Remember the game called Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon? It is a reference to six degrees of separation, a concept that posits that any two people on Earth are six or fewer acquaintance links apart.
Since the beginning of the 21st century, law firm pricing has evolved significantly. Clients demanded alternatives to the billable hour, and firms responded by introducing new pricing models for their existing services, including fixed fee structures, capped fees, partial contingency arrangements and fixed monthly budgets, among others. Pricing firm services, which was never a simple task, became even more complicated.
Let’s start with the calendar, where many attorneys start their day. Many firms still rely on Outlook for daily calendaring, but Outlook is not designed to meet the special needs of attorneys.
During your trial, take time to understand what resources are available to you.
As you know all too well, the hallmark traits of a perfect paralegal are detail-oriented, organized, and efficient. On the days when your self-confidence is waning (we all have them), you may think that your semi-administrative role is designed only to serve and support. You may believe that you cannot play a significant role in your firm’s success on those down days because, well, you’re not a lawyer.
The more proficient your employees become at using existing and newly acquired software, the more productive and profitable your firm will become.
Every business partner, no matter the size or how often they are utilized, must be transparent, ethical, competent and communicative.
Whether you’re a fully vested equity partner, on the path to partnership, or preparing to make your case for it, you have an opportunity to make a lasting impact. Earning equity status reflects your legal accomplishments, but it also signals a new kind of responsibility. Now, the success of the law firm as a business becomes part of your role.
Just because you’re a few rungs from the top of your law firm’s ladder doesn’t mean that you cannot make a significant contribution.
Alternative Legal Service Providers (ALSPs) are transforming how we think about the practice of law. While the ALSP market started by offering lower-cost services to the lower-value end of the legal industry, the market has grown and expanded during the last six years to a total of nearly $14 billion. According to Thomson Reuters Institute Report on the ALSP market about 79% of law firms and 70% of corporate law departments are using ALSPs. Many of these law firms are using outside ALSPs like e-discovery to remain competitive and efficient. Others have responded to the perceived threat by creating their captive units using ALSP models.