WHAT DOES WORK IN THE RED ZONE II. This second in a series will focus on tactics to enhance client relationships leading to future business development for your law firm. One of the highest compliments you can pay to your client is to refer business to them. From a law firm marketing point of view, this may be the second best technique to generate expanded engagements, the first being to perform the highest quality of…
WHAT WORKS IN THE RED ZONE? This article begins a new series on what in-house counsel say helps their outside counsel begin, improve and maintain relationships. 1. Make major efforts to communicate at the beginning of an engagement. All too often, once an engagement is awarded, GC's find the lawyer who shows up appears to be a very different person from the one in the presentation. And periodically double check what you promised in the…
WHAT DID NOT WORK IN THE RED ZONE IV? Attorneys who market and sell services must consider a wider range of sales considerations than typically brought to the table. Following are more examples of what I have heard counsel discuss in this fourth and last in a series about law firm business development presentations. 1. Do not surprise your client with late breaking information. 2. In your own meetings, how often have you observed people using…
Nothing is as important to the success of a law firm as strong leadership at the top. Yet, in far too many firms, the partners are still reluctant to give anyone the CEO authority needed for effective management and leadership.
This article lays the groundwork for those in power to learn how they can help women lawyers succeed.
Law firms are constrained by professional ethics in how they address the issues of lawyer mobility. Rule 5.6 of the ABA Model Code of Professional Responsibility expressly prohibits lawyers from entering into agreements that restrict their right to practice, including covenants not to compete. The overwhelming majority of jurisdictions interpret the rule to preclude less direct restrictions on competition, including financial penalties known as 'forfeiture-for-competition' agreements.
If your firm is not treating advanced client costs as loans or assets, then you should form a plan to come into compliance with IRS guidelines.
This article discusses preparation of a 'State of the Firm' report, which provides owners with an appraisal of the firm's prior years and planning for the coming period.
It's a brand new year ' and, with a little luck and some persistence, maybe you made the most of the holiday season's networking opportunities and now you're poised to follow up with a flood of new contacts. But if you felt like your holiday season was hectic and didn't yield much client-development success, not to worry. Consider making it your New Year's resolution to make the most of events you attend in 2008.
The articles that the Legal Sales and Service Organization (LSSO) has published in a regular column for MLF the past year have focused on a variety of specific topics, like planning, alignment, and how to lead successful initiatives. But they all have one important thing in common. It is the need for law firms to really listen to their clients in order to elevate their service.
