Congratulations to Caesars Entertainment Corporation on their selection as a “Best Legal Department” for 2013 by ALM’s Corporate Counsel. The designation only went to four departments this year, which puts General Counsel Timothy Donovan and the Caesars team in a very select group of top performers worthy of the recognition. In general terms, Caesars earned the award by virtue of ... Read More »
One of my favorite topics during meetings and presentations with General Counsel is measuring the value of legal departments. In my experience, nearly everybody in a corporation recognizes that the legal department adds value, but very few have concrete ideas regarding the right metrics to quantify that value. The default result has all the metrics focused on cost, thus perpetuating ... Read More »
It’s difficult to find a positive angle or outcome from all the recent articles and blog posts tied to inflating, padding or churning law firm bills. People can argue about whether the story is fact or fiction, and point fingers to identify who they believe to be right or wrong. In the end, our entire industry is diminished at being ... Read More »
Many readers probably have seen my November article about the defects of the business formula by which most modern law firms operate. With recent news stories about abusive billing practices, it’s probably a good time for law firm and in-house counsel to stand back and ask, are we delivering the three goals of the Association of Corporate Counsel Value Challenge? ... Read More »
In several meetings with customers, I’ve noticed some confusion associated with the term “analytics.” It’s a popular topic right now, so the word is at least vaguely familiar to most people. But, if you ask for a good, tight definition of what it means, particularly for the Legal Department, you’ll likely get a bit of hemming and hawing during the ... Read More »
A few months ago when the CounselLink blog site started, we acknowledged that periodically we’d repost and reference worthwhile content from other sites and sources. You never know where you’ll discover good information and new ideas worth sharing. A prime example is Michael Roster’s article, Time to Blow Up the Billable Hour Formula, from the ABA Journal web site. With ... Read More »
We all want to win. If it’s not carved into our DNA, at the very least it’s culturally ingrained from an early age. Not only must we win, but by definition, that win has to be accompanied by a resulting loser. Unfortunately, if we can’t get past that win-at-all-costs mentality in AFA negotiations, we’re all destined to come out losers. ... Read More »
Many lawyers aren’t yet ready to concede that the legal profession is indeed a business, and the ecosystem of law firms, in-house counsel, business clients and service providers supporting the profession is itself an industry segment. The many changes taking place in the marketplace are, to some, a disaster of epic proportions. We may all feel free to declare that ... Read More »
December is here, the New Year is on its way, and folks are already working on their list of resolutions for 2013. If “boosting the value of your legal department” is a top item on that list, here’s a suggestion that might help. Take one hour and focus on that important topic by participating in a timely webinar – “Let Your ... Read More »
Earlier this year, we held one of our Executive Roundtable Sessions in Chicago. At these informal meetings, a small group gathers to share ideas, discuss real world experiences, and learn from one another … participants and LexisNexis alike. The key topic for Chicago was Metrics and how to use them as a guide to make better decisions and demonstrate the ... Read More »
