Brave new worlds – many law firms are branching out into non-legal services, but will they succeed?
Firms hunting new revenue sources must follow these through with the right investment
July 05, 2015 at 07:03 PM
3 minute read
As financial results for 2014-15 trickle in, it isn't immediately apparent that the UK's largest law firms are in desperate need of new revenue sources. The more domestic-focused firms that have announced their results so far have largely reported sizeable jumps in fee income and profits and the larger, more international firms haven't done too badly either – albeit with a bit of financial massage coming into play to get around the impact of the weak euro (constant currency anyone?).
But these results reflect both the return of the M&A markets and a more stable global economy after years of financial turmoil.
Few are predicting firms to have a sustained run of record results, given heightened competition – not just from law firms but also from accountants and other service providers – and the ongoing drive by clients to push down prices.
Against this backdrop, a growing number of firms are adding non-legal services to their offerings. These range from practice-specific consultancies, to the provision of consulting services to clients' in-house legal departments, through to technology ventures.
The motivation for law firms is clear: if you have a loyal client base and believe you have additional skills and experience to offer, why not monetise it?
But such initiatives are not without their challenges. Both the tech and the consulting markets are already crowded and there is no guarantee of success in this brave new world. Only those firms that follow their ventures through with the right investment are likely to be rewarded.
On the subject of brave new worlds and moving with the times, Legal Week is making its own changes. We have launched a new app – Legal Week Live – which is continuously updated with all of our latest news and analysis as we publish it online. Later in the year, we will also be significantly upgrading our website. And as part of our push to become the leading digital provider of news and analysis in the commercial legal market, the last print issue of the magazine will be published on 31 July. This will not affect the quantity or quality of our journalism.
The move simply reflects the changing appetite of our readers, who want to view Legal Week digitally, at their own convenience and on the device of their choice. We hope you enjoy it.
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