We know that Big Law trails behind the Big Four when it comes to experimenting with new methods and strategies. But the legal market is so dispersed that a traditional firm could take a similarly radical step. Have an opinion? Email me here. Want this dispatch in your inbox every Thursday? Sign up here.

PricewaterhouseCoopers offices in Washington, D.C.  Photo: Diego M. Radzinschi/ALM

PwC Goes All-In on Flexibility. Will Big Law Follow?

In the two-plus years this briefing has been in my hands, the Big Four have been a valuable foil in my exploration of emerging trends (and non-trends) in Big Law.

We've addressed their steady but slow movement toward providing businesses—and law firms—support with "everyday legal tasks," and their disinclination—so far—toward making big acquisitions to jump start these capabilities. We've compared their embrace of non-executive directors to law firms' reluctance to bring in outsiders to sit on their boards, and looked at both Big Law and the Big Four's reticence in taking advantage of opportunities in Arizona's recently deregulated legal market.

And now, with PwC announcing last week that it will allow its 40,000 client-facing U.S. employees to work from wherever they wish, the newest comparison point between the two groups is the future of work.