Managing the Modern Law Firm New Challenges, New Perspectives

The last ten years have been a period of extraordinary change for law firms. The rapid growth of corporate law firms and the emergence of global mega-firms have strained the traditional partnership model of management. Some managers of law firms are appalled at the creeping 'corporatism' that they fear may result. However a growing number believe that it is time to move on and adopt more contemporary forms of structure and management. InManaging the Modern Law Firmscholars and legal practitioners examine the latest insights from management research, to enable law firms successfully to meet the challenges of this new business environment.

Laura Empson is Professor in the Management of Professional Services Firms at Cass Business School, City of London, and was previously Director of the Clifford Chance Centre at Said Business School, University of Oxford. Her research has focused on a wide range of issues in accounting, consulting and law firms, including the organizational implications of strategic change, managing the post-merger integration process, overcoming impediments to knowledge-sharing among professionals, changing organizational and professional identities, and the governance of professional service firms. Prior to becoming an academic, Laura Empson worked for several years as an investment banker and strategy consultant and continues to act as a consultant to professional service firms. She has a PhD and MBA from London Business School.

Prologue, John J. Gabarro
1. Introduction and Overview, Laura Empson and Stuart Popham
2. Your Partnership: Surviving and Thriving in a Changing World: The Special Nature of Partnership, Laura Empson
3. Your People: Valuing Diversity: Some Cautionary Tales from the American Experience, David Wilkins
4. Your Expertise: Developing New Practices: Recipes for Success, Heidi Gardner, Tim Morris, and N. Anand
5. Your Client Relationships and Reputation: Weighing the Worth of Social Ties: Embeddedness and the Price of Legal Services in the Large Law Firm Market, Brian Uzzi, Ryon Lancaster, and Shannon Dunlap
6. Your Income: Determining the Value of Legal Knowledge: Billing and Compensation Practices in Law Firms, Huseyin Leblebici
7. Your Capital: Building Sustainable Value: A Capital Idea, Stephen Mayson
8. Your Competitors: Mapping the Competitive Space of Large US Law Firms: A Strategic Group Perspective, Peter D. Sherer
9. Your Ethics: Redefining Professionalism? The Impact of Management Change, Royston Greenwood
10. Your Challenge: Sustaining Partnership in the 21st Century: The Global Law Firm Experience, Tony Angel