Things are what they are. This is one of the central tenets of lean law. In any case, project or scenario, lean says to identify the durable realities, accept them and work with them. When it comes to economic cycles, Big Law does the opposite.

It turns out that Big Law has a problem with economics. The nature of that problem is that all economies are cyclical. Over time, in any economy, in any market place, output will grow, then decline, then recover, then decline. This doesn't suit Big Law, which only wants to see steady gains.

The recent years were a perfect example. There was a period of steady growth prior to COVID. Big Law liked that. Then came the pandemic, which Big Law hated, but had to endure. Then came a post-recession boom, when the market was awash with pent up demand. Big Law didn't want to miss out on a cent of that, and that combination led to the talent wars. Then the inevitable decline and demand fell. Only this time, it was coupled with a threat of recession and price inflation.