Ahead of the Curve

Past Issues

"ARE VIRTUAL OFFICES HERE TO STAY?"

The virtual law office — once a niche curiosity reserved for sole practitioners and a fraction of traditional firms — suddenly flowered, forced by necessity out of high-rise towers and into personal homes in the dark, uncertain pre-vaccine days. “End of the Law Office as We Know It?” wondered the Daily Business Review in Miami, pointing to firms that have downsized or abandoned their shops in favor of the work-from-home model. “We’ve evolved 10 years in six weeks. I don’t mean my firm, but the market. That’s how dramatic of an effect it’s had,” one law firm chief information officer told Law.com.

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Resource: John Roemer, American Bar Association

"EVOLVING LAW FIRM MODELS WITH INNOVATION: USING LESSONS LEARNED FROM THE PANDEMIC"

The COVID-19 pandemic has been an opportunity for law firms to move forward at a much greater speed than in the past. Lawyers have long heard that technology will make them obsolete, but for the most part, they have remained busy even while continuing to create new documents using past client documents and printing paper. When the pandemic took hold, even those lawyers who were used to working remotely found it different to do so if they had relied on having associates and staff in a physical office. How can law firms use the lessons of the pandemic to move toward greater innovation?

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Resource: Mary E. Vandenack, Law Practice Magazine

"CAN YOU CROWDFUND A LAW FIRM?"

Businesses raise capital in a few general ways: selling shares of their company (equity), retaining earnings, and taking on debt. A publicly traded company must comply with strict disclosures to the public and comply with other SEC regulations. Many companies want to avoid the costs and exposure of disclosing detailed financials and sell equity in private placements restricted to a smaller pool of potential investors who meet specific income and net worth requirements (accredited investors).

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Resource: Elena Bertram, Law Practice Today

"FIRMS WILL BRING PEOPLE BACK TO THE OFFICE, BUT THEY WON'T BE THE SAME"

Between new hires and departures and a new focus on maximizing in-office interactions, plus a new recognition of home-life stressors and the toll taken by a virus that's killed millions, firm leaders will have a new mix of employees on their hands, both literally and psychologically. “You’ve got a different group of people coming back. And the firms that are going to be the most successful will understand that and manage their people well.”

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Resource: Andrew Maloney, Law.com (requires a free subscription)

"IDENTIFY — AND HIRE — LIFELONG LEARNERS"

The most pertinent question one can ask of a current or future employee may just be: How do you learn? Lifelong learning is now roundly considered to be an economic imperative, and job candidates or employees who consider, update, and improve their skills will be the high performers, especially over the longer term.

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Resource: Marc Zao-Sanders, Harvard Business Review

"KNOWING IS HALF THE BATTLE: PRO TIPS FOR YOUR FIRST ASSIGNMENT AS AN ASSOCIATE"

Looking back to when I was a new attorney in BigLaw, I think what made it especially stressful was the fact I just didn’t know what I didn’t know. And I didn’t even know enough to know what questions to ask. In light of that, here are a few questions you may want to consider asking when you get that first assignment.

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Resource: Meyling "Mey" Ly Ortiz, Attorney at Work

"DON’T LOSE THE DEMOCRATIZING EFFECT OF REMOTE WORK"

Employees are leaving workplaces that don’t suit their needs anymore, as more and more organizations return to in-person work after more than a year of working remotely. This article will describe the risks inherent in mishandling the transition and offer suggestions for avoiding them.

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Resource: Joan C. Williams, Rachel M. Korn, and Mikayla Boginsky, Harvard Business Review

"SOME FIRMS EYE SUBSCRIPTION MODEL PRICING AS AN INCREASINGLY NEEDED, ATTAINABLE OPTION"

Lawyers who have tried it say subscription-based pricing may not work for every practice area, but in spots where there are repeatable processes, it could provide exactly what clients are clamoring for.

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Resource: Victoria Hudgins, Law.com (requires a free subscription)

"ETHICS OPINION ADDRESSES LAWYERS’ 'PASSIVE INVESTMENT' IN FIRMS IN JURISDICTIONS ALLOWING ALTERNATIVE BUSINESS STRUCTURES"

A lawyer generally may invest passively in a law firm that includes nonlawyer owners in jurisdictions that permit such alternative business structures, according to a new ABA ethics opinion. The lawyer may passively invest, even though the lawyer practices law in a jurisdiction that does not permit such nonlawyer ownership.

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Resource: David L. Hudson, Jr, ABA Journal

"HOW LEGAL SECRETARIAL ROLES ARE EVOLVING IN BIG LAW"

"The older, traditional role of a legal secretary is pretty much gone," said one industry observer. "The secretary of the future needs to have really strong IT skills … and more multitasking than they ever did before."

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Resource: The Legal Intelligencer (requires a free subscription)

"ARE THE BIG FOUR RESHAPING THE FUTURE OF LEGAL SERVICES?"

The Big Four accounting firms continue their advance into the legal services sector despite disruption caused by alternative providers and law firms switching business models.

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Resource: Lexis Nexis