Am Law 100's New Metric: Value Per Lawyer
July 28, 2005
For 20 years, The American Lawyer has measured the economics of law firms, first with The Am Law 50 and 75, more recently with The Am Law 200. Throughout, we've kept to the same metrics: gross, revenue per lawyer, profits per partner, and the Am Law Profitability Index (API). These lists helped inform and change the profession. (Note that we didn't say ruin.) We published them again this month with one significant addition that we think reflects the changed nature of the business of law: Value Per Lawyer (VPL).
Collective Bargaining for Legal Fees?
July 28, 2005
For almost a year, lawyers from eight of the largest corporations in the country have been meeting and exchanging information. The group, which first came together last fall, includes in-house attorneys from Cisco Systems Inc., E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Co., FMC Technologies Inc., General Motors Corp. and Microsoft Corp. Together they oversee a collective annual legal budget exceeding $1 billion.
Court Watch
July 28, 2005
Highlights of the latest franchising cases from around the country.
Cross-Border Disputes and the Potential for Resolution via Mediation
June 29, 2005
The world is rapidly becoming a smaller place in which to do business. And as international borders and boundaries become less of a barrier to business, participants in equipment leasing and finance find their world getting smaller, as well. "Globalization" is now an accepted and well-understood concept in most industries and markets, and it is no longer limited to large multinational corporations or institutions. With suppliers, vendors, and customers in many countries on several continents, all linked through the omnipresent Web and Internet, even small, independent businesses may successfully operate across borders.
Best Practices of Cross Marketing and Selling New Services To Clients
June 28, 2005
Cross selling is an elusive goal for law firms. The idea is simple: To interest clients that are using one practice area in using a second or third area. But the devil is in the details, and most cross-selling plans fail as soon as they meet one of several common objections. <br>As a result, to paraphrase Mark Twain, everyone talks about cross selling, but nobody is doing anything about it.
Real Property Law
June 28, 2005
Recent rulngs of importance to you and your practice.
The Dangers Of Electronic Discovery
June 28, 2005
The <i>Morgan Stanley</i> case is the most recent example of the perils that corporate defendants face in the era of e-discovery. Electronic evidence, and especially e-mail, now plays a starring role in litigation and investigations involving large corporations, particularly in areas such as employment discrimination, fraud and corporate mismanagement. Judges are increasingly familiar with electronic discovery, and are increasingly willing to impose heavy sanctions on corporations that do not comply with electronic discovery requests. As the Morgan Stanley case shows, the consequences of these sanctions can be dire. It is important, therefore, that companies take heed of the lessons of the Morgan Stanley case, and ensure that they have in place a comprehensive and effective system to recover and produce electronically stored documents.
Perils Of Unfunded Obligations: 4 Key Questions
June 28, 2005
As summarized by <i>A&FP</i> Board member Bill Brennan of Altman Weil, Inc. an "unfunded retirement program" is essentially a promise to pay partners a retirement benefit in the future from the firm's future profits. About 24% of law firms have an unfunded retirement plan (down from 57% in 1990), according to the <i>2005 Retirement and Withdrawal Survey for Private Law Firms</i>, prepared by Altman Weil, Inc. In about 15 years over 30,000 lawyers will be retiring each year. To the extent these partners must be paid retirement benefits from the then-current profits of their respective law firms, those firms unprepared for this potentially huge financial liability will be at risk, and some may not survive.
Unfunded Plans: A More Upbeat View
June 28, 2005
Readers of the accompanying roundtable discussion may find themselves wondering if there's currently anything good to say about unfunded retirement plan obligations. About the only glimmer of hope was the allusion by one discussant (Bill Brennan) to "rare situations" where such plans might be required. <br>Here to speak up for such exceptional situations is Jeff Stevenson, Managing Director of Chicago Consulting Actuaries
A Quick Look At Elite E-Invoicing
June 28, 2005
Since 2003 Haynes and Boone has seen the number of client requests for electronic invoices triple. Now at least 20% of its clients require electronic invoices, which translates into 5,000-6,000 electronic invoices on an annual basis. Some larger clients accept invoices only electronically. <br>Rather than deal with a third party software vendor, Haynes and Boone LLP decided in 2003 to obtain e-billing software from its major accounting software vendor, Thomson Elite
