The New Normal: Restoring Profitability

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO PRACTICE LAW IN “THE NEW NORMAL”?

Simply put, it means lawyers will no longer be able to achieve financial success while operating with sloppy or ineffective business practices. For years, too many law firms have gotten by with marginal or inadequate management practices.

The practice of law is both a profession and a business, but lawyers can no longer hide behind the professional aspect as an excuse for failing to create an organization with good business practices. They can no longer consider themselves the exception to the rules that apply to other commercial ventures.

With access to seemingly unlimited information on the Internet, our clients are more educated and sophisticated in shopping for legal services. Whether they are businesses or consumer clients, they have had to focus more on cost savings and efficiencies.

It has long been the case that law firms with the best management practices return the highest profits to their partners. While careful client intake, clear client expectations, timely billing, high realization rates and strong collection policies have always been the goal, under the new normal those aspects of good management have become essential to a firm’s survival.

Law firms that are not able to conform to good business practices are becoming victims under Darwin’s theory of survival of the fittest. Follow these strategies to assess your firm’s performance and compete in the new normal.

To read more about these strategies, read the article by Arthur G. Greene here or Download below The New Normal Whitepaper to learn more.