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:
Recent commentary on trends among law firms has highlighted the increasing popularity of requiring greater capital contributions from owners. As Law.com‘s Nell Gluckman notes, instead of capital requirements in the 20-25% range as was common for years, law firms more frequently are jacking up the owner capital requirements into the 30-35% level. In some
It has become an all too frequent occurrence — the story of yet another law firm closing its doors. The headlines rarely convey everything — displaced personnel, inconvenienced clients, and the pain and disruption for the firm’s owners.
What drives this result? How has this become almost commonplace?
I believe any one of five things
In a time of increased competition among law firms, a firm’s positive news, developments or performance always seems welcome. Peer recognition for the firm is nice. Likewise, having clients show confidence in the firm by hiring it again and again naturally is a boost of confidence. And climbing revenues and profitability is almost always viewed
Leaders aren’t born – they are made. And they are made just like anything else, through hard work. And that’s the price we’ll have to pay to achieve that goal, or any goal. —Vince Lombardi
There has been plenty written about the difficulties associated with leading law firms. Much of the commentary relates
The American Lawyer article about recent attrition at Kirkland & Ellis gained attention in no small part because Kirkland’s reputation for success runs counter to the idea that people want to leave. While 
departures from even the most successful firms is inevitable, the depth of attrition at Kirkland reported by The American Lawyer was surprising.
Bold 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
As we have seen recently, law firm combinations have continued at a brisk pace. In layman’s terms, most of the combinations are referred to as mergers although many are at best “merger-like.” Indeed, “true” mergers appear to be the exception and not the rule as law firm combinations continue to be announced.
Gina Passarella wrote
Another year for law firms is in the books and the numbers, to state it mildly, do not signal a return to the pre-2008 halcyon days. Based on a report from the respected Georgetown Law Center for the Study of the Legal Profession, it appears that challenges to the legal profession continue and are
As we enter the New Year, chances are good you’re dealing with a predictable slate of demands on your time: setting compensation and budgets; managing details associated with the latest departure; and interviewing this week’s lateral prospect. All important activities, and worthy of serious attention; but none of these is likely to make the firm
