tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-135793312009-11-24T22:35:05.449-05:00Providing in-house counsel and firm-based attorneys with legal support services, including pre-litigation support, legal research and writing, deposition summaries, drafting of memoranda, contract and document review, preparation of pleadings and briefs, discovery, patent services, and more.LegalEase Solutions LLChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03722243193872735083noreply@blogger.comBlogger194125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13579331.post-28870597675175993832009-11-24T21:41:00.007-05:002009-11-24T22:35:05.458-05:00

The Association of Corporate Counsel continues their Value Challenge in 2010, pursuing an initiative designed to meet head-on the seismic shifts currently taking place in the traditional delivery model and cost structure of legal services. According to the ACC: "With the economic meltdown, law firms are now facing additional pressures: loss of clients and business, reduced access to bank

LegalEase Solutions LLChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03722243193872735083noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13579331.post-11933386976312376072009-11-18T09:25:00.001-05:002009-11-18T09:25:00.678-05:00

The current economic recession, which according to the National Bureau of Economic Research is soon to enter its third year, has had two significant effects on law students.1) Law school admissions have increased, as prospective students seek the shelter of an ostensibly secure profession.2) The profession of law may not be as secure as it once was, with all reports showing decreased hiring and

LegalEase Solutions LLChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03722243193872735083noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13579331.post-77941063116733935212009-11-11T14:41:00.000-05:002009-11-11T14:43:37.480-05:00

The National Law Journal released the results of their 2009 census of the largest 250 law firms, and the numbers are predictably gloomy.A few of the lowlights:The number of employed attorneys at these top 250 firms plunged by more than 5,200. That's a 4% decline.This is only the third year since the NLJ started tracking in 1978 that saw a decline. 1992 saw a 1% decline, and 1993 dropped 0.9%.Of

LegalEase Solutions LLChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03722243193872735083noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13579331.post-76479438899918674112009-11-03T16:39:00.000-05:002009-11-03T17:18:33.616-05:00

Any conversation about marketing legal services these days is bound to include a discussion about social media. For some professions and industries, Twitter and Facebook are a slam dunk.For others, including attorneys, it's not quite as simple.There are those who maintain that anybody not utilizing Twitter and Facebook are completely out of step. But Eric Turkewitz has an interesting blog post

LegalEase Solutions LLChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03722243193872735083noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13579331.post-65898972337393283482009-10-29T12:18:00.001-04:002009-10-29T14:00:38.595-04:00

Continuing with our discussion on lawyers embracing an entrepreneurial approach to their work, Legal Rebels recently featured attorney Sam Glover.Mr. Glover, a Minnesota-based legal entrepreneur who manages a consumer rights practice, is also the author of the always useful lawyerist.com, which manages to weave together insightful commentary on legal practice, technology, productivity, and

LegalEase Solutions LLChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03722243193872735083noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13579331.post-68595075622783170512009-10-20T13:48:00.007-04:002009-10-20T17:42:34.732-04:00

Misleading. At best.Law.com reported today on Kroll Inc.'s annual survey on corporate fraud. And for some reason law.com used the following headline:"Legal Pitfalls of Outsourcing May Outweigh Benefits, Says New Survey"Except, that's not at all what Kroll's report says.The first sentence of law.com's post reads: Companies that choose to outsource work to save money may be buying themselves more

LegalEase Solutions LLChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03722243193872735083noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13579331.post-80937410444931286302009-10-16T16:10:00.000-04:002009-10-16T09:04:45.045-04:00

Unbound: How Entrepreneurship is Dramatically Transforming Legal Services Today is a timely and relevant new book for anyone tracking emerging trends in the legal profession.Wasting no time, the opening paragraph dives right in with observations we've been discussing for the better part of this year:"The financial and economic crisis of 2008 delivered the final blow to any skeptics still

LegalEase Solutions LLChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03722243193872735083noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13579331.post-60979869074638270692009-10-08T11:53:00.000-04:002009-10-08T12:02:49.173-04:00

Two weeks ago we discussed how some major firms were rethinking their summer apprenticeship programs. But last Friday's article in the Boston Business Journal indicates a far more systematic revisiting of the entire recruitment model, and at an even faster pace than previously noted.The BBJ's title says a lot: Traditional Associate System Collapsing Under Economic Pressure.According to the

LegalEase Solutions LLChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03722243193872735083noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13579331.post-894924615773902332009-10-02T08:31:00.001-04:002009-10-02T09:21:05.875-04:00

Law.com recently covered the website lawbidding.com, a site that connects consumers and attorneys and allows attorneys to bid on cases.Similar to legalriver.com, which is geared toward the needs of small businesses, bidding-based websites for legal work have been supported by the Association of the Bar of New York City under the reasoning that "these bidding systems are often similar to the RFPs

LegalEase Solutions LLChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03722243193872735083noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13579331.post-35681892226461005212009-09-23T17:53:00.000-04:002009-09-23T18:20:28.999-04:00

LegalWeek.com reported last week that both Mayer Brown and Reed Smith are evaluating new cost structures that will bring fixed or capped fees for transactional work."Mayer Brown's senior management is in the process of reviewing how the firm bills clients and is considering proposals to overhaul fee structures for core transactional practices including corporate, banking and real estate. The

LegalEase Solutions LLChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03722243193872735083noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13579331.post-60560135977030960592009-09-17T09:07:00.004-04:002009-09-17T09:18:01.494-04:00

As noted recently in the ABA Journal, many large firms are delaying hiring new associates, and some are putting their summer apprenticeship programs on hiatus altogether. Obviously, though, a decreasing number of entry-level associate positions doesn't necessarily mean there is less associate-level work to be done. That's why one of the major challenges facing firms today is

LegalEase Solutions LLChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03722243193872735083noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13579331.post-21674562144114338312009-09-10T09:36:00.000-04:002009-09-10T09:45:02.528-04:00

Legal Rebels recently profiled Richard Granat, a man who wears a lot of hats. He:Owns and runs MDFamilyLawyer.com, which offers family law forms bundled at a fixed price with legal advice to residents in Maryland and Washington, D.C., where he is licensed. Founded Epoq.us, a website that delivers complex legal documents to consumers and small businesses.Owns Direct Law, which licenses his

LegalEase Solutions LLChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03722243193872735083noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13579331.post-77917917587697245362009-09-03T09:25:00.004-04:002009-09-03T13:27:17.347-04:00

As we discussed back in February, the seasonal hiring pattern at large law firms is a tradition that becomes ripe for reconsideration during tough economic times (and potentially altogether as the professional landscape evolves).The practice of offering employment to a predetermined, fixed number of newly minted law school grads at the end of each summer is based on the expectation of a

LegalEase Solutions LLChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03722243193872735083noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13579331.post-10511051656075028902009-08-27T12:16:00.008-04:002009-08-27T12:45:13.319-04:00

The ABA Journal recently discussed the evolution of cloud computing -- the use of internet based applications hosted on a third party's server, as opposed to using software loaded directly to your specific hard drive.Cloud computing (also referred to as Software as a Service) is one of the more interesting recent trends and is becoming ubiquitous thanks to social media sites (think Facebook,

LegalEase Solutions LLChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03722243193872735083noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13579331.post-12845816612354428312009-08-20T12:02:00.014-04:002009-08-20T12:54:40.857-04:00

As fiscal years start coming to a close, official revenue figures are starting to confirm everyone's expectations.As reported at Am Law Daily (and discussed at Above The Law), Baker McKenzie's fiscal year ended on June 30th, and last year's 2nd highest revenue generating firm reported a 3% drop in global revenue and a 17% drop in profits per partner due to the recession."The financial crisis

LegalEase Solutions LLChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03722243193872735083noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13579331.post-28920895810331728272009-08-17T10:18:00.004-04:002009-08-17T10:23:58.455-04:00

LegalEase is pleased to introduce our Legal Process Outsourcing Handbook, free for viewing and/or downloading here.As increasing numbers of both in-house and firm-based counsel adopt new strategies to respond to the evolving legal marketplace, The LPO Handbook provides a one-stop resource to help you evaluate whether strategic use of LPO is an efficient addition to your business initiatives.

LegalEase Solutions LLChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03722243193872735083noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13579331.post-46361947366582471302009-08-07T09:35:00.001-04:002009-08-07T09:37:59.781-04:00

Further to last week's ruminations on the patterns seen in other professions currently undergoing significant transition, it's interesting to note that it's not just the similarities but the sheer number of professions and industries currently experiencing profound, once every fifty year transformations.Many, like the legal profession, are being reshaped by the internet -- the breaking down of

LegalEase Solutions LLChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03722243193872735083noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13579331.post-73922984390098993462009-07-31T10:29:00.000-04:002009-07-31T10:29:51.324-04:00

As anyone who's worked on a large project knows, you can start to view the world through the prism of that project. New data gets filtered through the context of that project; patterns emerge.Which is probably why some recent essays and analysis of fields unrelated to the legal profession are resonating with similarities.Take, for instance, a very informative and insightful recent post from

LegalEase Solutions LLChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03722243193872735083noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13579331.post-79801275788270142142009-07-23T11:01:00.004-04:002009-07-23T11:28:45.123-04:00

The ABA Journal has started a new feature they're calling Legal Rebels. Their intent is to shine a light on the current transformation taking place in the business of the legal profession.Obviously, they're preaching to the choir, as far as we're concerned.The opening paragraphs from their new website frame it nicely:In these times of great economic chaos lies great opportunity. The

LegalEase Solutions LLChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03722243193872735083noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13579331.post-42225396475805942042009-07-16T13:26:00.007-04:002009-07-16T14:40:19.386-04:00

As readers of this blog know, much of our focus is on emerging trends in the legal profession. And, at this juncture in time, most observers agree that the profession is in the midst of some profound changes in the business of law.A flattening, global market; legal process outsourcing; captive offshore legal departments, virtual attorneys and virtual associates; web based legal products;

LegalEase Solutions LLChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03722243193872735083noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13579331.post-68192070908979712572009-06-30T17:44:00.016-04:002009-07-02T10:00:14.614-04:00

Law.com recently profiled the growing implementation of apprenticeship programs for first-year attorneys.Notable firms across the country embracing the apprenticeship model include Howrey; Philadelphia's Drinker Biddle & Reath; labor firm Ford & Harrison; Ohio/Kentucky firm Frost Brown Todd; and Dallas' Strasburger & Price."Firms are putting new recruits through additional apprenticeship programs

LegalEase Solutions LLChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03722243193872735083noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13579331.post-54923691791174902172009-06-19T10:00:00.003-04:002009-06-19T10:05:50.015-04:00

Marketplace, a radio program run on many NPR stations, recently discussed how the sour economy was eliminating engineering jobs at a faster rate than many other professionals, with high profile companies looking to offshore their engineers.Obviously, this sounds very familiar to legal professionals.Interestingly, the American Society of Civil Engineers read the writing on the wall long enough ago

LegalEase Solutions LLChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03722243193872735083noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13579331.post-86436747081351495212009-06-12T17:14:00.010-04:002009-06-12T18:02:48.695-04:00

The New York Times ran an article last week on how the most venerable law firms -- we're talking multinational, centuries old, most upper of the upper crust firms -- continue to purge their ranks in unprecedented fashion.As anyone who is paying attention knows, the landscape of how legal work is organized and delivered is shifting beneath us as we speak. What no one knows exactly is how it's

LegalEase Solutions LLChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03722243193872735083noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13579331.post-38277082158027374962009-06-06T16:19:00.000-04:002009-06-06T16:19:30.272-04:00

The unbundling of traditional legal offerings -- which is an emerging trend central to Richard Susskind's recent book The End of Lawyers -- has been a hot topic in these parts lately.The idea of different legal services becoming available in new venues and formats is one that we're seeing manifest itself in a number of ways from web-based companies offering legal forms, legal facts,

LegalEase Solutions LLChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03722243193872735083noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13579331.post-1037581288896579342009-05-29T14:55:00.007-04:002009-05-29T15:35:03.487-04:00

Law.com's Legal Blog Watch summarizes a recent study of emerging trends for contract lawyers conducted by The Posse List. In regards to Legal Process Outsourcing, they write: "Though firms are under pressure to cut costs, data security and quality of work are two key deterrents to sending projects to India. Still, Bufithis notes that "off-shoring is not going away." It's moving toward a blended

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