Holistic Public Relations

In dealing with HR issues, there has always been a tension between actions that law firm managers want to take in the best interests of the firm and what their employment law partners will allow them to do in an effort to avoid law suits. Now add a third area of conflict -- public relations. Case in point is Matt Nelson who graduated from the University of Minnesota with a law degree and an MBA. He received an offer from a top firm but was called into military service in Iraq as an army paralegal. The firm withdrew the offer. Now, there is probably more to this story and I'm sure the firm was in full compliance with the law in their handling of the matter. But it was front page news in all the cities where the firm has offices and it was picked up by Above the Law and other bloggers. The result is that a large national firm that has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on public relations and branding for both their business development and recruiting programs now has a black eye at every law school in the country and with clients who are supporters of the military. The take away lesson is that law firm leaders need to take a broad perspective beyond what the labor lawyers say is legally correct in making personnel decisions.

Layoff Post Mortem

In 2009, more people were laid off by law firms than in all previous years combined. As the legal marketplace begins to recover from recessionary lows, some of the emergency actions taken by law firms "are coming home to roost." In retrospect, we are seeing that there was a very wide divergence in the manner in which large law firms chose to handle their layoffs. 

This week I spoke with a number of associates who were victims of cut backs over the last year and their experiences were quite different. One woman spoke about being told that she was being let go by the partner who was her designated mentor. "Afterwards we hugged and both had tears in our eyes," the associate said. "She went out of her way to make calls to potential employers on my behalf." Another lawyer who had recently been promoted to non-equity partner from associate told of being called into the firm's multi-purpose room with 25 other lawyers and laid off en masse. Although my sample was limited, the real dividing line between those laid off lawyers who harbor anger with their former employers and those who have moved past the event seems to hinge on the motivation expressed. The lawyers that had been with firms that presented the layoffs to the media, clients and internally as "a quality cull," continue to be resentful. Laid off lawyers of firms that made a point of expressing this as an economic problem that did not reflect on the quality and performance of the lawyers seemed to have the best attitude.

Business Development Ideas

Creating a business development culture throughout its organization is part of the strategic direction of British giant, Eversheds. To get everyone involved, the firm has launched a program of paying £500 ($725) each month to the staff member coming up with the best business development idea. An annual prize of an additional £20,000 will be awarded to the best idea. The first monthly winner was the suggestion that there be a firm-wide business development data base.

UK Hook-ups

The June 1st effective date of the merger of Hogan Hartson and Lovells (now Hogan Lovells), and the recently announced consolidation of Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal and Denton Wilde Sapte (to be called SNR Denton) is leading to a flurry of activity across the pond. Silver Circle London firm, S J Berwin has been eagerly talking to U.S. firms including (at least according to the British press) Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe, Debevoise & Plimpton, Dewey LeBoeuf, Nixon Peabody and Proskauer Rose. While the reception from most U.S. firms to S J Berwin's interest has not been particularly enthusiastic, it marks a long awaited activity by London firms to dramatically expand their presence in the world's largest legal market.   We are seeing a lot of conversations occurring and expect them to increase.

Washington -- a Low Rent District?

Washington, D.C. currently has 13 million square feet of vacant office space (an 11.5 percent vacancy rate). Add to that a large number of expiring leases in 2012 and 2013 that were originally negotiated at the height of the tech. "Our clients are being presented with some incredible opportunities," says Hunter Blanks, a tenant broker and the national head of Colliers International Law Firm Services Group. Even firms that don't have leases ready to expire are using their newfound clout over owners to renegotiate existing leases. But, apparently, the real deals are in new buildings in emerging neighborhoods located north of Massachusetts Avenue or in the Navy Yard area near Nationals Park.

LegalTrends

LegalTrends is a semi-monthly newsletter written and edited by Ed Wesemann, a Founding Partner of Legal Resource Group. Ed is also a management consultant and advisor to US and International law firms. In addition to being the author of LegalTrends, he also pen's articles for EdWesemann.com that is emailed to thousands of subscribers around the world. In addition, he has written four books on legal management issues. For further information visit the Legal Resources Group website at www.LRGLLC.com or Ed's personal website at www.edweseman.com. He can also be reached at 1-912-598-2040 or by email at Ed@edwesemann.com

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