that or buy firm, sometimes five firms, a people who aren't even asked for it, but in a four or five firm, typically [00:11:00] that's almost expected and something that people will get. And just so that if there's that, and then again, cutting of resources, I don't know how important that is, but I would say rank one is highest and rank two is moderate and sit here and credit for pro bono work.

See that it's almost very high year rank four and buy firms. Same thing here, reimburse for different things. You can see here, cell phone, laptop, and so forth, pay for different services. And then there you go.

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