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Is Your Law Department “Old Normal” or “New Normal”? See the ABA’s Checklist

Editors — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 08:36:18 +0000

Is your law department part of the ‘New Normal’? Where do the law firms you use stand?

When we first started this series, there were many lawyers who thought the New Normal was overdue, others who thought it had already happened, and perhaps still a majority who thought law was just in a short-term blip and that we would “return to (the Old) Normal.” Now, several years in, I think there is widespread agreement that things are changing in law, and even general agreement on the contours of that change.

[via: Is Your Firm or Legal Department ‘Old Normal’ or ‘New Normal’? See Our Checklist at the ABA Journal]

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In-house counsel discuss best practices in managing international business

Editors — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 07:37:55 +0000

How is your law department managing international business?

The globalization of corporate America is nothing new. Over the years, more and more companies have begun to extend their businesses outside of the U.S., and it’s no surprise that the expansion has led to unique challenges for legal departments.

[via: In-house counsel discuss best practices in managing international business at InsideCounsel]

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Things that do not work to promote knowledge management in legal departments

Editors — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 09:20:06 +0000

Knowledge management in legal departments – is your company making the same mistakes as others?

Reid G. Smith, who is currently Enterprise Content Management Director and IT Upstream Services Manager, Marathon Oil, published several years ago a list of non-starters for knowledge management initiatives in law departments.

[via: Things that do not work to promote knowledge management in legal departments at the Law Department Management Blog]

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In-House Counsel Working to Maximize Outside Counsel Value

Editors — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 12:56:03 +0000

As corporate law departments continue feeling pressure from management to justify costs, performance metrics for outside counsel matter as much as relationships with firms.

[via: In-House Counsel Working to Maximize Outside Counsel Value at CorpCounsel]

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In-House Lawyers Gaining the Upper Hand, Says ACC

Editors — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 09:49:22 +0000

It should come as no surprise to Law Blog readers that these days corporate clients—not law firms—are increasingly calling the shots in the at-times contentious relationship between big law firms and the companies they service. From demands for discounts, using online auctions to select firms, hiring law grads straight out of school, or simply moving more legal work in house, general counsel are pushing back on their outside lawyers. A new survey out Wednesday from the Association of Corporate Counsel offers ample proof of how things have changed over five years: budgets for in-house legal departments are up, external spending on litigation is down, and so on and so forth. Last year the industry group surveyed in-house lawyers from 4,161 companies, mostly in the U.S., and compared their responses with those given in a 2006 census. Among the “several striking results” ACC noted (attributable in large part, the group said, to the 2008 financial crisis and the ensuing recession): “The beginnings of a power shift from large law firms to in-house law departments” The shift “will become more significant over time” if economic conditions do not change The census found declines in use of outside counsel for tax issues (20% use them, vs. 30% in 2006), mergers and acquisitions (28%, vs. 35% in 2006) and even in litigation, where firms have traditionally relied heavily on outside law firms. Of the in-house lawyers polled, 65% use outside firms for litigation, compared with 69% in 2006. Some other big numbers: In-house legal department’s budgets are up more than 20 percent (excluding the cost of litigation). 37% of general counsel planned to hire more staff in 2011 Half of respondents use outside counsel for almost all their litigation, but two-thirds use outside lawyers less than 30% of the time for transaction matters And for those considering the jump from Biglaw to in-house—compensation for some in-house lawyers is on the rise. In 2011 22% earned more than $300,000. That’s not much, compared to the $1 million or so many equity partners make at big New York law firms. But get this: 82% of the corporate counsel surveyed work between 40 to 60 hours per week. Lifestyle change, anyone?

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The largest law departments among U.S. companies in the Fortune 500

Editors — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 11:30:22 +0000

Law department management guru Rees Morrison discusses some stats on the largest law departments in the Fortune 500.

[via: The largest law departments among U.S. companies in the Fortune 500 at the Law Department Management Blog]

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Successful General Counsel Succession Planning

Editors — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 10:07:22 +0000

General counsel succession planning – has your company done any? For in-housers looking to move up, do you have what it takes to fit into that plan?

With increased scrutiny coming from both shareholders and federal regulators, companies can no longer dodge the succession question. You need to have your house in order, and that includes making sure you have the right people leading the legal team. GCs need to help define the criteria for the GC position, identify internal and/or external candidates, select their successor, and groom them to take over.

[via: Successful General Counsel Succession Planning at CorpCounsel]

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Difficult boss? Challenges for in-house counsel

Editors — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 14:54:48 +0000

It's no secret that bosses can be difficult people. So why would in-house counsel think they are immune from having one? On the flip side, if you supervise others, have you ever been surprised to learn that your direct reports consider you to be difficult (and you don’t)?Being “difficult” can be in the eye of the beholder, with many shades and meanings. It can be good for direct reports and the organization, when change requires a forceful approach. When a supervising attorney is a "bad boss," it can have disastrous consequences.If you're a difficult boss, consider these strategies and reminders:Control your difficult side.Make sure you're in control of your difficult side. It’s one thing to be tough and demanding, to get the best out of your team. But if you have a difficult nature that results from bad habits, you have work to do on improving your own competencies.Be comfortable with your responsibilities.At times, being a tough boss comes with the territory. As leadership authors Hill and Lineback write, it takes “courage to make hard decisions or take tough actions, such as giving difficult feedback, denying a promotion to someone who's good but not good enough, . . . or even laying off people when the economy goes bad.”The First Requirement for Becoming a Great Boss.Candor helps.So while there is no need to apologize (although it might help), be as candid as you can with your team or impacted direct reports. They should appreciate your explanation and openness about the company’s problems, the demands of your job, or a personal issue. Then watch themrise to the occasion.Be clear.If your toughness is directed at changing the competencies of a direct report, make sure you have been clear as to what you're trying to accomplish. Change management is an art-form for which there are few short cuts. If you're at the point that you need to be difficult, your direct report should understand how serious this is. If you’re being passively aggressive because you don’t have the patience for change management, you’re unlikely to succeed.Be "perfectly assertive."With a little fine-tuning, you may be able to turn your difficult nature into the desired competency of assertiveness.As Bob Sutton writes:"Being just assertive enough, while not easy for any boss, is one of the most important features of a good one. . . . the best bosses get the balance right on any given day, and in myriad interactions with their followers, peers, and own bosses."The Delicate Art of Being Perfectly Assertive.It may be you.And then there’s the possibility that your difficult behavior is known to everyone but you. Paraphrasing Bob Sutton, you may have "aflawed and incomplete understanding of what it feels like to work for [you]."12 Things Good Bosses Believe.Seek (and be open to) feedback. Hopefully, your organization or direct reports will have the courage to give you feedback, and you'll be open to it. If you've just received this feedback in a 360 evaluation, take a deep breath and handle it well.Bouncing Back from a Negative 360-Degree Review.If you're not getting that feedback, you may "need courage just to seek" it "and even more to digest and take action based on it."The First Requirement for Becoming a Great Boss. Another good read on this topic isSeeing Yourself as Others See You.You may have some homework to do, but taming your difficult self will go a long way toward your being the best atLeadingInHouse.smThis summary was prepared by Perry Cone and posted at LeadingInHouse.com.Legal Notice and Disclaimer

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14 Outside Counsel Rules by In-House Counsel

Editors — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 11:07:02 +0000

Steve Boutwell, Director of Client Services at Kean Miller in Baton Rouge, posted “In-house Insight: Outside Counsel Rules to Live By”. A concise list that most in-house counsel will agree with – and could potentially add to!

[via 14 Rules by In-House Counsel for Law Firms : Larry Bodine Law Marketing Blog.]

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Futurist tells in-house counsel to rethink legal service delivery

Editors — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 09:55:05 +0000

Looking for ideas on re-inventing legal service delivery? Check out this recent article at Canadian Lawyer Magazine:

If you were given a blank sheet of paper and asked to design your in-house legal department from scratch, what would it look like? That’s a question posed by futurist and author Richard Susskind, to a group of about 50 in-house counsel during a Canadian Corporate Counsel Association Master Class yesterday in Toronto.

[via Futurist tells in-house to rethink service delivery | Canadian Lawyer Legal Feeds]

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Clear Data on Rising Law Firm Rates as Firms Get Larger

Editors — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 10:06:40 +0000

Want to know where law firm rates are going as law firms get larger? Rees Morrison has some data over at the Law Department Management Blog.

[via: Clear data on the rising rates of law firms as they grow larger at the Law Department Management Blog]

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A record 829 law departments in the Fifth Release of GC Metrics’ Law Department Benchmarking Survey (Get Yours!)

Editors — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 11:44:31 +0000

Big Data for law departments – in this latest release of GC Metrics’ law department benchmarking survey:

The Fifth Release of the GC Metrics global benchmark survey will go out this week to 829 participating law departments. That is a record increase of 24 from last year. There are now 27 industries detailed.

[via: A record 829 law departments in the Fifth Release of GC Metrics’ benchmark survey – and you can get it at the Law Department Management Blog]

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Apple Handles Anobit Acquisition In-House

Editors — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 12:30:20 +0000

Who needs Biglaw when you can handle a M&A deal in-house?

Three months after the death of cofounder Steve Jobs, Apple has confirmed the purchase of Israeli flash memory storage company Anobit Technologies, one of the largest acquisitions in the Cupertino, California–based company’s history.

[via: Apple Handles Hardware Maker Acquisition In-House at the American Lawyer]

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An in-your-face-firm view of what law departments ought not to be charged for

Editors — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 13:33:54 +0000

Is your law department paying for things it should not be? Cost containment will be a key driver in 2012:

“Whatever does not add tangible value to client projects is overhead that clients should not be directly or indirectly paying for.” That was the aggressive tagline on a slide by Lee Cheng, the general counsel of Newegg.

[via: An in-your-face-firm view of what law departments ought not to be charged for at the Law Department Management Blog]

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MIPS Technologies’ General Counsel Does Big Work with a Small In-house Team

Editors — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 10:21:26 +0000

A brief taste of in-house work in 1995 led to Gail Shulman’s 12-year career at MIPS Technologies, culminating in her promotion to general counsel in 2009.

[via: MIPS Technologies' GC Does Big Work with a Small In-house Team at CorpCounsel]

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General Counsel Issues for 2012

Editors — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 12:25:44 +0000

CorpCounsel surveyed 107 general counsel and some of their deputies at U.S. companies about general counsel issues for 2012. Their responses suggest that there were many challenging issues.

[via: General Counsel on Their Issues for 2012 at CorpCounsel]

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Still Time to Join 800 Law Departments For the Final Release of General Counsel Metrics LLC’s Survey

Editors — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 15:07:02 +0000

Release 4 of their survey goes out this week, bulging with key benchmark metrics from 740 law departments. That marks quite a jump from 530 legal departments in October’s Release 3. Many more will take part in this epic benchmarking effort before it closes in January. There is no cost and only six pieces of data need to be entered on the secure online survey: your staffing numbers, internal and external legal spend, and revenue.

Companies that take part will also be eligible for two exciting products to be announced early next year. GC Metrics will send them Insights, an innovative report on matter management systems, as well as findings from the combination of two years of data – more than 1,200 law departments!

Click here to take General Counsel Metric’s seven-minute survey and receive your report of 65 pages in mid-January. It will cover at least 24 industries.

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Law Department Spending is Up

Law.com — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 07:19:48 +0000

Law department spending survey indicates a majority of chief legal officers increased internal and external budgets in the past year.

[via: IN-HOUSE COUNSEL: In law departments, spending ticks up at the National Law Journal]

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Canadian Lawyer Magazine Survey points to more work for Law Departments

Editors — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 10:17:30 +0000

The results of the Canadian Lawyer magazine’s recent survey are out – and it looks like the trend towards more work for law departments is continuing:

Once again in this issue, we share the results of the annual Canadian Lawyer corporate counsel survey, which gauges the relationship between in-house counsel and their outside legal service providers. It’s not surprising that one of our main findings is that the economy, and its current state of instability, is having an effect on corporate law departments.

[via More work for in-house departments | Canadian Lawyer Magazine]

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The role of the General Counsel in creating a successful PR strategy

Editors — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 09:09:00 +0000

If you are a general counsel, you know that crisis management is key to your role in your company. The question is – are you prepared to handle a crisis when it hits?

It’s 9 o’clock on Monday morning and you’re greeted by a swarm of reporters standing outside your office door, demanding answers. Inside, a crisis is brewing that no one is equipped to handle; within hours, it spins out of control.

[via The general counsel's role in creating a successful PR strategy]

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Startup Analyzes Corporate Law Department Spending

Editors — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 15:39:23 +0000

Technology startup Sky Analytics opened its law department spending benchmarking service for corporate legal departments this week, with a focus on simplicity.

[via: Startup Analyzes Corporate Legal Department Spending at CorpCounsel]

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Get General Counsel Metrics, LLC’s Law Department Benchmarking Release 4.0 based on 900+ participants at No Cost in December

Editors — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 16:37:14 +0000

Learn your five key law department benchmarking metrics: get General Counsel Metrics’ Release 4.0 based on 900+ participants at no cost in December. There is no charge for anything and you will receive the 70-page PDF report by e-mail in mid-December.

Paste the survey link https://novisurvey.net/n/4ka.aspx into your browser and answer as many as you can of the six law department benchmarking questions:

- the number of your lawyers, paralegals, and other staff broken out as of Dec. 31, 2010;

- your internal and external legal spend during fiscal 2010; and

- your company’s revenue during fiscal 2010.

Compare your law department’s metrics within your industry. Here are the participant numbers from Release 3.0 in each industry:

Aerospace 15; Business Services 23; Construction/Engineering 14; Consumer Products 22; Education 8; Energy 25; Extractive/Mining/Chemicals 21; Fin. Services 43; Food & Beverage 27; Healthcare 17; Insurance 21; Leisure/Entertainment/Media 13; Manufacturing 83; Medical Devices 22; Not for Profit/Gov’t; 13; Pharma 10; Retail 26; Technology 43; Telecomm 23; Transportation 22; and Utilities 16.

About one-quarter each of the law departments are in companies with revenue up to $214 million; from $218 million to $1.25 billion; $1.26 to $4.6 billion; and greater than $4.6 billion.

Please write Rees Morrison if you have any questions at rees [at] reesmorrison.com.

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Chubb’s Inhouse Counsel Insurance Helps Protect In-House Attorneys

Editors — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 09:46:37 +0000

A new policy from the Chubb Group of Insurance Companies helps protect the personal assets of in-house attorneys. Inhouse counsel insurance is something law departments should look into and discuss with their corporate risk managers – especially as in-house counsel are increasingly becoming targets in litigation and governmental investigations:

Employed Lawyers Professional Liability by ChubbSM offers in-house attorneys and their employers broad protection against allegations of legal malpractice stemming from the services provided by in-house counsel for activities such as the review of shareholder communications and the issuance of legal opinions to the board of directors. Coverage is provided for judgments, settlements and defense costs. It also extends to civil penalties leveled against in-house counsel under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.

[via Chubb Helps Protect In-House Attorneys from Allegations of Malpractice.]

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Alternative Fee Arrangements Can Reveal Untapped Opportunities

Editors — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 11:20:37 +0000

Reed Smith’s Tom Baldwin and Andrew Baker note that meeting the challenges of alternative fee arrangements and client requests requires a quintessential “team effort.”

[via: Rethinking Fee Arrangements Can Reveal Untapped Opportunities at CorpCounsel]

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Legal Secretaries Prefer Working With Men, Survey Finds

Editors — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 10:32:23 +0000

Politics and religion aren’t the only minefields of polite conversation. You’d probably also be wise to steer clear of talking about gender roles in the workplace, if you’re trying to keep things light. But let’s go there anyway. As LB has written in the past , a study by Felice Batlan , a Chicago-Kent law professor, found that legal secretaries “prefer not to work for women associates or partners.” Now, according to an article in the ABA Journal, the survey has been published and the final percentages in the study are pretty stark: Not one legal secretary surveyed preferred working with a female partner, and only 3% said they preferred working with a female associate. To be fair, 47% of the 142 legal secretaries surveyed — 95% of whom were women — expressed no opinion on the matter. Thirty-five percent said they preferred working for male partners, and 15% preferred male associates. Most of those surveyed were middle-aged and had considerable experience, ABA Journal said. The survey is the subject of an article in Studies in Law, Politics, and Society by Felice Batlan , who recently spoke at the South Carolina Women Lawyers Association conference. Some of the secretaries indicated they didn’t like working for woman because they were too independent, while others commented that female attorneys were harder on their assistants, ABA Journal noted. “Too emotional” came up in more than one comment from respondents. Batlan writes that the legal secretaries’ attitudes about women attorneys could be influenced by societal expectations. “For a woman to serve a man is an arrangement that conforms to and reproduces dominant and traditional, although contested and changing, gender arrangements,” she writes. “Gender structures tell men that they are entitled to women’s help and that women are supposed to freely give it.” She also suggests that legal secretaries want to work for those in power in law firms, which are typically still men. “You’d have to be deaf, dumb and blind not to notice the strict hierarchy in all law firms,” Victoria Pynchon writes in Forbes, commenting on Batlan’s recent presentation. Batlan’s survey also found that 71% of respondents said the recession affected their jobs, and 81% said their firm had laid off secretaries. Most worked a 30-40 hour week, and 67% said they felt respected by the attorneys.

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IBM legal department hires straight from law school and locates half its lawyers outside the U.S.

Editors — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 13:45:30 +0000

Law students rejoice – the IBM legal department is hiring straight out of law school – and half its lawyers are outside of the US. Could a law student start their career in a sunny tropical locale?

[via: IBM hires straight from law school and locates half its lawyers outside the U.S. at the Law Department Management Blog]

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Legal Cost Containment – No Payment for Work by 1st Years

Editors — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 08:33:23 +0000

Legal cost containment doesn’t just mean giving your in-house team more work:

Corporate legal departments are beginning to take a hard line on costs these days, and one of the first places they’re cracking down is in paying for the high hourly costs of first- and second-year law firm associates.

[via: Corporate legal departments refusing to pay for work by first-year associates at InsideCounsel]

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Most Popular Document Management Systems in Large Legal Departments

Editors — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 12:30:27 +0000

What are the most popular document management systems in large legal departments? Head over to Rees Morrison’s LawDepartmentManagementBlog for the answer.

[via: Most-cited document management systems (DMSs) in large legal departments at the Law Department Management Blog]

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5 tips to maximize insurance coverage for legal fees

Editors — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 10:29:44 +0000

Knowing your insurer’s defense duty can help increase the value of their insurance.

[via: 5 tips to maximize insurance coverage for legal fees at InsideCounsel]

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Legal Department Spending Increases 6% at Expense of BigLaw

Editors — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 11:21:10 +0000

Legal department spending is on the rise – at the expense of BigLaw.

[via: Corporate Legal Department Spend Increases 6% as Clients Boost In-House Capabilities at the ABA Journal]

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