Ben W Heineman Jr

June 10, 2010 | The Legal Intelligencer

Law firms have been moving from loosely managed associations of professionals to disciplined business organizations for more than a generation. This shift has caused an erosion of professional values (lawyers' traditional commitment to enhancing society) and has increased the focus on economic return (firms' relentless quest for escalating profits per partner).

By Ben W. Heineman Jr.

10 minute read

May 18, 2010 | Law.com

Veteran lawyers Ben W. Heineman Jr. and William F. Lee say law firms should not just be run for the greatest possible economic return. Instead, law firm leaders must emphasize other values as they reorient their firms with respect to their clients, their partners and their associates.

By Ben W. Heineman Jr. and William F. Lee

10 minute read

March 29, 2007 | Law.com

The greatest challenge for general counsel is being both a partner to the business leaders and a guardian of the corporation's integrity, says Ben W. Heineman Jr., former GC for GE. Rather than becoming a yes-person for the business side or an inveterate naysayer excluded from core corporate activity, Heineman believes it's best to resolve the tension between the partner and guardian roles. He outlines key conditions relating to the GC, line lawyers, the CEO and the board that must exist for this to occur.

By Ben W. Heineman Jr.

18 minute read

September 26, 2006 | Corporate Counsel

Helping to shape public policy of other countries is strictly the realm of government agencies, right? Wrong, according to Ben W. Heineman Jr., former GE senior vice president and GC. According to Heineman, transnational companies should integrate public policy and politics into business strategy when dealing with foreign countries, with overall responsibility for the task perhaps best left to the GC. Heineman also provides a glimpse of GE's policy practices in other countries, including China.

By Ben W. Heineman Jr.

15 minute read

August 26, 2009 | Corporate Counsel

In these troubled economic times, fixed fees for particular legal matters have appeal both for law firms and their corporate clients

By Ben W. Heineman Jr. and William F. Lee

5 minute read

March 11, 2008 | Texas Lawyer

At the 250 largest law firms, the arrows are pointing up for many associate indicators. But for all this effort, one critical indicator is down. The larger law firms are reported to be losing 30, 40, 50 percent of associates after three to four years � with half to two-thirds of the defections due to associate, not firm, choice.

By Ben W. Heineman Jr. and David B. Wilkins

11 minute read

May 28, 2008 | New Jersey Law Journal

An examination of why young associates are leaving their large law firms after only five years and what can be done to stop this short tenure.

By Ben W. Heineman Jr. and David B. Wilkins

10 minute read

March 29, 2007 | Law.com

For outside lawyers, the tension between addressing the client's immediate, narrow matter and counseling on the corporation's broader self-interest parallels the partner-guardian tension that inside lawyers face. Leadership from GCs and heads of law firms can help rehabilitate, at least in part, the important "guardian" role for outside counsel -- to the extent that it has been damaged by the structural changes in law departments and law firms, says Ben W. Heineman Jr., former general counsel for GE.

By Ben W. Heineman Jr.

4 minute read

October 05, 2009 | Texas Lawyer

In these troubled economic times, fixed fees for particular legal matters have appeal both for law firms and their corporate clients. We — a former general counsel of a major company and a current co-managing partner of a major firm — strongly believe that this is an idea whose time has come. For in-house counsel facing tremendous budgetary pressures, the fixed fee addresses the problems caused by the hourly rate, such as unpredictability, high costs divorced from actual value and, most importantly, the maddening law firm definition of "productivity" — defined as more lawyers and more hours per matter.

By Ben W. Heineman Jr. and William F. Lee

9 minute read

November 01, 2008 | The American Lawyer

One-stop shopping at giant global firms has its limits, says GE's former top lawyer.

By Ben W. Heineman, Jr.

10 minute read