LAW DEPARTMENT COST CONTROL
There never has been more pressure on general counsel and law departments to reduce the cost of legal services. Knowing what cost controls to implement and how to execute them is imperative in today’s challenging business environment.
Altman Weil’s experts can provide law departments with the tools and expertise to ensure that the cost of legal services is managed effectively.
Our services include:
Benchmarking
Altman Weil has access to law department metrics that you can use to compare your department numbers against comparable departments. We can assist you in developing appropriate guidelines and making sure cost control efforts reflect law department best practices.
Billing Strategies
What sort of pricing systems and structures should you require of outside law firms? We will help you develop and implement discount strategies and alternative pricing schemes to reduce costs. We can work with you to use e-billing to analyze and control your legal spend.
Outside Counsel Management
One of the most effective ways to increase your buying power and control costs is to minimize the number of outside law firms you use. We can help you design a convergence program to consolidate your legal work with fewer preferred firms and to align each of those firms with the most appropriate work. If you already have streamlined the ranks of outside counsel, we will help you manage the quality and cost of their services.
Resource Allocation
It is critical that the right work is placed in the right hands among your department’s lawyers, paralegals and secretaries. Our consultants can help you cost-effectively manage your human resources by looking at staffing ratios, appropriate utilization and efficient delegation practices.
Inside/Outside Mix
Determining how much legal work outside counsel should handle and how much should be kept in-house is a key ingredient of cost control. One model does not fit all companies and we can help you find the right mix for your organization.
Legal Process Outsourcing
Should your law department outsource some of its legal work? We will work with you to develop effective strategies related to legal process outsourcing.
How You Benefit
You will cut your law department’s costs while maintaining high quality legal work. You will have more leverage with a preferred group of outside counsel, and your internal resources will be deployed for maximum effectiveness.