(312) 781-9000

In-House Counsel at large international companies experience greater satisfaction when working with small or medium sized firms, according to a new survey reported on The American Lawyer. The survey, released by The Lawyer Research Service in collaboration with Globality, found respondents at large global companies are three times more dissatisfied working with larger law firms (19%) than smaller ones (6%).

lawyer, business, office, legal, law, attorney, justice, concept, court, professional, legislation

Of the 71% of respondents that outsource the majority of work to smaller firms, nearly two-thirds (63%) report smaller firms provide better client service and almost half (40%) find smaller firms to be more innovative than traditional Big Law firms. Additionally, companies are becoming increasingly turned off by large firms due to their high prices, with over half of survey respondents saying their primary frustration when working with larger law firms is cost.

“We get better client service from smaller firms. When we instruct larger firms, we are probably one of their smaller customers and just another customer in the long list they already have. If you go to a smaller firm, even with a fairly small legal spend, we can be an important customer to them,” said Ben Woolf, General Counsel EMEA at Tate & Lyle, a U.K.-based multinational agribusiness, in a press release announcing the survey results.

See highlights from the full article on The American Lawyer.

Contact Bill Sugarman for more information.

The American Lawyer reports that there’s plenty to look forward to in 2018, according to partners at two of the largest Am Law 100 firms. DLA Piper co-chair Roger Meltzer, for one, expects a rise in corporate transactional work due to “very robust capital markets” and an increase in M&A, including in the middle market. Ora Fisher, one of two vice chairs at Latham & Watkins and a member of the 2,280-lawyer firm’s executive committee, also expects good times to persist. “Assuming the global economy continues to grow, we see a whole lot of demand for our transactional practices and all the related practices that support them,” Fisher forecasted. In addition to transactional work, Fisher said she expects a rise in demand for complex trial litigation, white-collar criminal defense work, privacy and cybersecurity matters, and financial regulatory work globally (as quoted in The American Lawyer).

city skyline Strett beautify scene people horizon sky clouds buildings skyscraper

See highlights from the full article on The American Lawyer.

Contact Bill Sugarman for more information.

The American Lawyer released a recent article reporting that a number of midsized law firms have doubled down on their commitment to secure, and deepen existing relationships with midmarket clients. According to the article, law firm leaders in the middle market segment, which generally includes businesses with $50 million to $500 million in annual revenue, agree deep-rooted relationships are extremely common among law firms that service midmarket clients.

Group of lawyers smiling.

Law firms with roots in major markets are also finding ways to prosper in middle-market locations. For some midsized firms, including Cozen O’Connor, Ballard Spahr and Fox Rothschild, that has spurred geographic expansion across the country. For others, like McCarter & English and Vorys Sater Seymour & Pease, it has meant doubling down in the region where they already have roots.

“Midmarket companies are normally always in growth mode, so as they’re growing there are opportunities to grow with them and expand the amount and type of work that you’re doing for them. They have the same sophisticated work that larger Fortune 1000 companies may have. The number of zeroes may not be the same, but the sophistication of the work is and the complexity of the matters are,” notes Cozen O’Connor’s CEO, Michael Heller.

ALM journalist, Lizzy McLellan concludes, “the perception of value often attracts midmarket clients to firms with a more affordable rate structure than the very top of the Am Law 100 offers. Sometimes that means a national Am Law 100 firm in the second 50, like Cozen O’Connor or Fox Rothschild. But it can also mean a midsize firm like Pryor Cashman or a regional Am Law 200 firm like McCarter & English.” McCarter & English’s chairman, Michael Kelly, notes “the big expensive firm gives them cover, but I can tell you with no uncertainty that we will do a better job with less cost.”

See highlights from the full article on the American Lawyer.

Contact Bill Sugarman for more information.

The American Lawyer reports on several key trends from this year and what we can expect for the legal industry in 2018. According to the article, key trends that we can expect to continue into 2018 include increases in law firm mergers, lateral moves within groups, and enhancements in legal technology innovation and the business operations of firms.

Remote worker is sitting in cafeteria and having online meeting with clients.

2017 is set to be a record year for U.S. mergers. So far this year, there have been 85 mergers and acquisitions involving U.S. law firms in 2017, according to Altman Weil data—just six shy of the all-time record, set in 2015. But while several large-scale tie-ups hit the headlines, the overwhelming majority of deals in 2017 were extremely small: Over 90 percent involved at least one firm of under 100 lawyers, while more than two-thirds were acquisitions of firms with 10 lawyers or fewer (as quoted in The American Lawyer).

Last year also saw a large number of lateral moves that involved practice groups within targeted geographic markets. “I think there’s more and more pressure to grow breadth and depth, and laterals and groups are a big part of that for many or most firms,” notes Kent Zimmermann, a consultant at The Zeughauser Group.

In 2017, law firms continued adopting legal project management techniques to get a better grip on what matters actually cost. Am Law’s article reports more firms will adopt better pricing tools; legal operations staff will gain power inside legal departments; and the traditional competition for Big Law work will be upended. That won’t happen everywhere all at once next year. But better technology will make the change begin to gather speed. “The entire industry is stuck on the billable hour because it doesn’t understand its unit costs,” says Keith Lipman, President of the legal tech company Prosperoware. “If we get to the point of managing unit cost, law firms can actually get away from the billable hour. So, the faster you collect data to understand that is critical” (as quoted in The American Lawyer).

See highlights from the full article on The American Lawyer.

Please contact Bill Sugarman for more information.

Millennials make up the largest generational group among lawyers at large and midsize firms, according to a report released by ALM Intelligence on Law.com.

Realtor showing a property to a happy couple and pointing away

Data collected by ALM Intelligence reported millennials (ages 18 to 36) now outnumber lawyers from Generation X (ages 37 to 52) and baby boomers (ages 53 to 71) at firms in the Am Law 200 and The National Law Journal’s NLJ 500. According to the report, millennials make up 43 percent of lawyers at nearly 400 of the nation’s top law firms included in ALM’s data. Millennials represent 88 percent of associates and only 5 percent of partners. Generation X lawyers make up 52 percent of partners, and baby boomers make up 40 percent of partners.

“The numbers starkly illustrate the reality facing law firm leaders: Millennials will soon take over the legal profession in sheer numbers—and soon enough they’ll dominate leadership positions and partnerships too,” ALM journalist, Lizzy McLellan reports. “Employing millennials appears to go hand-in-hand with profitability—illustrating how Big Law continues to use rainmakers to land major clients and young lawyers to put in long hours serving them.”

See the full report and article on The American Lawyer.

Please contact Bill Sugarman for more information.

The American Lawyer released its annual New Partners Survey, which included responses from 400 lawyers promoted to firm partnerships in 2015, 2016 or 2017. The report revealed that an overwhelming 88 percent of new partners said their firms adequately prepared them for partnership. Almost 80 percent of new partners who answered the survey said their business development efforts increased, along with their compensation and information they received regarding their firm’s finances.

Statue of Justice and lawyer working on a laptop

The ALM survey this year also found that two-thirds of new partners were elevated into non-equity or income partner roles. About 40 percent had spent seven, eight or nine years as associates at the firm where they made partner, and more than half had never changed firms. No single practice area dominated in partner promotions, though litigation represented almost a quarter of the survey pool.

See highlights of the full report and article on The American Lawyer.

Contact Bill Sugarman for more information.

When is the best time for partners to make a lateral move? According to a report released by ALM Intelligence, the most important factors in making a successful lateral move include time of year, stage in a partner’s career, and whether the move is to a firm with a higher or lower PPP.

Legal, signature and contract with people planning on documents for partnership

ALM Intelligence journalist, Hugh Simons, notes “fall seems to be the time of year to start exploring seriously so that you can move early in the new year.” According to the report, early in the year moves are more common and more successful with 35 percent of moves occurring in the first quarter compared to 15 percent in the fourth quarter.

A second aspect of timing is the stage of career at which a partner decides to move. Data from the report revealed lateral success rate is highest for movers in their 50s. The last factor affecting lateral success included whether the move was to a firm with a higher or lower PPP. The data revealed that retention was higher for moves made to higher PPP firms.

“The key takeaway for law firm leaders is more fundamental than the dynamics of lateral partner moves. Rather it is to observe that PPP is not just a reflection of performance; it is also, and more importantly, a critical determinant of competitive strength. Ultimately, as the best lawyers go, the best clients follow – competition for the strongest partners is competition for the great clients that underlie a firm’s long-term strength and vitality,” Hugh Simons notes.

See the full report and article on The American Lawyer.

Contact Bill Sugarman for more information.

The American Lawyer published results from its annual Midlevel Associates Survey, finding that “associates generally continued to report high levels of satisfaction with their jobs,” and report being happier with their compensation than they were a year ago.

A well dressed man and woman smiling as they as they walk down steps of a courthouse building. Could be business or legal professionals.

Each year, the publication surveys third-, fourth-, and fifth-year associates on several aspects of job satisfaction, including compensation and benefits, training and guidance, interaction with partners and other associates, the interest and satisfaction level of the work, the firm’s policy on billable hours, and management’s openness about firm strategies and partnership chances. The participating firms were ranked on a scale from 1 to 5, with 5 being the highest score possible.

According to the report, “the greatest increase in associate satisfaction came in the area of benefits and compensation,” with respondents giving firms an average score of 4.29, up from an average of 4.17 last year. Of the 102 firms surveyed, the top five firms in terms of midlevel associate satisfaction in numerical order were Cozen O’Connor, O’Melveny & Myers, Gibson Dunn & Crutcher, Paul Hastings and Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe.

See highlights of the full report and article on The American Lawyer.

Contact Bill Sugarman for more information.

The American Lawyer released their annual Global 100 report, a ranking of the world’s 100 largest law firms by gross revenue, profits per partner, and total attorney headcount. Overall, gross revenue grew by 2.8 percent for The Global 100, and profits per partner increased, on average, by 0.5 percent. Attorney headcount also saw an increase this year, with an annual growth of 2.7 percent.

Cityscape

American firms accounted for 81 of the world’s top-grossing firms, matching a record set in last year’s survey, the report revealed. The remaining places are filled by 12 British firms, three from Canada, two from China, one from Australia and one from South Korea. According to the report, this is the second time in the history of Am Law’s global rankings that U.S.-based firms occupy the top five spots.

Latham & Watkins reigns in at No. 1 again this year, with the highest gross revenue of The Global 100. Baker & McKenzie retained the No. 2 spot, leading the top 5 in terms of total attorney headcount with 4,719 attorneys. Kirkland & Ellis advanced two spots to No. 3 this year, thanks to a 15% increase in gross revenue and 14% jump in profits per partner. Skadden Arps remained in its respective spot from last year, coming in at number 4. DLA Piper, on the other hand, dropped two places this year to claim the No. 5 spot, after a 3% decrease in total revenue.

See the full rankings and highlights from The Global 100 on The American Lawyer.

Contact Bill Sugarman for more information.