LITIGATION MIGRATION - For years, the richest law firms have been getting even richer, increasing the profit gap between themselves and others and forcing smaller law firms to join forces or wither on the vine. But, according to the latest Law Firm Financial Index from Thomson Reuters, law firms beyond the Am Law 200 (defined as midsize firms in the report) saw an increase in overall demand during the third quarter, relative to the same time last year, while Am Law 100 and Second Hundred firms saw declines. So then, are we finally seeing that gap starting to shrink? Nope! That said, however, what we are seeing is demand for certain types of work—namely, labor and employment (up 2%) and litigation (up about 1.5%), according to the Thomson Reuters study—shifting to smaller firms that can potentially offer more value. Jim Jones, a former managing partner of Arnold & Porter and now senior director of Ethics and the Legal Profession at Georgetown University Law Center, noted to Law.com’s Andrew Maloney that litigation demand is down in the largest firms but up in the midsize firms. “That’s telling you the market is moving litigation down-market to smaller firms, relatively speaking. And why is that? It’s about cost,” Jones said. “It’s the fact that, if a corporation moves a litigation matter from an Am Law 100 to an Am Law Second Hundred, just that movement can save them 25% to 30% on fees. And if you get good lawyers in smaller firms—and there are great ones—why wouldn’t...
As world leaders gathered in New York for the High-Level Week of the 81st UN General Assembly, a “breaking news” post began circulating in Sri Lanka claiming that the country had been removed from ...