Leaders of Philly Law Firms Warn of Tough Performance Reviews
Philadelphia law firms have escaped the brunt of the economic downturn since they did not focus on securitization and real estate finance, the hardest-hit practice areas. But some firm leaders are warning that the economy could lead to tough performance reviews this year.
One of them is Cozen O’Connor chief executive officer Tad Decker. He told the Philadelphia Business Journal that some associates at the city’s law firms will be getting bad news. “You won’t see any 40 percent job cuts, but firms will be tougher in evaluations and quicker to evaluate long-term employment prospects,” he said.
Fox Rothschild co-chairman Abraham Reich told the Business Review that lower-performing partners are also at risk. “People will be held to a higher standard,” he said. “We’re evaluating personnel for the long term. I have not seen and don’t think we’ll see any mass culling, but we are facing challenges that we have not seen before. Uncertainty with the future is the issue.”
Reich and other managing partners said law firms are already cutting costs, according to the story. Budgets are being trimmed for travel, entertainment, administration and marketing.
One example cited by the Business Review: Stradley Ronon Stevens & Young has a “bread-and-butter practice” representing mutual fund companies, but it sent a smaller number of lawyers to a mutual fund conference in Palm Springs, Calif.
