Law Firms Go to Business School
Business schools are retooling executive education programs to help lawyers prepare for top positions in law firm management or to help them lure more clients to their firms.
Nixon Peabody partner Kevin Fitzgerald was one of the first lawyers at his firm to attend an executive education program at Harvard in 2007, the Wall Street Journal reports. “When you have the kind of challenges we have right now, [you need] really well-trained, smart managers talking the same language,” he told the newspaper. Nixon Peabody plans to send six people to the Harvard program this year.
Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr has a different focus. Last September, it sent second-year Boston associates for training in a pilot program at Northeastern. It plans to include new locations in the training this year.
The article says these schools are also offering programs:
• Boston University School of Management, which offers a mini-MBA program for members of the Association of Corporate Counsel.
• George Washington University, which offers a degree program in law firm management in conjunction with the Hildebrandt Institute.
• Georgetown University McDonough School of Business, which is offering a custom-tailored course to an unidentified global law firm.
