Legally Speaking – Legal Recruiter Blog

Nancy Grimes, Senior Partner of GLI, represented two U.S. attorneys who were in search of a respected legal recruiting firm which could accommodate them by locating opportunities with an international practice that provided an opportunity for cross-marketing to/from an energy practice for purposes of growth and expansion. They also sought a financially sound firm, well positioned in the US as well as globally, which could provide litigation support in the International Dispute Resolution arena. Of course, a strong team concept where partners were completely supportive of one another and had a mentality of providing appropriate support for other partner’s clients were also key components to their search. Nancy Grimes turned to her highly touted research team who after an extensive search pinpointed a sprinkling of firms which were each impeccable matches. Grimes laid the groundwork, identified firms which were synergistic and optimal matches for the two partners and their clients while they continued their global travels and focused on client demands.

The dynamics for the search were very unique because their extensive travel schedule required that GLI manage nearly 100% of the search. Their practices demanded a firm with international connections in Africa, Europe and South America where there was opportunity for cross-marketing to/from an energy practice. Nancy’s knowledge of the global legal scene enabled her to not only locate the widely publicized international firms, but also to uncover those which fly “slightly below the radar” and offer customized international access that could be easily tailored to meet the partners and their clients’ needs. Nancy served as agent/mouthpiece to the legal market, acquiring and deciphering detailed information supplied by the firms in order to narrow the field to the most compatible, synergistic firms. Once that due diligence was completed, all that remained was presenting the select opportunities for review and decision.

Because of Nancy’s dedication, commitment and follow through, she was able to present a number of tremendous opportunities which ultimately led the partners to accept an optimal firm and opportunity. When asked about their new firm, one of the partner’s commented, “I am excited to join a firm as experienced and as respected in international litigation and arbitration as this one. It seems like it is a perfect fit for my practice, and I look forward to working alongside this talented group of lawyers.”

Grimes Legal, Inc. is known as one of the most respected and successful legal recruitment firms in both the national and international markets. We specialize in extensive career counseling that is unique to the candidate. GLI takes the time to get to know you AND your practice, your wants and needs, and use this information to locate the opportunity that is the ideal fit for you. We utilize in-depth evaluation to fully ascertain YOUR needs and locate firms which match those specific criteria.                                       

By Andrew Lu on June 21, 2012 5:02 AM

Solo practitioners in Oregon have it worst, while 11-20 person firms in New York had it among the best in terms of getting paid for legal hours worked. This according to a new survey on attorney billing efficiency.

The survey looked only at small to medium sized firms with less than 50 lawyers. So the big firms with endless resources were not included. Though you can probably bet those firms milk every last penny out of their clients (and their attorneys).

The survey looks at attorney billing efficiency for firms, reports The Wall Street Journal. Billing efficiency means how much time you are actually paid relative to the amount you put in. So if you work nine hours, but only get paid for six, your billing efficiency would be 66%.

Not surprisingly, solo practitioners and two-person firms were the lowest on the efficiency scale nationally. What is surprising, is just how inefficient solo and two-person firms are, billing only at a 39% rate. Solos are expected to perform a lot of non-billable work like marketing, rainmaking, and administrative duties, so this may explain the low number. Additionally, solos probably don’t have enough resources to hire secretaries and assistants to perform the unbillable work. But getting paid for only half your time seems ridiculous. Perhaps this should motivate you to hire some help.

Sadly for attorneys in Oregon, all attorneys who responded to the survey only billed at a 40% efficiency rate, reports the Journal. If all attorneys in Oregon are only billing at a 40% rate, one can only imagine what a poor solo in Oregon gets.

On the opposite spectrum, lawyers in Delaware billed at 94% of hours worked. New York, Colorado, Utah, Louisiana, and Mississippi also ranked high on the list, reports the Journal.

Attorney billing efficiency varies wildly from state to state and among different sized firms. The fact that lawyers in Oregon bill less than half what their peers in Delaware do is shocking. If you’re a small firm attorney, you should consider hiring assistants. This may be a case where spending some money, will help you make a lot more.

Article originally appeared in:

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