Tag: Legal News

Consumer Financial Services Basics 2013 – September 30 – October 01, 2013

The National Law Review is pleased to bring you information about the upcoming  Consumer Financial Services Basics 2013.

CFSB Sept 30 2013

When

September 30 – October 01, 2013

Where

  • University of Maryland
  • Francis King Carey School of Law
  • 500 W Baltimore St
  • Baltimore, MD 21201-1701
  • United States of America

Facing the most comprehensive revision of federal consumer financial services (CFS) law in 75 years, even experienced consumer finance lawyers might feel it is time to get back in the classroom. This live meeting is designed to expose practitioners to key areas of consumer financial services law, whether you need a primer or a refresher.

It is time to take a step back and think through some of these complex issues with a faculty that combines decades of practical experience with law school analysis. The classroom approach is used to review the background, assess the current policy factors, step into the shoes of regulators, and develop an approach that can be used to interpret and evaluate the scores of laws and regulations that affect your clients.

Chief Litigation Officer Summit – September 8-10 2013

The National Law Review is pleased to bring you information about the upcoming Chief Litigation Officer Summit.

 

Chief Lit Officer Sept 2013

 

When: 8-10 September 2013
Where: The Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island, FL, USA

The primary objective of the Chief Litigation Officer Summit is to explore the key aspects and issues related to litigation best practices and the protection and defense of corporations. The Summit’s program topics have been pinpointed and validated by leading litigation counsel as the top critical issues they face.

 

Third-Party Litigation Funding Comes of Age

NEWLogoBurford_Final

Law firm Chief Marketing Officers (CMOs) are on the front line of client development, and thus have an unobstructed view of how the legal market for complex litigation is developing. As budget pressures continue to weigh on corporate general counsel, the need for law firms to adjust their pricing to secure new clients is clearly being felt – some firms are now hiring specialty personnel to focus solely on the question of proper pricing. CMOs are thus actively speaking the lingua franca of today’s latest fee structures – from RFPs to AFAs and discounted fees.

Given this, it is surprising to discover that many otherwise business savvy CMOs know little about the emergence of commercial litigation finance. While some are keenly aware of the new industry’s progress – and eager to share their involvement in the funding of multiple cases – others are seemingly unfamiliar with the advent of specialist funding companies and the business development opportunities that they could present for them.

In fairness, due to the often confidential nature of commercial litigation finance, the commercial litigation finance industry has been somewhat constrained in publicizing itself. One example of this is at a recent conference I sat next to the sharp CMO of a top firm who asked me what litigation finance did and what company I worked for. I explained to him that we financed legal fees in multi-million dollar cases, and that we had recently funded a case involving his own firm!

At its most basic level, litigation finance is very straightforward. A third-party funds legal fees and expenses associated with a litigation or arbitration, in return for a portion of the ultimate proceeds (settlement or judgment), if any. Importantly, the funding is typically “non-recourse”, meaning that if there is no recovery for the plaintiff, the litigation financier receives no fee.

Claimants have historically found ways to fund their cases – with available capital, through a bank loan, or by agreeing to a contingency fee with their attorney. What has changed recently is the emergence of specialty finance companies that limit their work to the financing of litigation. These firms – which first appeared in Australia a decade ago, and are now active in the United Kingdom and the United States.  They typically invest in large-scale and complex commercial litigation, with investments (and thus legal fees) on the order of several million dollars.

Not all cases are appropriate for litigation financing, and certain criteria must be met as part of a careful due diligence process. Four considerations include:

  1. the merits of the claim – the case must stand a very strong chance of success on the law and facts;
  2. the ratio of costs/proceeds – the ratio of legal fees (and other costs) must be in proper proportion to the expected proceeds (to allow for reasonable costs associated with financing – typically a ratio of at least 1:4 is required);
  3. the duration of the proceedings – as the cost of financing will usually be related to the time the case takes to resolve (given the time value of money), notice must be paid to the expected length of the case; and
  4. the enforceability of judgment – it must be clear at the outset that, if the claim is successful, the plaintiff will be able to collect its judgment from the defendant.

Once an investment is made, litigation financiers are careful as to their involvement in a given case. Important rules of legal ethics are respected so that the funder does not interfere with case strategy, settlement decisions, or the attorney-client relationship. And, as mentioned above, the financing is typically kept confidential between the parties.

Given the challenge of drawing in new clients, law firm CMOs must leverage every available advantage. In several business development scenarios, the prospect of litigation finance can help:

  • Fee negotiations – in situations where a client would prefer to work with a given firm – but the client will not (or cannot) pay the firm’s standard hourly fees – financing can be used to pay such fees and allow the case to proceed;
  • Alternative to contingency fee – in situations where a firm is asked to act on a contingency fee basis, a litigation financier can step in to provide a similar result: the firm receives its standard hourly fees, paid for by the funder, which in turn only receives compensation in the event of a “win” (sometimes referred to as a “synthetic contingency”);
  • RFP (request for proposal) – in situations where an RFP has been issued by a potential client, a firm’s response may be better received if it makes proper mention of litigation finance as an innovative variation to AFA (alternative fee arrangements); and
  • Fee “fatigue” – in situations where an existing client involved in extended litigation has begun to express concern regarding mounting fees (perhaps on the eve of trial), litigation finance can offer immediate cash-flow relief and allow the firm to receive its full fees.

In short, litigation finance can offer law firm CMOs (and anyone involved in legal business development) a new tool with which to hammer out difficult pricing issues and fee structures for big-ticket litigation.

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IP Law Summit – September 8-10 2013

The National Law Review is pleased to bring you information about the upcoming IP Law Summit.

IP Law Sept 2013

 

When: 8-10 September 2013
Where: The Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island, FL, USA
The IP Law Summit will highlight the current challenges and opportunities through visionary conference sessions and keynote presentations delivered by your most esteemed peers and thought leaders from Americas leading corporations and mid-market organizations. The one-on-one meetings with leading service providers will offer vast expertise in the area of intellectual property law. All this, seamlessly integrated with informal networking opportunities over three days, will provide a unique interactive forum. Do not miss this opportunity to network; establish new connections, exchange ideas and gain knowledge.

Consumer Financial Services Basics 2013 – September 30 – October 01, 2013

The National Law Review is pleased to bring you information about the upcoming  Consumer Financial Services Basics 2013.

CFSB Sept 30 2013

When

September 30 – October 01, 2013

Where

  • University of Maryland
  • Francis King Carey School of Law
  • 500 W Baltimore St
  • Baltimore, MD 21201-1701
  • United States of America

Facing the most comprehensive revision of federal consumer financial services (CFS) law in 75 years, even experienced consumer finance lawyers might feel it is time to get back in the classroom. This live meeting is designed to expose practitioners to key areas of consumer financial services law, whether you need a primer or a refresher.

It is time to take a step back and think through some of these complex issues with a faculty that combines decades of practical experience with law school analysis. The classroom approach is used to review the background, assess the current policy factors, step into the shoes of regulators, and develop an approach that can be used to interpret and evaluate the scores of laws and regulations that affect your clients.

Legal Marketing Association (LMA) Conference Recap: Pricing, Profitability and the Role of Legal Marketing

LMA_Midwest Logo 300x125

How do you measure success? Ask a lawyer and she may say, “By the number of hours I bill.” Ask a marketer and he may answer, “By the number of clients my firm has.” Ask an economist and he will tell you, “By how profitable we are.”

As we’ve seen in recent years, a firm can have a long list of clients and/or bill a staggering number of hours, but it won’t necessarily stop them from going under. However, this much is true: a profitable firm is a successful firm. In the LMA Annual Conference session titled, “Pricing, Profitability, and the Role of Marketing,” panelists Toby Brown, director of strategic pricing and analytics at Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP, and Colleen Nihil, firm-wide director of project management at Dechert LLP, explained how a long list of clients and/or billing a large number of hours can actually lower profits.

Toby and Colleen went on to explain why legal marketers need to understand profitability and law firm economics, in general. As one of the four “P’s” of marketing (along with product, promotion and place), pricing is well-within our realm, yet is often overlooked. They further illustrated how we can use this internal law firm knowledge to our advantage in winning and keeping clients.

A major part of the discussion was geared towards how to create value-based billing for a client. Why do clients want it? What makes a client a good candidate for this arrangement? What type of research should be done? How should it be handled internally within the firm? Each question was addressed plainly:

Why do clients want a value-based billing arrangement?

Many prefer this to the classic hours-based arrangement simply because it provides an element of predictability. Clearly, all clients want cost-savings and efficiency. However, the panelists advised that the firm should first have a conversation with the client about setting up a new pricing arrangement. Understanding what the client wants and why they want it should guide the firm when setting up a new agreement.

What makes a client a good candidate for this arrangement?

Obviously, a client with very predictable legal needs is the best client for a value-based billing arrangement. However, many clients could be eligible if enough good, solid research is conducted, which leads to the next question:

What type of research should be done?

Research on the client’s past history with the firm is imperative in order to decide if it is eligible for value-based billing and what a reasonable and fair pricing structure will look like. Two approaches were discussed:

Bottom-Up

  1. Compare and contrast the client against other similar clients at the firm – size, revenue, industry, etc.
  2. Pull benchmarking data: What services does the firm provide to client? How much does each matter cost? Is there any outlying data?
  3. Don’t look at just historic data, but also look at how the firm can drive down costs. Think about using zero-based budgeting for this process.
  4. Build out the matter. Look at what strategy will be taken on the matter and figure out the firm’s value.
  5. Model the matter based on different types of rate structures (fixed-fee and other alternative fee arrangements)
  6. This approach will require the firm to categorize matters better in order to ensure reliable benchmarking.

Top-Down

  1. Start from an estimated figure for the matter.
  2. Create a scoping conversation, asking the questions: What will double the figure? What will make it shrink? What is the likelihood of…? Determine the cost of the matter, not the price.

How should value-based billing be handled internally within the firm?

Toby and Colleen stressed the importance of educating attorneys on profitability and its four drivers:

  1. Rates
  2. Realization (percentage of money collected versus standard billing rate)
  3. Productivity (number of billed hours per time-keeper, per year)
  4. Leverage (amount of non-partner work versus partner work performed)

Once attorneys learn how profitability works, they can begin to structure their matters in a way to increase profitability (rather than hours or simple revenue). However, some attorneys learn how to “game the system” which can lead to unhealthy profitability; this is something that should be monitored. Toby directed the audience to his paper, “The Four Horsemen of Law Firm Profitability,” which dives deeper into law firm economics.

Toby and Colleen summed up their presentation in three bullet points:

  • Focus on the work that you can have the biggest impact on
  • Understand your clients’ pain points
  • Make sure you have this information before responding to an RFP.

These points fed into their overarching message, “It’s not what you do, it’s what you choose not to do.” In the end, increasing profitability and implementing value-based billing arrangements come down to trust and communication between the firm and client. Once those two pillars are established, a new pricing agreement can easily be built with the two parties coming from places of understanding and a mutual interest in success.

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Are You Falling Down on Following Up?

KLA Marketing Logo

Of all the marketing initiatives that are critical for lawyers to commit to, the most basic and seemingly obvious is the “sin” of omission – – the failure to follow up.

We have worked with lawyers who have spent innumerable hours and thousands of dollars chasing after new clients and prospects but have largely been unsuccessful in retentions because of a gap in their business development process: following up.

Do any of these example ring familiar:

  • A very sociable corporate partner attended numerous networking events a month, engaged easily with others attending, handed out business cards, but rarely received calls or new clients as a result. Because of her frustration, she curtailed her networking activities and short-circuited this important business development action step.
  • A New York labor and employment boutique law firm hosted an annual educational program which featured leaders in the field and attracted high level CFOs and HR professionals to the event. They received high marks on all aspects of the events but few, if any, calls from prospects.  Members of the disappointed team deemed the effort a “failure” and asserted that seminars don’t “work” to get new clients.
  •  The managing partner of a Connecticut firm received a referral from a trusted client who was searching for new counsel in this attorney’s “sweet spot” of legal practice.  The partner attended a prospective client interview in which he thoroughly espoused all the ways his firm could save this prospect’s firm significant amounts of money, given the specific legal issues at stake.  Day after day, the managing partner didn’t receive a call or email to discuss retention and getting started.  Why did this prospect waste his time was the only thought the frustrated managing partner ruminated upon.

While each of these examples highlight effective marketing initiatives (targeted networking; educational seminars; in-person client interviews), they all share the same flawed result: lack of follow up and planning.

A Follow-Up Re-Do

As part of the business development process, lawyers must recognize and integrate into their “SOP” (standard operating procedures), action steps that extend beyond “showing up.”  By leaving out the planning and following up components, lawyers are short circuiting the process, leaving money on the table, and becoming more cynical that marketing actually “works”, however one defines that.

To examine the first example above, the more effective steps of action would have been:

  • Request an event registration list so that the lawyer could have identified several targeted folks “of interest” to seek out and engage.  It would be very effective to gather some background information (a quick Google search) about the target companies to make conversations more meaningful.
  • With a little research in hand, the lawyer arrives to the networking event with a plan of who she plans to engage, who she intends to connect, and how she will spend the next several hours.  This is work, not an opportunity to have a few free drinks and yuk it up with firm colleagues whom she sees every day.
  • Practicing effective networking techniques, this sociable lawyer knows that it is essential to be more “interested” than “interesting”, so she exercises active listening techniques by asking open-ended questions of her networking partners to learn more about their businesses and challenges.  From this, she receives a number of “high impact” business cards which she will use to follow up after the event.

The steps described above take very little investment of time, but will yield a very different experience which can lead directly to a new client retention or, at minimum, a new business connection for referrals.

Contrasting the legal profession with corporate America in developing new business, one only has to examine the models of each.  Corporate America devotes billions of dollars every year to “sales and marketing”, to the process of cultivating and nurturing new prospect relationships leading to a “sale”.  The typical sales process may involve innumerable “follow ups” before a sale is actually consummated.

The legal profession historically has played a reactive role wherein new clients (new sales) seek out the law firm to engage them.  It is unwise in these ultra competitive times and a poor business model to continue this practice.  If lawyers are the ones seeking new business or even additional work from existing clients, the obligation falls upon them to pursue it and continue to make contacts until they are  directed otherwise.  (Remember, studies show that it takes at least 7-10 “touches” to become top-of-mind with clients and prospects).

Difference Faces of Follow Up

Though follow up can take many different approaches, the overall non-negotiable component involves any action step which provokes the other party (existing client, prospect, etc.) to want to continue contact with you. You are focused on cultivating and nurturing a relationships which will ultimately be mutually beneficial and add value.

A few examples of effective follow up include:

  • Brief thank you emails following an event (networking, educational programs, or entertainment).
  • Handwritten notes of congratulations for personal or business accomplishments.
  • Links to a relevant news article in which your contact would benefit.
  • Personal visits to a client’s work site to deliver a work product.
  • Invitations to social events, professional organization programs, or business workshops.

The more lawyers engage in marketing initiatives, the most important task to remember is to plan appropriately before taking any action what the follow-up steps will be, who will take them, and in what time frame. Treat this component of the business development process as you would a client obligation and coordinate your calendar with all parties involved.  It is in this step that the revenue will be found, the meaningful business relationships will be established and robust practices will be built.

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Consumer Financial Services Basics 2013 – September 30 – October 01, 2013

The National Law Review is pleased to bring you information about the upcoming  Consumer Financial Services Basics 2013.

CFSB Sept 30 2013

When

September 30 – October 01, 2013

Where

  • University of Maryland
  • Francis King Carey School of Law
  • 500 W Baltimore St
  • Baltimore, MD 21201-1701
  • United States of America

Facing the most comprehensive revision of federal consumer financial services (CFS) law in 75 years, even experienced consumer finance lawyers might feel it is time to get back in the classroom. This live meeting is designed to expose practitioners to key areas of consumer financial services law, whether you need a primer or a refresher.

It is time to take a step back and think through some of these complex issues with a faculty that combines decades of practical experience with law school analysis. The classroom approach is used to review the background, assess the current policy factors, step into the shoes of regulators, and develop an approach that can be used to interpret and evaluate the scores of laws and regulations that affect your clients.

How Today’s Top Law Firms Design Office Space for Efficiency

Jones Lang LaSalle, Logo

Technological advancements and the recovering economy are indeed changing the needs of today’s workforce as well as the need for improved efficiency in commercial office space. To date, much of the focus from experts has put a great emphasis on trends such as collaborative workstations and virtual office space. However, as Senior Vice President of a national real estate firm and leasing agent of the tallest office tower in Florida which is home to 415,000 square feet of law firm tenants (eight of those firms currently listed on the 2013 Am Law 200), I’ve noticed that top law firms are incorporating more modern, efficient designs geared towards costs savings and collaboration, taking a different approach than creative-focused companies.

With employees and clients in mind, law firms are navigating the delicate balance of blending efficient design and modernizing with elements that permit confidentiality for face-to-face client meetings. As a result, efficiency for law firms does not translate to the open work workstations that have become popular at other companies. Instead, it is exemplified in clustered conference rooms situated near the main lobby or entrance. By not having clients walk through the extended hallways of a law firm to get to a partner’s corner office, firms can opt for more modest, cost effective office space.

Rather than open workstations and offices that are more popular in the creative sectors, law firms are not ready to tear down the walls altogether, as there are sensitive and private conversations to be had which cannot take place in an open room on high-top tables. Instead, more firms are incorporating glass for large windows and perimeter walls into office design which not only promotes connectivity but also offsets the impact of the overall shrinking of individual office space.

The generational gap within the modern workplace has impacted design planning as well. From the increased use of technology, to paperless filing to online law libraries, the structure of offices has shifted virtually. In many companies, this has led to the reduced need for support staff such as administrative assistants, downgrading the ratio that was once 3 lawyers to 1 assistant to about 7 to 1.  Some of the larger firms are even centralizing support staff in a neutral, less metropolitan city to reduce the cost of having teams of such personnel at every location.

To offset the individualized working existence as a result of a more technologically advanced workplace, connectivity is essential. This is achieved through creating purposeful in-house amenities, such as in-house cafeterias, lounges complete with baristas and TV monitors, and Wi-Fi throughout to allow for movement.

While the office space needs of professional service firms are quite different from those of other businesses, law firms still aim to be on-trend for employees and clients as well as relevant in an ever-changing society. Some traditional elements specific to the highly professional nature of the law industry still remain the same, but changes including reducing staff in particular locations, making sure there is less non-usable square footage, and maximizing the use of space are major results of the economy that have led to the current design trends and emphasis toward more efficient law offices.

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A Review of Legal Technology and Innovation: Leopard Solutions

computer broadcast world

In review is Leopard Solutions, provider of an online legal technology service that compiles, tracks and delivers a wealth of information about law firms and attorneys across the country.

History Behind the Technology and Origins in Legal Recruiting

Leopard Solutions is the brainchild of Laura Leopard, an actress turned legal recruiter turned Founder and CEO of the Leopard Solutions system. The origin of the system initially occurred in the midst of her acting career, when Ms. Leopard worked as a cold caller for legal recruiters and discovered a severe lack of accessible information. At that point, Ms. Leopard first conceived of the Leopard List, the premier informational database offered by Leopard Solutions, now one among other such systems featured. From a simple Excel spreadsheet that contained the Leopard List, Ms. Leopard eventually developed an innovative online resource for the legal community.

Intelligence Programs and Strategic Data Directed Towards the Legal Community

Leopard Solutions offers comprehensive and strategic data captured in various intelligence programs directed towards different sectors of the legal community, including law firms, legal recruiters and law students. These are ‘live databases” which are updated on a weekly basis. Firmscape, their law firm intelligence program, is updated any time new data becomes available. For instance, if new salary information becomes available or a new office is opened, it can be immediately added to the program.)  On the day I spoke with Ms. Leopard, the system monitored a total of 183 new associates joining law firms, 71 practitioners being promoted to partner status and 86 partners leaving their firm positions.

The Leopard List: Attorney Database & Lateral Recruitment Tool

Among these databases is the Leopard List, which houses information across the spectrum of attorneys, including partners, counsels and associates, from over 1600 law firms in 23 U.S. markets. Attorneys can be searched by their practice area, JD year, law school, states admitted to practice and more. Moreover, a click of the practitioner’s name conveniently yields his or her law firm attorney profile and users can search these biographies by keyword. The Leopard staff is assigned to read and manually peruse each individual law firm attorney profile to verify all of the information stored in the system. This “personal touch” extends to any gaps of information– Leopard has been known to reach out to the firm for details if need be.

In addition, the system reveals an attorney’s  “professional history” that tracks any change in the practitioner’s status, including lateral employment moves and promotions within the firm, moves from previous law firms and name changes. In other words, no need for a Google search– Leopard hand-delivers the nuts and bolts.

Firmscape: Law Firm Intelligence

Firmscape serves as another example of Leopard successfully consolidating and analyzing information, in this instance by capturing a big-picture view of the legal industry. To say Firmscape collects a snapshot of the legal industry is an understatement- rather, this system showcases the evolution of the industry. Perhaps most helpful to legal recruiters, Firmscape sizes up the top law firms in the country and their starting salaries, practitioner lateral moves, and growth in practicing areas, among other aspects. Like the Leopard List, Firmscape is easily navigated and can be mined for reports on specific variables, such as practice area, specialty, firm history and promotion record.

Other Intelligence Programs for the Legal Community

Other systems include Leopard Reporting, which gives an overview of all the law firms in the system (currently 1666); Leopard Job Search, which monitors 655 law firms twice a day for job postings; Leopard Solutions for Law School, which offers law firm resource tools to law students; the Leopard Job Board, geared towards both legal recruiters and applicants; and Leopard Solutions Hot Spot, which aggregates all national news available for the firms amassed in the database.

A Technological Model for Timely, Interactive and Dynamic Data

Perhaps most notable about Leopard Solutions is the absence of any parallel technology in the market. The company’s model of keeping law firms under its radar and going to long lengths to obtain searchable data distinguishes it from other models which rely exclusively on web crawlers or press for information. In addition, Leopard’s model reaches far beyond displaying data but permits the viewer to target and interact with the information though reports and keyword searches. Finally, the company aims to stay reactionary, current and attuned with the needs of the market. Ms. Leopard often relies on clients’ counsel to further develop their system. A cutting-edge product, Leopard Solutions keeps up with the fluctuating legal landscape with its efficiency and accuracy.