Three decades of data reveal common threads from Finley Kumble to LeClairRyan. What can be learned from the history of law firm failures?  Mary K Young observes that external factors, including a recession, can accelerate a firm’s demise, but typically are not at the root of its problems. Young says firm leaders have to stay in touch with their clients and stakeholders, never losing track of what those people want. They need a vision for where the firm will go next.

When Dentons recently announced its bold plan to build “the first national law firm” in the U.S., Greenberg Traurig’s leaders scoffed, pointing out that their firm had already done that. If by “national law firm” Dentons meant achieving geographic scale—which is what it suggested when it noted that none of the nation’s top 10 full-service law firms has offices in all 20 of the largest U.S. markets—then it had a point. Mary K Young discusses the options for the structure of a growing firm—traditional growth versus a verein—and the central question of which model provides for smoother collaboration between disparate geographies.

Zeughauser Group's survey of D.C. law firm leaders indicates optimism despite more competition. Over 58% of firms were approached about a combination, but only some would consider it. Law firm leaders agree competition for talent and clients is tightening in Washington, but they’re optimistic about their businesses and many are committed to growth in the nation’s capital, a Zeughauser Group survey shows.

The new report by the law firm management consultancy group surveyed managing partners and other senior leaders of Washington firms ranging in size from less than 10 to roughly 150 attorneys over the first half of 2019.

This report summarizes the findings of Zeughauser Group's survey of managing partners and other senior leaders of Washington DC law firms.  The firms ranged in size from less than 10 to nearly 150 attorneys, and the findings are based on the contributions of 36 respondents.  The objective of the survey was to learn about the outlook that respondents have for the future, including the nature and extent of their growth aspirations.  The survey was conducted in the first half of 2019.

In this podcast, Kent Zimmermann shares insights on recent large law firm mergers, what the components of a successful law firm merger are, why plaintiffs choose to pursue US-based lawsuits, how to develop relationships with reporters and to be quoted in the news and media, and what makes an effective managing partner and law firm leader.

Are law firm marketing executives missing the mark in how they engage with in-house counsel about their firms? That’s one potential takeaway from a new survey released Thursday by public relations firm Greentarget and co-sponsored by legal consulting firm Zeughauser Group. The report highlights the ways in-house counsel can diverge from their companies’ C-suites when it comes to how they consume and value marketing. But for law firms, the bigger lesson may be how their own CMOs could be targeting clients more effectively. Peter Zeughauser suggests that an apparent mismatch in how clients and CMOs view social media may have more to do with marketers’ media savvy than with a fundamental difference in how executives consume information

Results of our survey conducted in partnership with Greentarget that focuses on the information consumption attitudes, behaviors and tendencies of in-house counsel. The report includes practical guidance to help law firms compete for greater share of voice among corporate legal departments.

Three old-line Texas corporate law firms – Gardere, Andrews Kurth, and Strasburger & Price - each merged with a larger national law firm in April 2018. Fifteen months later, leaders at all three say their marriages have gone better than they expected.

Marketing can and should be a critical partner in the strategic planning process from inception to implementation. The goal of every law firm should be leadership status in the markets in which it has chosen to compete. Most law firms recognize that they need strategic plans to help them achieve their leadership aspirations. Mary K Young discusses strategic planning as a process through which the firm identifies its most important markets, agrees to a vision for achieving leadership in those markets, and develops and implements a plan for achieving the vision. i.e. how a firm decides where it wants to go and how it will get there.