Inside E-Discovery & Beyond: Lessons for Law Firms

Law firm disruption is a bit like the boy who cried wolf. For years, industry experts have foretold the end of the legal industry as we know it, only for those doomsday predictions to fall short. Even in the wake of the recession, when some of the biggest law firms in the world shuttered their doors, change has moved at a slow, reluctant crawl.

Perhaps, for the legal industry, an Amazon-esque takeover isn’t in the cards. But even if the Amazon of Law never comes along, complacency is no less a death sentence. Law firms can’t afford to forget that their clients pay the bills and ultimately set the rules. If clients don’t see value, the firms are will be transitioned out.

According to our survey, client expectations are changing. Corporate counsel face more demands than ever before and, in turn, demand more from their law firms. Corporate legal departments have begun to embrace technology—slower than other corporate functions, but faster and more willingly than their outside counsel peers. Meanwhile, in-house counsel have access to more alternative options to traditional law firms than ever before, and often at a much more attractive price.

For outside counsel, this boils down to one thing: Shape up or be shipped out.