Lawyers: Being Paid Shouldn't Be Like Pulling Teeth!
May 01, 2019
<b><i>What Lawyers Can Learn From Dentists</b></i><p>Nobody enjoys visiting the dentist, but everybody knows you still must pay him or her on the day of service. Attorneys, however, have historically let the client lead the payment dance. Lawyers do the work and hope/expect to be paid without waiting too long or discounting the invoice too steeply. What can we do differently?
Law Firm Mergers and the Economic Outlook for 2019
April 01, 2019
As law firms endeavor to survive in an increasingly competitive world, one strategy picking up steam is the law firm merger. In this article, we recap law firm merger activity in 2018 and consider the economic outlook for law firm mergers for 2019.
IRS Issues New Plan 457(f) Non-Profit Exam Guidelines
April 01, 2019
Planning for executive benefits for top hat employees at non-profit organizations has undergone a frenzy of regulatory roadmap changes. Nonprofit NonQualified Benefits are largely directed and controlled by IRC §457.
Clients Drive Information Governance: Business Benefits Flow to Firm
April 01, 2019
Information governance and the protection of corporate data are top concerns for law firms. To ensure standards are met, some clients are now tying payment to compliance with Outside Counsel Guidelines (OCG). OCG have moved from guidelines to actual contracts that provide for indemnification of the client for cyber breach and violation of privacy laws.
Sales Speak: Overcoming the Doer-Seller Dilemma
April 01, 2019
<b><i>Rethinking Sales As an Act of Service</b></i><p>Lawyers are one of only a handful of professionals whose job requires them both to do the work and generate the business. This “Doer-Seller” Dilemma is particularly vexing for lawyers because of a long-held belief that sales is somehow beneath the legal profession and because lawyers have a limited view of what successful selling looks like.
Creating a Culture of Intelligence
April 01, 2019
We hear about the ongoing cost pressures clients face, which force in-house counsel to do more with less, and the pressures on outside counsel to provide greater efficiencies and cost predictability. We also hear that clients hate to be cross-sold. However, this does not mean that clients are not interested to be introduced to new colleagues who can provide insight.