By Roger Hayse on Posted in Law Firm Crisis,Law Firm Leadership,Law Firm Repositioning/Turnaround/Restructuring With the on-going market challenges associated with the legal profession, firm leadership is smart to periodically stop and evaluate the state of the firm. Is it in a transitional state? Here are four questions that can help serve as a baseline diagnostic. Is your firm: Facing a decision that addresses the fundamental way the… Continue Reading
By Roger Hayse on Posted in Law Firm Crisis,Law Firm Leadership,Law Firm Repositioning/Turnaround/RestructuringBold headlines tend to focus on the spectacular failures. But consequential transition — even crisis — are equally traumatic for the small to medium sized law firm. Given the fact that fewer partners must carry the load, the impact across the smaller firm may be even more intensely felt. If you are part of the… Continue Reading
By Andrew E. Jillson on Posted in Law Firm Crisis,Law Firm Repositioning/Turnaround/Restructuring,Law Firm TransitionOne current report signals that the legal services market is suffering from a decline in demand. Reed Smith’s inabilities to keep its full complement of lawyers busy lead it to layoff 45 lawyers recently. According to Peter Zeughauser of the Zeughauser Group, other firms have been stealthily bleeding layoffs here and there for some time. Altman… Continue Reading
By Andrew E. Jillson on Posted in Law Firm Crisis,Law Firm Liquidation,Law Firm Succession,Law Firm TransitionSuccession planning is an issue that many law firm managers worry about. They ask whether their firm has done enough planning, whether the pool of successors is deep and whether the firm will be stable when transition to new leadership happens. Because succession planning is so important to many of today’s law firm leaders, we’ve… Continue Reading
By Roger Hayse on Posted in Law Firm Crisis,Law Firm Leadership,Law Firm Transition One of, if not the key responsibility of a law firm leader is ensuring that the viability of the firm is not threatened. No doubt, one of the primary threats to law firms today is excessive debt. Clearly it is a rare business that functions without incorporating some form(s) of debt as part of an… Continue Reading
By Roger Hayse on Posted in Law Firm Crisis,Law Firm Leadership,Law Firm Repositioning/Turnaround/RestructuringEvery single business, if it is around long enough, will face a time of crisis. Law firms are no exception. Whether a series or a single event, crisis comes with a handful of pivotal moments. Mishandled, these moments can threaten the very existence of any organization. If you’re managing a law firm you know that… Continue Reading
By Roger Hayse on Posted in Law Firm Crisis,Law Firm Repositioning/Turnaround/Restructuring,Law Firm TransitionAs we continue to see law firms fail, and dramatic efforts at restructuring continue at a heady pace, market analysts can’t help but look for a common denominator. Is there a quantifiable predictor of tomorrow’s troubled law firm? While a number of things can push a firm into a transition mode, there seems to be… Continue Reading
By Andrew E. Jillson on Posted in Law Firm Crisis,Law Firm Leadership,Law Firm TransitionMost law firms approach their practices optimistically-with a kind of “glass is half-full” outlook. Getting business, building client relationships and creating a brand typically are a firm’s focus rather than thinking about failure or disaster. That is especially so when law firms form. Future developments like mass departures or dissolution usually do not enter into… Continue Reading
By Andrew E. Jillson on Posted in Law Firm Crisis,Law Firm Transition,Law Firm Warning SignsIn his January Divorce Rush Dates Back to the Middle Ages, Frederik Pederson examines the annual spike in English divorces every January and traces the phenomenon back to the Middle Ages. His research into the records of medieval church courts is interesting and supports his thesis. Mr. Pederson’s article backs the view that whatever the… Continue Reading
By Andrew E. Jillson on Posted in Law Firm Crisis,Law Firm Leadership,Law Firm TransitionAs law firms work their year-end activities, there is much to do. Collecting bills, awarding bonuses, budgeting for the coming year, promotions, evaluations, and in some cases, compensation setting, are among the things on law firm agendas. Focused firms also begin, continue or complete identifying their strategic imperatives for 2015 so that the New Year… Continue Reading
By Roger Hayse on Posted in Law Firm Crisis,Law Firm Growth,Law Firm Repositioning/Turnaround/Restructuring,Law Firm TransitionReports vary on the degree to which the business of law is recovering or improving; but few question the fact that competitive pressures are growing, thanks to: Decreased demand due to more matters being kept in-house, Increased pricing pressure, Outsourcing of routine tasks to low-cost providers half-way around the world; and, Increased competition from non-law… Continue Reading
By Andrew E. Jillson on Posted in Law Firm Crisis,Law Firm Merger,Law Firm Repositioning/Turnaround/Restructuring,Law Firm TransitionThis is the first of two installments that examine the changing landscape of distressed law firm acquisitions and how recent developments may encourage healthy firms to pursue struggling firms like never before. Last week, the long-anticipated Morgan Lewis acquisition of a core component of Bingham McCutchen’s practice was announced. Described as a mass lateral acquisition as opposed… Continue Reading
By Andrew E. Jillson on Posted in Law Firm Crisis,Law Firm Leadership,Law Firm TransitionSome recent news and commentary drives home the idea that the legal industry and its law firm participants are facing transition. Jennifer Smith of The Wall Street Journal reported that more law firm clients are insourcing-taking in work heretofore performed by outside counsel. That development, by some accounts impacting large law firms in particular, occurs… Continue Reading
