Legal Marketing & Consulting

Study Finds ‘Astounding’ Absence of Women in Top Rainmaking Roles

A new study has found that women are “terribly underrepresented” in the ranks of major rainmakers at top U.S. law firms. The study by the National Association of Women Lawyers and the NAWL Foundation asked the nation’s top 200 law firms to list the gender of their top 10 rainmakers.…

Oct 26, 2009 9:50 AM CDT

Ohio-Based Buckingham Firm Axes 16, Appoints New Management Team

A nearly 100-year-old Ohio based law firm has let 16 attorneys and staff members go and appointed a new executive committee and managing partner, as part of a restructuring effort to cope with its overly rapid expansion in recent years. The move by Buckingham Doolittle & Burroughs implements strategy recommended…

Oct 23, 2009 9:15 PM CDT

DUI Lawyers Market Firm with Cars, Segways and 30 Websites

Lawyers at Finebloom & Haenel are attracting clients as they drive, ride and sleep. The Sarasota, Fla., traffic and DUI law firm now has six lawyers, 30 websites and 275 domain names, the Herald Tribune reports. Even as the lawyers sleep, they get five or six leads from their websites,…

Oct 22, 2009 2:51 PM CDT

The New Untouchables: Lawyers Who Can Imagine a Better Way

Lawyers at one Washington law firm who survived layoffs—the untouchables—had the ability to imagine a better way of working. The unidentified firm is mentioned in an article by a New York Times op-ed columnist who argues a better education system is key to the nation’s economic recovery. Until workers have…

Oct 21, 2009 1:21 PM CDT

New Buzz Phrase in Efficiency Efforts: Process Management

When Seyfarth Shaw first brought in a consultant to train attorneys in a new efficiency concept known as process management, the law firm got considerably more detail than it bargained for. “We were dying,” Carla Goldstein, the firm’s director of strategic management, tells the Legal Intelligencer. “They came in with…

Oct 20, 2009 8:44 PM CDT

‘Leniency Bias’ in Job Reviews Hampers Women Lawyers, Consultant Says

Too few women lawyers are attaining partnerships, and the reason can be traced to unconscious bias affecting everything from assignments to job evaluations, according to a law firm partner and consultant. Writing in the National Law Journal, Lauren Stiller Rikleen says a lack of clear policies and objective standards can…

Oct 19, 2009 2:35 PM CDT

Law Firm Swag Becomes More Socially Responsible

Law firm swag isn’t what it used to be. The blog Above the Law got only four entries in its inaugural law firm swag contest showcasing the items given to entice law students to take jobs that are in shorter supply this year. “Is law firm swag, like subsidized soda…

Oct 14, 2009 5:00 PM CDT

In-House Pay Hikes Tamped Down in Legal Cost-Cutting Efforts

Corporate legal departments are intent on cutting costs and are using a variety of strategies to get the job done, a new survey finds. Lauren Chung, director of the Hildebrandt survey, told the ABA Journal that the frugal approach extends to compensation for in-house lawyers. “Do I think that lawyers…

Oct 14, 2009 3:52 PM CDT

Bon Jovi to Perform at Lawyer’s Holiday Party

The rock band Bon Jovi will perform at this year’s holiday party of Houston personal injury lawyer Mark Lanier. The Tex Parte Blog had the news. Lanier’s annual parties “have become the stuff of Houston cultural lore,” the story says. Last year, Miley Cyrus—known for her Hannah Montana TV show—sang…

Oct 14, 2009 11:29 AM CDT

Recruiter Got Zip in 12-Lawyer Leap, Now Seeks $100M in Federal Suit

A legal recruiter has sued Los Angeles-based Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith for $100 million in actual and punitive damages, contending that the 700-attorney law firm squeezed C.B. Legal Search LLC out of a 12-attorney placement deal it helped orchestrate. In March, C.B. Legal Search introduced partner Edward Ruberry of…

Oct 7, 2009 6:16 PM CDT

Some BigLaw Leaders Still Ponder: How Low Can Associate Salaries Go?

Once upon a time, BigLaw firms generally followed a similar lockstep salary structure and, only a year ago, the top starting pay for first-year associates was $160,000 or even more—especially when generous bonuses were tallied. Annual pay raises were virtually automatic. Now, after the financial crisis of the past year…

Oct 6, 2009 5:07 PM CDT

Operators Are Standing By

Infomercials have been used to sell all kinds of things—pocket fishing rods, blankets with sleeves, teeny wire loops that double as hairstyling tools. So it stands to reason that something like an infomercial could help lawyers sell their services, says Los Angeles television producer Brett Duncan. Only don’t call it…

Oct 2, 2009 3:30 AM CDT

Make Lemonade

Just because your practice is slow doesn’t mean you should be

Oct 2, 2009 1:20 AM CDT

The Word ‘Matters’ Apparently Matters in Law Firm Taglines

Some law firm taglines are so similar that a merger might be in order. That’s the conclusion of Legal Blog Watch, which noted Law Firm Web Strategy’s list of 101 law firm taglines. Legal Blog Watch chronicled the best, the worst and the most repetitive. In the latter category are…

Sep 29, 2009 1:02 PM CDT

Law Firm Website May Post Case Summaries, N.C. Ethics Opinion Says

A law firm may showcase successful verdicts and settlements on its website, as long as enough information is provided and an “appropriate disclaimer” is included, according to a North Carolina ethics opinion. Consumers researching law firms on the Internet expect to find information about past successes, according to the opinion.…

Sep 17, 2009 3:17 PM CDT