Rees W Morrison

July 24, 2006 | National Law Journal

Productivity � we know it when we see it, or so say law-department managers. But I'm not sure we all can agree on what causes an in-house lawyer to be productive or how we can boost productivity. Because improving in-house productivity may be the toughest management challenge we face, and yield the greatest return, let's consider what productivity is and what can be done to increase it.

By Rees W. Morrison

9 minute read

April 09, 2012 | National Law Journal

An in-house line lawyer has interests that may not align with those of the company, but there are some fixes.

By Rees W. Morrison

8 minute read

November 19, 2007 | National Law Journal

When the CEO asks about costs, it's good to know what other law departments are doing. Compare total spending, cost per lawyer hour, or even head count.

By Rees W. Morrison

9 minute read

July 15, 2013 | National Law Journal

Out of a typical law department's total budget, 40 cents of every dollar is spent inside while the larger share, the other 60 cents, is spent on outside counsel. Why is that, and what are some insights regarding that well-established ratio?

By Rees W. Morrison

8 minute read

June 08, 2009 | National Law Journal

The most effective way for a general counsel to reduce the costs of outside counsel may be to change law firms. Not discounted billing rates or convergence; not electronic billing rules or bill review — simply retain different law firms that look reasonably able to deliver comparable or better quality at lower cost.

By Rees W. Morrison

6 minute read

February 12, 2007 | Law.com

Is creativity scary? According to consultant Rees W. Morrison, neither law departments nor the firms they retain seem comfortable with encouraging it. Morrison describes several reasons why, which include the threat of increased risks, the inhibition against "showing up" others and just plain inability. But there are ways to help unleash the power of creativity, Morrison says; among them, the seemingly-counterintuitive move of taking a look at what others have done.

By Rees W. Morrison

9 minute read

April 21, 2008 | National Law Journal

Compelled to try to control legal costs, general counsel across the land are hypnotically drawn to billing-rate discounts. I'm suspicious of discounts on legal fees as a cost-control tool. Ultimately, they don't alter the dysfunctionality of hourly billing. Several other aspects of fee discounts are problematic, too.

By Rees W. Morrison

8 minute read

November 14, 2011 | National Law Journal

A large number of U.S. law departments have licensed the software, but smaller departments mostly have not.

By Rees W. Morrison

8 minute read

July 05, 2013 | New Jersey Law Journal

Many in-house managers remain reluctant to take advantage of benchmark insights, often because they have fallen prey to certain myths and misconceptions about such metrics..

By Rees W. Morrison

8 minute read

January 14, 2013 | National Law Journal

Ease of creating recordings suggests that in-house counsel will make much more use of, and benefit from, them.

By Rees W. Morrison

8 minute read