How Big Firms May Bill in 2011: Lower Fees and Associate Time
The economic downturn could take some bite out of billing by large law firms, especially the tab for associates, according to one commentator.
Writing for the Am Law Daily, Paul Lippe predicts a 20 percent drop in legal revenues and a 50 percent drop in billing for associates. Lippe, the founder of Legal OnRamp, a collaboration system for in-house counsel and outside lawyers, makes his predictions in the context of a hypothetical bill from a large law firm.
In 2008, the bill would read $450,000 for partner work, $500,000 for associate contributions, and $50,000 for “other.” In 2011, the tab would be the same for partner work, but only $250,000 would be sought for associates and $100,000 would be billed for “other.”
Lippe says some of the associate work will instead be done by outsourcers, contract lawyers or “proto-associates not on any kind of partnership track.” Associate time will also decline because of better technology, he predicts.
He believes change will be driven by competition from big-firm refugees and by cost-cutting clients, who “have always recognized that associate time is over-priced.”
