“Biglaw Plods Towards Mastodon’s Fate”

Goodness, gracious, this is a remarkable discussion about the future of big law firms! Thanks to lawyer, author, & blogger Robert J. Ambrogi for highlighting it in Legal Blog Watch:"When the general counsel of a major corporation says that the current model of the large law firm is heading towards extinction, ears perk up throughout the legal industry. That is precisely what happened...

“Delegation Day in the Law Firm”

Found this interesting post at the morepartnerincome blog which is sponsored by Juris,Inc.:"Hildebrandt’s Rees Morrison passes along a simple but clever technique for encouraging attorneys to improve efficiency by finding delegable tasks for non-lawyer members of the team.  The idea comes from the corporate world but should work to everyone’s benefit in a law firm as well. The law...

“Orrick’s Staffing Moves Pay Off — Will Other Firms Follow?”

So, would you want to work in Wheeling, West Virginia? Read all about the separation of staff from lawyers in this article from The Recorder:"When Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe announced it would move scores of support staff to a small industrial town in West Virginia, lawyers inside and out were skeptical of the quality of work and the return on investment. "Five years later, the...

“The Data Boom: Can Law Firms Profit?”

Yeah, oh, yeah! Read how in this Legal Technology article about how MoFo responded when a small client was hit with a huge discovery request:"In the fall of 2005, a small Israeli technology startup came to San Francisco's Morrison & Foerster with a lawsuit -- and, soon enough, a problem. "The stakes weren't particularly high -- just a few million dollars. But after the case was...

Optimize Information Management Operations with Interwoven

Good old index cards are surely not of much use for law firms or legal departments with thosands & thousands of files. Read how Frost Brown Todd upgraded to Interwoven:"...Frost Brown Todd LLC, an AMLAW 200 law firm, has adopted Interwoven Records Manager to enable comprehensive information management. "Combined with Interwoven WorkSite, the industry-leading document management...

“Rise of Paralegals”

Although you must be a paid subscriber to the Dayton Business Journal to read the complete article (& I'm not!), thought the part you can read was interesting:"Betty White has worked as a paralegal for Sebaly Shillito & Dyer's Dayton office for 18 years and has held the managing paralegal position for the past 10. "But White has spent the past two decades doing more than just...

“Is Software the Key to Streamlining HR?”

This Legal Technology article describes the HR challenges in law firms & how various software options makes them manageable. :"Managing human resources is one of the most labor-intensive processes at a law firm. Keeping track of payroll, benefits, leave time and lots of other information is time-consuming and costly. Fortunately, there is plenty of software -- both commercial and...

“MoFo IT Gets Its Green On”

Kudos to Morrison & Foerster for adopting a strong 'green' culture! Find four good ideas in this Legal Technology article: "With 1,070 lawyers in 18 offices throughout the world, Morrison & Foerster has a culture that promotes excellence, diversity, teamwork and social responsibility. Last year, we were selected as one of Fortune magazine's '2006 Best Companies to Work For,' and the...

“National Firms Stake Claim in Phoenix’s Robust Economy”

Hmm, ever thought about moving to Arizona? Sounds like firms in Phoenix are heating up! "It may be a dry heat in Phoenix, but it's also a hot legal market for some national law firms moving into the desert city to take advantage of the region's flourishing economy. "Ranked the fifth-largest city in the nation with 1.5 million people at the center of a metropolitan area of 3.8 million,...

“Boston law firm plans San Diego expansion”

Oh, boy, firms expanding & lawyers changing firms. See the details in this San Diego Union-Tribune news article:"The Boston law firm Goodwin Procter has recruited prominent local biotechnology lawyer Stephen C. Ferruolo to launch an office in San Diego as part of the firm's push into California. "Stephen C. Ferruolo is expected to take much of his client base with him. Ferruolo, 56,...