Insights

Recently, Legal Week highlighted another aspect of the billable hour-alternate fee arrangement debate: not only do clients grumble about the question of value when attorneys are incentivized to bill as much as possible, but the billable hour might also be impeding women’s career paths.

How’s that? Well, some women lawyers argue that the structure dings them...

A recent study of new male and female MBAs discussed in the Harvard Business Review reveals interesting gender differences in social networks—both the makeup of those groups and the value they provide their members. It will come as no surprise that while both men and women credit their social networks with aiding professional advancement, women need a few different kinds of...

As we’ve noted, more attorneys are using social media to promote their practices and keep up with current industry trends. Such a surge in Twitter use has led to the formation of new online legal communities, according to recent Law.com article “Law in the Time of Twitter: Do Chatty Lawyers Help or Hinder Their Legal Careers?” Attorneys can share stories, keep up with national cases, and engage with...

Some of the bewilderment (or frustration or hostility) law firm leaders can feel about PR probably stems from experiences in which the communications efforts were largely disconnected from business development strategy. If you don’t know why your firm is doing what it’s doing—who you’re trying to reach and how that connection might lead to new business—it makes sense to question whether those efforts are worth the work. But effective communication strategy requires understanding...

A recent call to action written by the Young Lawyer Editorial Board of The American Lawyer paints a sobering picture of the toxic cultures many young lawyers endure. By illuminating the connections among seemingly unrelated issues like impostor syndrome, profits per partner, and even the hesitancy to take bathroom breaks, this...