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Alternative Attorney Staffing

By Douglas A. Smith

It is not breaking news that the attorney staffing of today's law firms has evolved significantly from the days of just equity partners and associates. Firms now often have two classes of partners ' non-equity and equity ' as well as attorneys with titles such as Counsel, Of Counsel, Senior Attorney, and Staff Attorney (each generally more refined and specific than just “permanent Associate”). This article focuses on employee benefits decisions and the flexibility of your firm with respect to direct hires of non-partner and non-associate attorneys, who, based on your facts, may be your employees or may be independent contractors.

When deciding to make hires (or changes in attorney classifications) beyond the traditional associate or partner scope, there are two general business decisions to be made: 1) whether the attorney will be an employee or independent contractor; and 2) what benefits, if any, the attorney will receive.

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