Legal project management (LPM) in law firms has an accepted set of best practices, rapidly evolving technology resources and providers, internal advocates, and sophisticated practitioners in diverse practice areas. Law schools are installing LPM courses alongside other core courses. Elisabeth Schroeder, director of legal project management at Barnes & Thornburg, looks at where LPM in law firms goes now.
1. Where do you see legal project management in law firms going in 2024?
I see LPM continuing to develop as a discipline in 2024 in a couple of key ways that will help law firms provide better, more holistic services to attorneys and clients. I expect to see additional collaboration efforts in the technological space, including artificial intelligence (AI), matter intake, and enhanced ways for partners and clients to track budgets in real time. I also feel that we will see additional requests for alternative fee arrangements (AFAs), which will require reporting out about the extra value law firms like ours can provide, in addition to monitoring legal spend against the agreement.
At Barnes & Thornburg, we have taken the approach that our LPM team will provide operational support to the firm’s most valuable engagements. We define valuable in two ways: 1) based on billable fees of current clients, and 2) feedback from leadership on which lawyers and clients would benefit from additional support. The team aims to act as the relationship partners’ right hand when dealing with all operational aspects of the client relationship.
With the blessing of the relationship partners, the LPM liaises with operational contact(s) within the client’s legal department. This support goes beyond providing budgets and statements of work to include consulting on billing practices, outside counsel guidelines, and AI tools, and providing comprehensive client reporting, playbooks and streamlining communication. As the LPM discipline has matured, so has the way we provide support to our attorneys and clients at Barnes & Thornburg.
2. How are law firms getting laterals up to speed on LPM?
Barnes & Thornburg’s LPM team is part of the Legal Operations department, which encompasses rates, pricing, and practice management. When laterals arrive, they are given an overview of the resources at their disposal and meet with members of the department, so we can gain familiarity with their practice. Some laterals are familiar with legal project management and some are not. The department at-large aims to wrap its arms around laterals to ensure they know what value we can provide by walking them through our service offerings. Our approach is more tailored than some, but that is at the direction of Firm leadership, who values the support the department provides.
3. How is technology supporting LPM and how is that helping attorney and client communication?
Technology is key to scaling LPM efforts. Many law firms use data analytics and matter management tools to monitor engagements. At Barnes & Thornburg, we built a suite of reporting tools and software that can be run for our attorneys and clients on-demand. Several of our core functions have been automated, which allows us to function more efficiently as a team, and allows us to respond to our clients in real-time. As AI expands into the legal market, we are working with our clients to sample tools and developing processes within the firm to provide feedback on the path forward. Technology allows the LPM team to produce client-ready deliverables that facilitate client communication and feedback, which allows them to best serve their needs.
Published February 2, 2024.
