Last month, I had the pleasure of attending the sixth annual True Value Partnering Institute (TVPi) conference in Miami. TVPi is a consortium of pricing and legal project management professionals who meet regularly to discuss and evaluate the state of the legal industry from the viewpoint of legal operations within law firms. The annual conference
It might sound clichéd, but communication is key to successful client/outside counsel relationships. Strong communication should exist from the Request for Proposal (RFP) to invoicing and throughout the life cycle of the relationship. Client frustration is seldom the result of a single isolated incident. More often, it results from a series of issues arising from
Outside counsel guidelines (OCGs) are a way for clients to set expectations regarding processes, procedures, and handling of matters. Common guidelines relate to rates and expenses (discounts, alternative fee arrangements, travel, and other cost-related exclusions); matter management (budget requirements, early case assessment, and settlement recommendations); and staffing (limits on utilizing first-year associates and more than