We have recently responded to a request by a client, a major City Law firm who encountered just such a situation last month.
Faced with a hectic international programme of joint ventures their corporate client required high calibre corporate expertise to travel overseas over a 6 month period. Although a fast-growing success story in the technology sector, costs remain a sensitive issue for the client and the dynamic of using the senior level expertise of the law firm would have proved prohibitively expensive , howsoever the rate was massaged.

The use of a contractor through ItsMyLaw, who not only fitted more readily into the proposed budget, but also brought a proven mix of technical and commercial expertise to the deal, made this a ‘win win’ situation for everyone concerned. The corporate client get the work done at a good rate with the ideal expertise – the Law Firm retains the client relationship but does not have to release its lawyers for a lower return – and the Contractor, one of a growing number choosing the work/life balance career, adds another high calibre deal to the list of projects on their CV.

This flexibility in responding to client demand can only grow more common in this climate of change.

ItsMyLaw will be officially Launching in January 2010 having been operating in a stealth mode for a while.  We are looking forward to helping both the Lawyers and the Firms in the coming year as we all work hard to ensure that next year is successful for all.

The quality of the lawyers, a critical factor in this undertaking is something that ItsMyLaw is taking seriously, since as Alex Novarese points out

..success or failure largely hinges on the quality control of the retained lawyers.

To find out how we are managing this challenge contact John Cullen on 020 3012 0000.

There has been a shift to the idea of bringing in staff to cover work that needs to be completed, without resorting to new hires. ItsMyLaw has seen an upswing in the demand for lawyers working on specific contracts to provide the resources that are needed with out the firm incuring the cost of hiring new staff.

This has been coupled with a upswing in the number of talented lawyers seeking a career alternative.

If you would like to know more about how we are helping fill the gaps, please contact John Cullen on 020 3239 9002

Jitendra Valera writes in Legal week that knowledge and experience management is one of the top four most important strategic challenges faced by the UK’s leading law firms. This was identified following a recent survey of the UK’s 125 largest firms, 73% of those surveyed rated it as either a ‘very important’ or an ‘important’ issue.

Retaining and exploiting the knowledge and experience within a firm, and being able to use it to the greatest competitive advantage, has always been a key management challenge. Its importance in recent years is heightened as the level of churn among qualified lawyers increases.

• How do you ensure that the knowledge and experience of departing lawyers is not entirely lost to the firm when they walk out of the door for the last time?
• How do you ensure that the knowledge and experience of those who replace them is marshaled and maximised as quickly and effectively as possible?

The article identifies a three pronged approach

1. Look at how law firms can best retain and exploit knowledge and experience when staff turnover cannot be avoided. Innovative technology has a huge role to play here.

Ensure that internal attitudes to the sharing of knowledge and experience are supportive. If information is not shared, is not used or is not regularly updated, it is valueless.

2. Firms must take measures to try to reduce staff turnover. This is an area which law firms have grappled with for many years, often unsuccessfully.

The importance of retention is where ItsMyLaw comes in, with the concept of contracting and providing experienced staff to fill the gaps, or a flexible approach to the work that ensure that the talent can be retained, while the work life balance maintained.

We have had a fantastic response from senior partners to the proposition of deploying a range of contract lawyers who can work on some of the challenging projects while remaining independent of the firm itself. 

On the flip side of this we have been inundated with enquiries regarding the work which is available. 

Watch this space as we get into October and are able to open the doors officially.

A Yankee lawyer went duck hunting in eastern South Carolina.  He shot and dropped a bird, but it fell into a farmer’s field on the other side of a fence.  As the lawyer climbed over the fence, an elderly gentleman asked him what he was doing.

The lawyer responded, “I shot a duck and it fell in this field, I’m going into retrieve it.” 

The old farmer replied. “This is my property, and you are not coming over here.”

The indignant lawyer said, “I am one of the best trial attorneys in the U.S. and, if you don’t let me get that duck, I’ll sue you and take everything! 

The old farmer smiled and said, “Apparently, you don’t know how we do things here in South Carolina. We settle small disagreements like this with the SC Three-Kick Rule.” 

The lawyer asked, “What is the SC three-Kick Rule?” 

The Farmer replied. “Well, first I kick you three times and then you kick me three times, and so on, back and forth, until someone gives up.” 

The Yankee attorney quickly thought about the proposed contest and decided that he could easily take the old southerner. He agreed to abide by the local custom. 

The old farmer slowly climbed down from the tractor and walked up to the city feller. His first kick planted the toe of his heavy work boot into the Yankee lawyer’s groin and dropped him to his knees.  His second kick nearly wiped the man’s nose off his face. The barrister was flat on his belly when the farmer’s third kick to a kidney nearly caused him to give up. 

The Yankee lawyer summoned every bit of his will and managed to get to his feet and said, “Okay, you old redneck southerner, now it’s my turn.” 

The old South Carolina farmer smiled and said, “Naw, I give up. You can have the duck.” 

General Plumer to his staff on detonation of 450 tonnes of explosive – Messines Ridge, June 1917.

Fantasitc connotations –

When people cease liking their jobs — and there is the prospect of another, better job elsewhere — they leave. And that is what has been happening at scores of large law firms. Young lawyers have been leaving in droves.

This is actually no surprise when you lift the lid. While getting hold of exact details is not easy as individual firms are reluctant to talk about their figures. The seriousness of the problem was revealed by the most recent PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) annual law firm survey. The Times reports.

This announced that “staff turnover levels are high, averaging 20 per cent for some top 25 firms. The turnover is highest in London and in the 3 to 5 years’ postqualification experience [pqe] category. There are undoubtedly work-life balance issues here.”

It’s My Law has noticed that this is a rising trend and one which is starting to be addressed with in changes in the market and services that are being offered. The idear of contracting is gaining traction with both the firms and the lawyers themselves.