Bringing in New Attorneys

Many of the practices that lead to successful lateral hiring are basic common sense. In many instances, however, BCG Attorney Search has found firms mistakenly adhering to a number of practices that seriously undermine the success of their lateral hires. These include: READ MORE >

Today, most lateral associates enter their new firms with the understanding that the position is actually an opportunity to audition for the role of partner. In the best-case scenario, at the end of the experience, firms are able to identify those with the skills needed to enhance firm profits and advance in a reasonable amount of time. In BCG Attorney Search's estimation, it's always prudent for law firm leaders re-evaluate the traits their individual organizations find desirable—particularly since such characteristics are apt to change along with the firm's needs. Developing an informal list and then checking potential lateral hires against it can help firms avoid serious financial implications caused when a once-promising prospect later turns out to be a ''bad fit.'' READ MORE >

Practice Groups are increasingly becoming the way law firms manage their businesses, including a significant component of the marketing agenda. The following ten ideas will help practice groups - and especially their leaders - decide the best ways to manage and focus their marketing activities. READ MORE >

The Dumbest Things Law Firms Do READ MORE >

There are many reasons why law firms are choosing to engage in the development of ancillary businesses, and many law firms have gone down this path. These reasons include the following: READ MORE >

The activities that comprise a law firm’s marketing mix–business development, promotion, and client care almost always have a major impact on a firm’s IT planning. READ MORE >

When law firms first began to develop marketing programs the focus was largely on communications and promotion, and their efforts focused on such activities as seminars, media relations and newsletters. They bore little resemblance to the corporate marketing model, with its heavy emphasis on research and product or service development and delivery. The law firm marketing focus was on visibility and had little influence on firm management decision-making. READ MORE >

Seeking to differentiate their firms in a competitive legal marketplace by providing a broader range of services, an increasing number of law firm planners find themselves performing a cost-benefit analysis of proposed ancillary businesses -- non-legal ventures that offer services complementary to those provided by the law firm. Services provided by ancillary businesses include, among others: advertising, consulting, claims administration, document management, government relations, human resources, real estate appraisals, real estate development, title insurance services and tax counseling. READ MORE >

Eliminate Lock-Step Model and Reward Performance, Not Time Served

Beginning at the end of 1999, law firms began accelerating the rate at which they increased associate compensation. This trend literally moved at “Internet speed:” within three months, associates nationwide were deemed to be worth substantially more than they had been when hired, sometimes only a few months earlier.
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There are as many variations of partner compensation plans as there are law firms. Most are well intended and targeted at rewarding those efforts that the firm values, or thinks it should value, most. READ MORE >

Has your firm identified its business goals for this year (and beyond)? Have you developed long-term strategies for securing your position in the market? Have you thought about your competitors and how they might be planning to take your business? The mid-size firm can no longer rely on the fact that they are “full-service” firms. Global mega-firms, accounting firms and other professional firms will prove to be intense competitors for work that has traditionally been dominated by mid-size law firms. To survive, mid-size firms need a focused strategic plan that clearly identifies long-term goals, present and future market position, and business development objectives. Mid-size firms pursuing rapid growth would do well to consider merger as a means of achieving long-term strategic goals in a rapidly consolidating market. READ MORE >

The rapidly accelerating rate of consolidation in the legal profession continues to capture the attention and interest of lawyers everywhere. In recent months we have even seen an increase in the announcements of mergers in New York City. The question that we hear time and again from firms considering merger is whether these and other mergers have been successful. Some firms want empirical evidence of this success, or lack thereof, and look at areas such as increased profits, while others look for “telltale” signs such as partner defections. While these may be interesting, they cannot tell the whole story and can often lead to an incorrect conclusion. This article will define those success measures, although perhaps not in the black and white terms that some would like to see. READ MORE >

A few years ago, many were predicting that the legal industry would see an overwhelming number of mergers between U.S. firms and U.K. firms. But the flood of mergers did not occur, and some came to believe that there are fundamental differences between firms in the two countries that are difficult to overcome in the context of a merger. The termination of some high-profile discussions between London’s Bird & Bird and Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe, as well as between Latham & Watkins and London’s Ashurst Morris Crisp, supported this theory. READ MORE >

As the economy changes pace, more firms than ever are shifting their focus from acquiring new associates to procuring partners and the client relationships that accompany it. As a result, the interest in law firm mergers is higher than ever, and there are a growing number of merger discussions occurring in California. READ MORE >

Long before most mergers are put to a vote, merger committees define and analyze the new firm's financial prospects, practice opportunities, governance structure, technology needs, marketing plan, and a host of related issues. Unfortunately, some firms thoroughly analyze the merger; agree to merge; but then stumble through the integration process. READ MORE >

Recently, it seems that most publications focusing on the state of the legal industry include a line or two on firms that are looking for merger partners, that are involved in merger negotiations or whose partners have voted to merge. For many firms, the desire to merge stems from one of two forces operating outside the legal market. READ MORE >

Changing Market for Legal Services Places New Focus on Practice Management

Law firms are recognizing that the days of operating like a regulated industry are fading fast. Like the airline, telecom, and rail businesses in prior years, forward-thinking law firms understand that they are operating in an increasingly competitive marketplace and that they must transform themselves in order to thrive. Practice management is one of the key components in this transformation for law firms to be successful in the long term. Today’s law firms face significant internal and external challenges as they strive to increase net income per partner and compete for both clients and lawyers in the legal marketplace. Traditional models for law firm success that are outdated and law firms are realizing the need to reinvent themselves in order to survive. Common pressures facing law firms and law firm management today include: READ MORE >

It's no secret that there is an intensifying rush to consolidate within the legal profession. And of course, we expect the future to bring larger and increasingly complex mergers to the legal profession. Those are likely to include transatlantic combinations—and even multidisciplinary ones. READ MORE >

Firms that take the time to address business fundamentals now will be stronger now than they were before.

This is an ideal time to look at the fundamentals underpinning a law firm's business. We see four areas – costs, lawyer performance, client relations, and strategic focus – as requiring the most attention from firm management right now. Addressing these will ensure that a firm can take full advantage of what is available to strengthen it for the future. READ MORE >

One of the most significant challenges for law firms in the current economic and competitive climate is managing effectively both their strategic development and operational performance. The strategic development is concerned with achieving agreed mid-long term strategic objectives and a future market position which provides a platform for building some form of sustainable competitiveness. Operational management, in contrast, is essentially concerned with the current, more immediate, financial and economic performance achieved including the servicing and winning of clients and achievement of other key related performance targets (covering, for example, HR, service standards, etc.). READ MORE >

When two firms merge, it is an opportune time to take a fresh look and reassess the combined firm's practice management structure. Strong practice management may enable the newly combined firm to achieve higher profitability, obtain higher value work and enhance its client base. Even though the legal profession has experienced a period of peak profitability, most law firms have not fully capitalized upon their size and resources because they are still operating along office lines, or even worse, individual partner lines. READ MORE >

In its February 4, 2002 issue, Fortune magazine published its fifth annual list of the ''100 Best Places to Work.'' Four law firms were included on the list for the third time, this year with the following rankings: Alston & Bird, number 9; Fenwick & West number 14; McCutchen Doyle Brown & Enersen, number 54; and Brobeck, Phleger & Harrison, number 78. The qualities and cultures of these four firms, which ultimately landed them on the list with the likes of Cisco Systems, Goldman Sachs, Charles Schwab, Microsoft and Intel, are in many ways similar. Most notable are a strong and positive culture, open and honest communication, and strong firm and practice management. READ MORE >

Many law firms have grown dramatically over the past few years. The challenge for any firm that has experienced fast growth is to be able to capitalize on the firm's new platform. The larger and more diverse and dispersed a firm becomes, the more attention must be focused on managing it. The reality is that growing a firm requires substantial investment in effective management to ensure the firm gets an acceptable return on its investment in growth. READ MORE >

To prosper and grow, law firms of all sizes must create strategic business plans for their individual practice groups. A good strategic plan may be as simple as three to five goals with action plans designed to implement them. READ MORE >