It only took being blindsided by a global pandemic to finally impress upon Big Law the importance of trimming the fat. The sudden onset of the pandemic forced law firms to quickly make cuts they otherwise wouldn’t have dreamed of. Many of those measures now seem like they were long overdue.  But the real challenge now is figuring out how to keep the weight off.  Bruce McLean notes that the caution that prevailed when the pandemic first struck is prevailing for 2021.  People believe the economic situation will be quite similar.

Collecting on legal bills during the COVID-19 pandemic hasn’t been easy, but fueled by a desire to fill their coffers with cash, many firms are willing to give discounts in exchange for quick payment this year. Mary K. Young observes that law firms are often providing temporary discounts or allowing slower payments in order to maintain strong ties. For important, strategic clients, it’s necessary for the relationship partner to have conversations with clients about their cash flow. And It could be another six months, or it could be 2022, before rates and billing arrangements return to normal.

At the Legal Marketing Association Annual Conference, Mary K Young will moderate a panel discussion focusing on management strategies employed by some the of fastest growing law firms. 

This interactive session will highlight three successful firms and the strategies they employ to deliver results that outperform most other firms even when faced with extraordinary challenges.  The panelists will discuss:

• Techniques these firms use to drive revenue per lawyer (RPL) growth
• The strategies, methods, and approaches that differentiate these firms from others, particularly in light of the current downturn
• The role these leaders play in driving strategies that work and how they create buy-in with internal stakeholders to execute their firms’ strategies
• Advice and tips these trailblazers would offer to their LMA peers who are looking to do the same within their firms

2:30 – 3:15 p.m.

October 21, 2020

For more information or to register for the conference, visit LMA Annual Conference.

Zeughauser Group's 2020 Pocket Guide to the American Lawyer Rankings of the Am Law 200 by Profits Per Equity Partner and by Value Per Lawyer; The A-List; The Global 100; The Global 200; The China 45; The Asia 50; and The Corporate Scorecard.

You can download the ZGuide here.

If you would like a hard copy of the 2020 ZGuide, please send an email to zgadmin@consultzg.com with "2020 ZGuide Request" in the subject line and provide your mailing address.

While many underperforming law firms can often squeak by with a deficient number of rainmakers who bring in clients or with unwanted attrition, these weaknesses are now more of a liability to the business as firms tighten their belts during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.  Kent Zimmerman sees a common thread running through these types of firms: they are either under-scaled or under-profitable relative to their competitors — or both.  In addition, underperforming firms sometimes lack a big enough bench of next-generation stars and have upcoming leaders who question whether the business has the balance and resilience to compete on a long-term basis.  Another similarity of these firms, Zimmermann mentions, is over-capacity — having too many people and not enough work.

Alex Dimitrief writes that business, legal and governance journals are replete with articles illustrating how crises reveal the true character of companies and their leaders. The COVID-19 pandemic and social unrest sparked by deadly police brutality against minorities confirm that this adage holds just as true when it comes to a company’s commitment to environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues.

The Paycheck Protection Program was meant to be a short-term boost to help sustain businesses and workers through the immediate uncertainty of the coronavirus crisis. But the pandemic shows no signs of ending soon, and midsize law firm leaders are seeking to stabilize and plan for what comes next.  Mary K Young observes that revenues for most firms appear to be down 8% to 10% compared with expectations—a substantial drop-off, but not quite as drastic as some of the most distressing projections being tossed about this spring. She suggests that PPP loans should be considered simply as one component of a firm’s annual revenue for 2020. According to Young, building a manageable budget is no easy task with so many open questions swirling around the economy, but the approach is simple: hope for the best, plan for the worst.

Recent criminal charges against former eBay employees show how bad things can get when employees are not encouraged to step forward and report unethical behaviors. In this article, Alex Dimitrief says employees are motivated to raise concerns when leaders set positive examples and unequivocally welcome the scrutiny of principled investigations of alleged misconduct at senior levels, the polar opposite of the Trump administration’s firing of inspectors general and unseating of the U.S. Attorney in New York.

In 2019, 28% of respondents to a survey by the Corporate Legal Operations Consortium said they shifted more work in-house, compared with 20% who outsourced more legal work.  Industry experts predict this trend will continue long after the pandemic crisis wanes because of cost savings and the increasing sophistication of corporate teams.  Alex Dimitrief sees this trend as an opportunity for firm leaders to hone in on specialized work where they can deliver great value to in-house departments in a way that isn't cost ineffective to a company.

Kirkland & Ellis has brought in nearly $100 million this year representing distressed retailers and other large, public companies in a rash of mostly pandemic-related bankruptcies. The firm represents the debtor in 11 of 24 large, public bankruptcies this year.  Kent Zimmerman observes that there’s a widely held perception that Kirkland has one of the best restructuring practices in the world. The high demand for the firm's bankruptcy practice is another example of how it can really pay off to be among the best in chosen areas of focus.