When Demand Falls, Expect Partnership Clashes and Billing Rate Pushback
The environment is ripe for law firms to trim partnership ranks and keep close control of the equity tier, for large lateral groups to be cherry-picked, and for new firms to spin off.
April 28, 2022 at 02:58 PM
6 minute read
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|The Disruption: When Demand Falls, Expect Partnership Clashes and Billing Rate Pushback
The blockbuster legal demand in 2021 appears to be fading, and the legal industry now faces several headwinds.
As last year's red-hot demand dims, talent costs are rising on both the partner and associate fronts. While law firms can raise their billing rates more, many corporate legal departments have flat budgets. Their companies are facing rising inflation and they are closely watching how associate pay raises may impact their legal spend.
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