In the News

“In the current environment, it can be challenging for businesses to predict their long-term staffing needs,” said Max Messmer, Chairman and CEO of Robert Half International. “Using project or temporary professionals for high-priority initiatives allows companies to maintain productivity without committing to full-time hires until they are certain those positions are sustainable.”

According to Robert Half, the following project roles are some of the most prevalent in the current economy:

Credit and collections specialists - Firms are working with these professionals to help manage credit risk and collect from delinquent accounts. In particular, firms seek individuals who can identify ways to reduce inefficiencies and maximize cash flow.
Staff and senior accountants - In any economy, businesses need staff members who can perform core accounting tasks, such as maintaining general ledger systems and analyzing and preparing financial statements.
Help desk and desktop support professionals - Firms migrating from older operating systems, upgrading desktop systems and implementing a wider range of technologies are recruiting help desk and desktop support staff. These professionals are needed to answer questions and troubleshoot problems resulting from changes in IT products and services.
Web developers - Web developers are needed as companies expand their online presence and focus on Web 2.0 initiatives and interactive Web functionality. The rise of social media also is contributing to growth in this area.
Bankruptcy/foreclosure attorneys - As the number of consumer and corporate bankruptcies and foreclosures continues to increase, many law firms are expanding these practices. Attorneys with more than five years of experience handling complex bankruptcy and foreclosure matters, including restructuring and litigation, are in demand.
Litigation paralegals - To manage an increasingly high volume of cases, law firms and corporations are forming specialized project teams to handle key aspects of trial preparation and discovery. Litigation paralegals are being sought on a project basis to assist with investigations and pleadings.
Customer service representatives - Businesses rely on these professionals to maintain a high level of customer satisfaction and loyalty, which are especially important in an uncertain economy. Firms also look to these individuals to sell additional products or services to existing customers.

According to Messmer, what starts as a project role may turn into a full-time position. “Businesses frequently draw from the ranks of their temporary staff when making new hires, since both parties have had the chance to evaluate whether the position is a fit.”

According to legal consultant Hildebrandt International, law firm merger activity continued at an active pace in 2008, with 55 completed mergers and acquisitions involving U.S. law firms, up from 54 in 2007. This continues the trend of the past several years, with 59 completed mergers in 2006, 52 in 2005 and 49 in 2004. Hildebrandt expects merger activity in 2009 to be at a quicker pace than 2008, with 20 mergers already completed in 2009 and more in the works.

Lisa Smith, head of Hildebrandt’s Law Firm Strategy and Merger Practice, said, “We expect the current economic cycle will accelerate the pace of consolidation in the legal industry. Merger activity has picked up in recent months as firms look to diversify their client base, geography and practice mix.”

Following typical patterns, the busiest quarter in 2008 was the first quarter with 22 mergers, followed by 14 in the second quarter, 15 in the third quarter and four in the fourth quarter.

The largest merger of 2008 (based on the size of the smaller firm) was the merger of Blackwell Sanders and Husch & Eppenberger to form Husch Blackwell Sanders. The second largest merger of 2008 was Mayer Brown with Hong Kong’s Johnson Stokes & Master (JSM). Other top mergers were K&L Gates with Kennedy Covington Lobdell & Hickman, and with Hughes & Luce; McGuireWoods with Helms Mulliss & Wicker; and Reed Smith with Richards Butler Hong Kong.

The number of cross-border mergers with U.S. firms increased from five in 2007 to seven in 2008. The largest of these were two combinations with Hong Kong firms: Mayer Brown with Johnson Stokes & Master (JSM), and Reed Smith with Richards Butler Hong Kong. There were also two mergers of U.S. and German law firms: Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe with Holters & Elsing; and Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker with Smeets Haas Wolff. Other cross-border mergers included Howrey with Martinez Lage in Spain; K&L Gates with J&J Attorneys-at-Law in Taiwan; and Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge with Kendall Freeman in London.

To date, there have been 22 U.S. mergers scheduled for the first quarter of 2009, with 20 of these already completed. The largest of these involved Bryan Cave and Powell Goldstein, followed by the merger of Bradley Arant Rose & White and Boult, Cummings, Conners & Berry, and the combinations of Troutman Sanders and Ross, Dixon & Bell; and Frost Brown Todd and Locke Reynolds.

In addition to tracking mergers and acquisitions among law firms, Hildebrandt also tracks office openings around the globe. During 2008, Hildebrandt tracked 244 new branch office openings; 120 of which were in the United States, and 124 were outside the United States. The Middle East and Asia continue to be dominant locations, with 30 and 36 openings, respectively. Other strong locations included Germany and London, with seven office openings each, and Brazil and Switzerland, with five openings apiece.

Our league is no different than others. Our firms are populated with very talented “players” who possess the potential to excel at anything they put their minds to. To gain competitive advantage, it is therefore up to our lawyer-leaders to get our players’ minds focused and motivated to work together to achieve superior results.

Unfortunately, the typical law firm business model does not support effective leadership. We play our sport with “player-coaches:” lawyers who have to be at the top of their games, while also helping others do the same. Add to the mix the fact that few firms provide training on how to become successful leaders, and you have, as a result, major roadblocks to providing the type of guidance that can take a group, and a firm, to the next level.

So starting with this issue of ALA Currents, we will provide to you a toolbox of best practices, a step-by-step approach for building a culture to yield better clients, greater revenue, and increased profits. These reminders will help you to significantly accelerate the quality, quantity, and speed at which business development is conducted in your group. It is a leadership education and support system designed to turn ideas into concrete actions.

In a perfect world, we would tackle all these activities on Day One. Reality guides us differently, demanding that we take a bite-sized approach to enhancing our skills as revenue-focused leaders. The twice-monthly format allows you to implement activities in a manageable way, based on your own personal needs.

With that, we present to you the first tip in this series:

Obstacle Removal -- This week I will develop a plan for removing a lingering obstacle to business development in our group.

As a leader, you have great responsibilities: to maintain and grow a practice; to provide a highly productive work environment; and to develop, retain, and attract top talent. By acting on these reminders, you can move swiftly toward achieving these goals.

Stay tuned for the next issue of ALA Currents, where we will continue with David Freeman’s Action Tips for Revenue-Focused Leaders.

Published by David Freeman Consulting Group, LLC, www.davidfreemanconsulting.com

What topics are on legal administrators’ minds? Take a closer look at a recent discussion on holidays from ALA’s Online Discussion Forums.

Question: I am interested in the pros/cons for an office being opened or closed on holidays such as Martin Luther King, Jr. Day (MLK Day), Presidents’ Day, Good Friday, Columbus Day, Veterans Day, and/or Jewish High Holy Days, i.e., those holidays that have not traditionally been one of the nine or 10 that a law firm usually is closed.

Answers:

• We use the calendar schedule of the court as a guide. They do have some holidays that we do not observe, but lately they have begun to observe Jewish Holidays also. We close for MLK Day and Veterans Day. We do not close for Good Friday or the Jewish High Holy Days. People are free to take the day off as they wish. I think that if we had a significant number of people who observed either of the other holidays, we would probably close.
• We also use the court holiday schedule as a guide. That said, we are open on Veterans Day, Lincoln Day, and Columbus Day, but are closed on MLK Day and are considering closing for César Chávez Day, as well. With the exception of Christmas, we do not observe religious holidays. We are more than happy to accommodate employees who need time off for religious observances. That pretty much reflects the non-denominational, civil rights, and pro-labor culture of the firm.

Visit the Online Discussion Forum for the entire discussion.

Responses shown here may have been edited for length and clarity.