Acceleration in the pace of change

Acceleration in the pace of change was the theme earlier this month at the Law Firm Leaders Forum in NYC. Ralph Baxter, Chairman of the Thomson Reuters’ Legal Executive Institute (which sponsored the Forum), opened a panel discussion with pithy observations and opinion. I paraphrase; the full text is here. 

The pace of change is accelerating, mostly driven by more aggressive client demands and a tightly competitive market: “Clients expect value that reflects a reasonable measurement of what they pay compared to the services they are provided,” he noted. “And in many cases, those clients are not getting that value, and that is what — more than anything — is driving change.”

This is manifesting in a variety of ways.

Firstly, the elevation The Corporate Legal Operations Consortium (CLOC) which is gaining traction as a go-to organization. CLOC has established standard metrics for law firms and corporate legal departments to get a better sense of the value of the services they are charging for… and paying for.

Second, regional firms are challenging the top tier, i.e. the AmLaw 100.

And third, the ABA has issued ‘a clarion call for change in the legal industry‘, questioning inter alia i) the financial model on which law firms operate as businesses, ii) the industry’s need to focus better on technology to improve delivery, and iii) whether non-lawyers can and should have a role in the delivery of legal services.

“That’s why in a time of uncertainty and hyper-competition in the legal industry, to know and to stay close to your clients is clearly more important than ever” concluded Ralph, pictured.