Sysco accuses litigation funder of trying to dictate legal strategy

Burford Capital in response calls the situation unique because the food distribution company breached the terms of the original contract.

By Robert Freedman • March 10, 2023

Severance ruling should be taken with ‘grain of salt,’ Baker McKenzie says

Attorneys at the global law firm suggested the NLRB’s recent decision does not have as sweeping implications for employers as some may think.

By Lyle Moran • March 8, 2023

Post-COVID litigation contributing to high outside counsel costs

It’s not just inflation and in-house digital transformation strategies that are driving higher law firm rates; litigation demand is up, too, say analysts. 

By Suman Bhattacharyya • Feb. 27, 2023

Law Firm Financial Index hits new low, Thomson Reuters reports

Demand for legal services was down nearly 4% compared to a year ago, and attorney productivity declined even further than that.

By Lyle Moran • Feb. 24, 2023

For the lawyers, the Super Bowl can be super fun

Given the chance to help shape the big event, attorneys donate hours of work to ensure the hotels are ready, the sponsors fulfill their pledges and the music doesn’t upset the licensing companies.

By Robert Freedman • Feb. 22, 2023

Many legal timekeepers didn’t see rates rise in 2022, report says

The statistics highlighted in a recent Wolters Kluwer analysis could provide legal departments with insights to challenge law firm rate increase requests rather than assume their inevitability. 

By Lyle Moran • Feb. 16, 2023

Labor and cyber disputes are top in-house litigation concerns

Legal departments are also bringing more litigation work in-house and a significant percentage plan to hire more litigators this year, a report found.

By Lyle Moran • Feb. 7, 2023

Structuring win-win alternative fee agreements

Although legal departments should always drive the conversation, law firms should proactively approach clients with innovative fee structures options.

By Kris Satkunas • Feb. 1, 2023

Legal talent platform launches law firm

Axiom Advice & Counsel will provide corporate legal services to a wide array of corporations while operating as an alternative business structure in Arizona.

By Lyle Moran • Jan. 23, 2023

Diversity of outside law firms not tracked by most GCs, survey finds

Meanwhile, those legal chiefs who do closely monitor the make-up of their external law firms said they have seen some DEI progress.

By Lyle Moran • Jan. 19, 2023

Law firm rates rose nearly 5% in 2022 even as demand slowed

Firms appear to be counting on rate increases to maintain profitability in 2023, but there are signs of client pushback, a report found.

By Lyle Moran • Jan. 13, 2023

2023 outlook: Slower economy will pressure GCs to cut spend, operate more efficiently

General counsel are expected to rely on legal operations specialists to help them increase in-house departments’ value to the broader organization.    

By Robert Freedman • Jan. 11, 2023

Former NFL attorney details his work on league’s sports betting deals

Doug Mishkin, a new partner at Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner, will bring his in-house experience handling the league’s sports gambling-related transactions to bear.

By Lyle Moran • Jan. 9, 2023

6 in-house legal trends to watch in 2023

Legal chiefs will be expected to do more with less even while operational costs rise and compliance risks grow.

By Robert Freedman and Lyle Moran • Jan. 6, 2023

Tackling labor and employment issues with a structured team solution

For legal departments experiencing or trying to head off attrition, implementing a structured team approach is invaluable.

By Charlie Sandel • Nov. 28, 2022

How Hearst uses Priori’s outside counsel decision-making platform

Legal ops professionals at Hearst said the extensive data provided about its external counsel speed up the process of finding the right lawyers for specific tasks.

By Lyle Moran • Nov. 16, 2022

153% cost difference between NYC, Phoenix lawyers

On a national average basis, the typical law firm partner hourly rate is $749, up about 6% from two years ago, according to data based on actual billing amounts.

By Robert Freedman • Oct. 13, 2022

Legal departments want to hire tech-savvy law firms

Companies increasingly desire outside counsel that effectively use legal technology to boost efficiency and productivity, a recent report found. 

By Lyle Moran • Oct. 5, 2022

21 large law firms join growing diversity initiative

Diversity Lab’s Mansfield Rule Certification program features firms that commit to promote underrepresented counsel to partner and leadership positions.

By Lyle Moran • Aug. 19, 2022

Legal talent platform Priori announces $15M financing round

The company connecting in-house teams with outside counsel plans to use the funding to speed its growth and enhance its technology.

By Lyle Moran • July 20, 2022

Bad-deal fear keeps in-house teams from seeking alternative fees

If billable hours go over budget, the firm gets the blame; if a novel payment arrangement leads to higher costs, the legal department looks bad.

By Sam Mellins • July 15, 2022

More in-house departments using retainers to pay law firms

The use of a blended hourly rate is another type of alternative fee arrangement that has increased, according to a benchmark report that looks at 2022 trends in legal department operations.

By Robert Freedman • June 14, 2022