By Co-Founding Principals Susan Raridon Lambreth and Joseph Altonji Co-author Susan Raridon Lambreth wrote an article for the American Bar Association Journal (ABA Journal) in 1989 about the future of law firms over the next...more
“Culture eats strategy for breakfast.” – Peter Drucker We’ve all heard this famous admonition from the founder of management consulting, but what does it mean to us, today, in the legal world?...more
10/10/2023
/ Accountants ,
Alternate Legal Service Providers (ALSPs) ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Business Development ,
Change Management ,
Corporate Culture ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Firm Leadership ,
Law Firm Partners ,
Law Practice Management ,
Legal Technology ,
Strategic Planning ,
Technology
The legal industry has been on the verge of either “ending as we know it,” or being forced to endure massive change, every five to ten years since at least the 1980’s. Consider some of the history:...more
I am often struck by just how frequently we encounter new law firms, particularly smaller to mid-sized firms, where when asked if the firm has a formal “strategy” (or to use the common parlance, “strategic plan”) we will be...more
Perhaps not surprisingly, two of the most frequent and challenging requests we currently receive are for assistance with “thinking through growth questions” (aka, “mergers and acquisitions”) and “dealing with generational...more
While the post-pandemic merger pace is slower than many expected, law firm combinations are clearly on the rise. More significantly, recent announcements suggest that the number of larger combinations are also on the rise,...more
As we enter the final countdown to the end of 2022 – hard to believe another year has come and gone! – there are lessons to be learned from where we’ve been. This year might go down as the “year of shifting winds” for the...more
There may be no single economic challenge facing law firms today bigger than the current war for talent. Driven by transactional practices, the acceleration of base compensation and bonuses started last year and continuing...more
Well, that’s been fun…. We are about to complete the second of two of the most challenging years in law firm history. Yes, economic results have, by and large, been great. Yes, there have been some positive consequences...more
A few weeks ago, I addressed “What’s Next for the Legal World?” in a post focused on critical challenges facing law firms. In it, I argued that “profitability management as a survival skill” is now a feature of the...more
Through the heroic efforts of many people in the medical and pharmaceutical worlds, the United States and other countries are on the brink of emerging from the long Covid nightmare. With it, the legal industry is waking up...more
3/30/2021
/ Alternate Legal Service Providers (ALSPs) ,
Client Services ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Firm Leadership ,
Law Firm Partners ,
Law Practice Management ,
Legal Technology ,
Strategic Planning ,
Technology
We appear poised to enter a period of more rapid consolidation in the legal profession, and as always the primary moderating factor will likely be the cautiousness or outright resistance of many smaller to midsize firms to...more
In the last century, law firms have grown in size and partnerships have expanded from a few partners to now hundreds to thousands of partners in some of the largest global firms. Meanwhile the legal structures of those...more
It’s been a crazy three months and we’re not out the woods yet on the COVID-19 crisis, but by this time all well-run law firms have 1) figured out how to keep functioning and serving their clients virtually and 2) at least...more
In our COVID-19 Recovery Playbook, we provided our thinking for firm leadership on how to manage through the current crisis. In this four-part continuation of that work, we examine where and how the industry may be shaped by...more
In our COVID-19 Recovery Playbook, we provided our thinking for firm leadership on how to manage through the current crisis. In this four-part continuation of that work, we examine where and how the industry may be shaped by...more
In our COVID-19 Recovery Playbook, we provided our thinking for firm leadership on how to manage through the current crisis. In this four-part continuation of that work, we examine where and how the industry may be shaped by...more
After more than three decades advising law firm leaders on improving their firm’s overall position and success, a number of frustrations have proven to be more than just isolated aberrations: As a result, over multiple years...more
Wait, what? It’s still January, right? Well yes, it is, but now is the time to lay the groundwork for a strategically successful year. Most of us are just finishing up figuring out what happened and allocating the fruits of...more
We’re just three weeks into the second decade since the crash of Lehman and the end of life as we once knew it in the legal industry…. Oh, wait. Was that too dramatic? Maybe so, at least in retrospect, but there is no...more
Can 2018 really be here already? A year ago, in “2017 – The Year to Try Something New?”, I argued that 2017 was already a year of change outside the legal profession (“The Cubs are national champions and University of...more
It’s hard to believe but it’s here – the fourth quarter. The time when most law firms become intensely focused on the immediate, short-term, administrative and highly internal management needs of their organization. For...more
It seems law firms everywhere are going back to basics. Who are we and where are we going? What is our strategy? What are we trying to do? Simple questions, all, but not so simple to answer – at least if you want to answer...more