As companies become more diverse, the usual crutch among lawyers who stumbled with a technical challenge — «Don`t look at me, I just went to law school» — won`t last long, said Stephen Reynolds, a partner at law firm Baker & McKenzie LLP. Law firms have been promising for years to hire and promote more black lawyers. Her corporate clients are now pushing her to show results. «The legal profession has always been fairly traditional and not very quick to change,» said Zachary Coseglia, an attorney at Ropes & Gray LLP. «I think law firms are starting to realize that our clients want more than traditional legal services. Faced with competitive pressure from professional services firms and clients looking to solve more business problems at once, law firms – which are among the most venerable economic institutions in the United States – have begun to diversify. Companies such as Microsoft Corp., U.S. Bancorp, Uber Technologies Inc. and Intel Corp. are asking the law firms they hire to indicate how many different lawyers they employ and whether those lawyers are assigned meaningful work. Companies that don`t have correct answers may lose bonuses or not get hired. One of New York`s oldest law firms, Sullivan & Cromwell LLP, has appointed new leadership for the first time in more than a decade, bringing together litigator Robert Giuffra and legal counsel Scott Miller as co-chairs. «Customer tolerance for this is really dwindling,» said Reynolds, who has a background in software development.
«Lawyers and law firms are increasingly open to involving people from other disciplines – maybe we don`t do everything ourselves.» Behavioral specialists, data experts, journalists and police officers, four professions brought together in law firms. Traditionally, discrete law firms increasingly want to be more focused on more clients, especially in the area of competitive risk and compliance. Elliott Portnoy, managing director of Dentons Law Firm, one of the world`s largest law firms, said client demands and competitive pressures have led his firm to look beyond traditional legal service offerings focused on litigation and regulation. Both are taking over at a time when many large law firms are thriving, even as some sectors of the economy struggle to recover from the ongoing pandemic. Sullivan & Cromwell, whose clients include AT&T Inc., Volkswagen AG and JPMorgan Chase & Co., saw double-digit revenue and profit growth in 2021, the new executives said. In 2020, the firm generated $1.56 billion in revenue and its partners earned an average of $5.2 million, according to American Lawyer magazine. www.wsj.com/articles/law-firms-branch-out-beyond-lawyers-in-bid-to-beat-out-rival-advisers-11653739200 law firms are bracing for economic uncertainty after posting record sales last year and even some lower-tier lawyers have received six-figure signing bonuses. www.wsj.com/articles/law-firms-jockey-to-help-companies-manage-diversity-and-equity-11662136442 Some of the nation`s largest law firms are promoting specialized practices that conduct race- and diversity-related audits at leading U.S. companies at a time when tech giants, fast-food chains, financial institutions and others are reviewing their racial justice cases. Diogo Rau, Chief Information and Digital Officer at Lilly, oversees IT, digital, advanced analytics and cybersecurity for the pharmaceutical giant. Its mandate? To help shape the future of the industry.
We`re glad you want to resume your subscription. Currently, the tool is used to predict outcomes for a client facing class action lawsuits, a category of litigation that includes, for example, a variety of claims related to asbestos exposure. The tool can use tons of past results, for example, to predict what type of number a particular complainant`s company might be content with, and give the company a more concrete analysis than it would otherwise. www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-law-firm-to-represent-russian-oligarch-roman-abramovich-as-u-s-seeks-to-seize-his-planes-11657111588 We went looking for people who had that experience, who could bring a completely different perspective and career perspective to the table,» Coseglia said. «With all the attitudes we`ve made, we`re really looking to find people who are inherently creative and have a disruptive sensibility.» General counsel may want to take a page from the manual of product advocates who often speak the same language and support the same goals as those working in the business areas. www.wsj.com/articles/2nd-amendment-bruen-new-york-gun-case-supreme-court-decision-kirkland-and-ellis-rule-of-law-constitution-11656017031 www.wsj.com/articles/first-smear-all-the-lawyers-jones-day-clients-political-agenda-narrative-legal-representation-regulations-anonymous-sources-11663767476 firm then has an advantage in negotiations, said Loren Brown, a partner who leads DLA Piper`s dispute resolution practice. The firm considered adapting the tool to rely on anonymized datasets that include the litigation experience of more than one client and expanding it to other areas — for example, it could monitor and identify potential compliance risks, he said. Mr. Enrich`s thesis that Jones Day is a «right-wing» institution misrepresents the company. As many Jones Day lawyers told him, the firm represents clients, not cases; He has no political agenda. Jones Day`s lawyers span the entire political spectrum and support both Democratic and Republican candidates. (I`m a Democrat.) While the vast majority of Jones Day`s work has nothing to do with government or politics, the firm represents clients seeking to challenge regulation.
He defends clients against lawsuits, investigations and prosecutions, and sometimes represents clients who appear for public office. Market volatility, inflation and rising interest rates have held back corporate mergers and acquisitions, which in turn have become a major source of revenue that has fueled recent booms in the legal sector. The slowdown is putting pressure on law firm hiring, prompting business leaders to seek growth opportunities in other areas, including bankruptcy, restructuring, litigation and government regulation. This time, we received a completely different message from our firm. After securing a landmark decision that undermines our clients` constitutional rights under the Second Amendment in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen, we were faced with a difficult choice: withdraw from the agency or withdraw from the company. There was only one choice: we couldn`t let our clients down simply because their positions are unpopular in certain circles. This copy is for your personal, non-commercial use only. Distribution and use of this material is subject to our subscription agreement and copyright. For non-personal use or to order multiple copies, please contact Dow Jones Reprints at 1-800-843-0008 or visit www.djreprints.com. www.wsj.com/articles/law-firm-sullivan-cromwell-taps-new-leadership-11641214872 Our morning risk report provides information and news on governance, risk and compliance. Write to Richard Vanderford at richard.vanderford@wsj.com you will be charged + $ taxes (if applicable) for the Wall Street Journal.
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