Increasing pressure to identify cost-saving opportunities have legal leaders looking closely at their workloads to determine which routine projects might be lifted from their in-house lawyers so they can focus on more complex work. Contract work—NDAs, MSAs, SOWs, SaaS, IP Licensing and GDPR agreements and the like—can be a good place to start, because it’s easy to hand this type of work over to a part-time or contract attorney to have them complete it accurately and efficiently and at a lower cost.

This option is particularly attractive right now, given the rise in contract work as a result of the 2020 business environment and economy. For example, the shift in the economy has driven the need for strategic M&A, Capital Markets, Private Funds and Fund Formation transactions and the demand is increasing the need for corporate attorneys to assist with due diligence and post-merger integration. A contract lawyer well-versed in one or more of these areas can be a boon to your team, who might prefer not to get bogged down by these time-consuming projects.

Increasing COVID-19-Related Litigation

Also picking up steam in 2021 are labor, employment and commercial litigation cases tied directly to the negative impacts of COVID-19. Employers are being tasked with defending themselves for their workplace policies and protections, with cases ranging from compensation, benefits, HIPAA and OSHA whistleblower claims to wrongful death and injury claims.

On the commercial side, breach-of-contract disputes are plentiful, as so many businesses have been financially compromised by the pandemic. Unable to fulfill previous commitments, they are attempting to nullify agreements, often at odds with the party on the other side of the table. We have seen, for example, one company sue another for refusing to uphold a sponsorship agreement that it simply can no longer afford given the financial devastation they suffered as a result of the pandemic.

While the issues involved in these types of cases aren’t entirely unprecedented, the world event responsible for triggering them is. They can be time-consuming and complex, and they require lawyers with niche experience, whether that talent comes from within your organization or from a contract attorney.

Stronger Focus on Cost-Cutting and Workflow Efficiencies

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