One practical consequence of the big gap between attorneys’ excellent formal schooling and the skills they need to do excellent work for clients: Attorneys who graduated from law school 4 years ago or less typically lack the skills they need to serve the client independently — i.e., without “supervision”. ……
There’s not much in the way of practical how-to instruction for new attorneys. So there’s a big gap between their excellent formal schooling and the skills needed to do excellent work for clients. This gap poses two practical consequences: Attorneys who graduated from law school less than 4 years ago…
In Part I of this two-part series I contended that the vast majority of law firms and in-house departments haven’t adopted Six Sigma, Toyota “Lean” protocols, or other process improvement standards because the legal industry’s cost-plus business model undercuts any incentive for operational efficiency. Undercuts how? Law firms and in-house…
The vast majority of law firms and in-house departments haven’t adopted Six Sigma, Toyota’s “Lean” protocols, or other process improvement standards. Why? Because the legal industry’s cost-plus business model undercuts any incentive for operational efficiency. The legal industry doesn’t structure its work into activities sequenced in a specific order…
As I said in Part I, too many individual judges and bureaucrats indulge their own preconceived, subjective legal and regulatory views in ways that create bad surprises. Your best protection? The sound judgment of a lawyer who’s immersed in the views of those who call the legal and regulatory shots…
Despite our nation’s sacred aspiration to have a government “of laws, not men”, businesses often find themselves governed by the preconceived, subjective opinion of some judge or bureaucrat. Even when that preconceived, subjective opinion conflicts with the plain meaning of a statute’s or regulation’s actual words. … The Dodd-Frank Act…
Part III For routine, repetitive, or high-volume legal or regulatory compliance tasks, ask yourself which service provider brings the the right business processes — and perhaps the right technology — to the need presented. … Some of your company’s legal and regulatory needs call for a team and a process.…
Part II Match the attorney you pick to the decision-maker you face if a court, regulator, or prosecutor with a distinctive viewpoint will be driving the legal outcome. … An iconic statue of Lady Justice adorns many courthouses. Don’t take her blindfold too literally. For instance, a lawyer who practices…
Part I Where there’s a lot at stake in the matter at hand it’s usually best to begin with “Who’s the right lawyer?” — Not: “What’s the best law firm?” … Jane and Susan entered my office: “Jack wants us to ask you which environmental lawyer we should hire”. Jack…
Take-away #3: AI won’t replace a lawyer’s judgment. AI will drive labor-saving technology to perform law’s “manual” tasks. Jeffrey Carr put this best: Jeff Carr is that rare general counsel who reduced total legal costs and proactively headed off liability before it arose — instead of the steady, single digit increases in legal budgets that are…