There is growing evidence, particularly from the US, that more and more lawyers are moving away from large firms to mid-sized or smaller, boutique firms, according to a recent article in 'The Daily Business Review'.
A number of reasons were cited. Lawyers, faced with acute fee pressure from general counsel within their larger clients, were able to offer a comparable level of service from within a smaller firm - and with significatly lower overheads, the charge-out rate was often 30% lower. Equally important, though, were the reduced conflicts of interest, the bane of so many corporate lawyers.
Of course, the major coporates are always going to use the very large firms, at least for most of their work, but with mid-market clients being particularly sensitive to fees and the level of service that they receive, the opportunities for lawyers not only to retain their client base by moving to a mid-sized firm, but to build it too, are very striking.
Within MSI Global Alliance (www.msiglobal.org), our member firms, typically mid-sized law and accounting firms, are certainly conscious of this shift. Despite all the bad news swirling around, there are some real opportunities for the right people and the right firms that have positioned themselves carefully.
James Mendelssohn (jmendelssohn@msiglobal.org)
www.msiglobal.org
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