Arash Homampour’s recent op-ed opens with the phrase, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” Well, the legal system is broken. Disgracefully broken. And in grave need of fixing.
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In my forty six years in law, there’s never been a moment like this.
The moment is uniquely conducive to progress. All firm personnel have just experienced how well different models work. They enjoyed the greater flexibility, they embraced the greater responsibility, and they gained increased confidence in modern technology tools.
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RE-ENTRY PRESENTS AN UNPRECEDENTED OPPORTUNITY FOR LAW FIRMS TO ADVANCE
This is my seventh post about law firms in the Coronavirus Crisis.
“Re-entering” from the crisis offers law firms an unprecedented opportunity to improve themselves. Law firm leaders should take it seriously.
The opportunity derives from several elements.
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This is my sixth post about law firms in the Coronavirus Crisis.
As governments around the US and the world begin to ease restrictions on social interaction, law firms, like all other business entities, are planning for “re-entry.”
When law firms return from the compelled remote working experience, will they return to business as usual? Will the fundamental operating models be the same as before? Or will there be a “new normal”? These are very real, and very important questions all law firm leaders need to answer.
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This is my fourth post on law firms and the Coronavirus Crisis. This week I’ll examine how firms can make themselves stronger in the long term, by actions they take during the crisis.
This post was inspired by a question Bob Ambrogi asked me on his show, Law Insights, earlier this month: “Do you think there are any silver linings in this crisis,” he asked. I answered yes and offered a couple of brief examples.
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This is my third post about law firms in the Coronavirus Crisis. Last week I addressed leadership. Today I turn to management.
Managing during this crisis will be challenging and mission critical. It will require leaders to draw on their experience and imaginations to adapt pre-existing strategic and operational plans to guide radically changed circumstances. The firm still intends to go where it was going, but it needs to deal with a new set of challenges on its way.
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The Coronavirus Crisis is unlike any other in our lifetimes. As I wrote last week, how law firm leaders perform their duties will make a big difference in how their firms, and all who depend on them, fare.
What law firm leaders need to do can be short handed into three categories: Lead, Manage, and Learn. This week I will address the first of these.
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We suddenly find ourselves in a dire and unexpected crisis. A lethal, novel virus is spreading like wildfire around the world, leading to social policy decisions that radically change the way we work and live, which in turn are wreaking havoc with the world economy and financial markets, and having other grave consequences.
I have decided to devote Legal Services Today for the next few weeks to discussing how law firms work through this crisis and prepare for what follows. Law firms are the dimension of legal services I know best, having spent a quarter century leading one. In that time we confronted some very challenging times, though none as challenging as this one.
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This week I want to examine four core values that I believe enable effective legal service and promote public confidence, and their implications for our future.
In almost all discussions of the future of law we focus on change. What we need to do differently. That is because we can and must do better. A very healthy outlook.
But, as we make changes, we should never lose sight of what enables clients and the public to have confidence in law and our justice system. Those core values can be our guide as we decide how and what we change.
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We really need to stop using the term “non-lawyer” to refer to everyone who works in legal services who has not passed the bar exam.
This issue is much more than a word choice. At best it is careless. At worst it reflects a lack of respect for the contributions that half the people in legal services make. Either way, we should put an end to the use of the term.
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In my first post on Legal Services Today, I wrote that, while we have a great legal system, it can and must do better. Nearly every observer agrees that law has not kept pace with advances in technology and process design the way other businesses and professions have.
I listed three reasons law is not more modern. This week, I address one of those reasons : the unduly restrictive rules governing the practice of law.
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8500 PROFESSIONALS FROM ACROSS THE LEGAL SERVICE ECOSYSTEM CAME TOGETHER FOR A WEEK OF LEARNING, SHARING, AND NETWORKING
I participated in Legalweek 2020 in New York last week, co-chairing the Legal Business Strategy Program with Gina Passarella, Editor in Chief of the American Lawyer. It was a exceptional experience.
Here is my report:
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THE TRADITIONAL MODEL WILL CHANGE IN FIVE FUNDAMENTAL WAYS
I wrote last week about law firms’ increased focus on innovation, the market forces behind it, and why it is important to the overall modernization of legal services.
I believe this innovation effort will inexorably lead to five fundamental changes in the law firm business model. Each change will have an impact on the others; once one changes, the others will necessarily adapt.
Here’s how I think it will work:
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Law firms across the country are taking steps to innovate the way they organize themselves and serve their clients. This trend promises to be more than a passing fancy because it is driven by demands from corporate clients , as well as increasing competition from new entrants in the legal services market.
This development matters beyond the interests of the law firms.
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No one in the last two decades has contributed more to the discussion and examination of how legal services can be modernized than Richard. He is a prolific writer, having written numerous best-selling and ground-breaking books, and one of the most popular speakers in the world of law, having spoken in more than 50 countries. To both his writing and his speaking, Richard brings an uncommonly effective way of connecting with people: he is clear, concise, and entertaining. And, of course, he knows what he’s talking about.
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First things first
I am delighted to launch Legal Services Today. I am grateful for the assistance of Kevin O’Keefe and the entire team at Lex Blog for their support in getting this new blog up and running.
As the name suggests, this blog will focus on how legal services are delivered. More particularly, it will focus on two main ideas: (1) how the law works and (2) how we can make it work better for everyone.
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It is time to stop using the term “non-lawyer” to refer to everyone who works in legal service who has not passed the bar exam. This may seem like a minor issue to some, but it is not. In fact, it reflects an outlook that impedes the ability of our profession to make the changes we need to make.
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When I was a boy, I dreamed of being a lawyer. I wanted to be Perry Mason—cross examining witnesses until they admitted they were guilty and my innocent clients were exonerated. My dream came true; I might not have been Perry Mason, but I had a long and rewarding career as a lawyer advising and defending clients.
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As we’ve observed on this blog, the anticipated “paradigm shift” in legal service is proceeding much slower than most observers expected. It is proceeding and eventually will occur, but it is still moving at a relative snail’s pace.
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