Theoretically, theories can explain many aspects of legal department functions (See my post of Dec. 7, 2008 #2: theories referred to on this blog.). Theories abound for all kinds of perspectives, so I thought I would highlight at least nine of them referred to on this blog. How to track,…
According to a summary in a presentation I saw, researcher, author and thought leader Thomas Davenport maintains that knowledge management (KM): Is expensive if done well, although I believe there are low-cost initiatives like search software that can make a difference in a legal department Requires hybrid solutions of people…
A large law department I know handles many lawsuits. Its lawyers who manage those suits prepare closing reports that state lessons learned. They aggregate the lessons periodically and study them for trends and conclusions, which goes beyond a one-shot post mortem on major matters (See my post of Oct. 11,…
I just heard from Matthew Sullivan, the founder and principal at Red Bridge Strategy, Inc., specializes in helping clients evaluate and globalize legal services through Legal Process Outsourcing (LPO) and related arrangements. Based in Pune, India, Matt has also hosted a blog since last summer, Global Legal. It looks well…
According to an email that arrived today, Connected launched last March with only 3,000 beta members. “One year later, the professional network for lawyers has grown to nearly 30,000 members – including members from more than half of the Fortune 500, lawyers from 98 of the Am Law 100, and…
A fascinating article a decade ago, reporting research on the selection of investment bankers, has much to say about legal departments and why they select prominent law firms. Pamela Haunschild and Anne Miner published their article in Admin. Science Quarterly, Vol. 42, Sept. 1997 at 472-500. The authors distinguish three…
Some proponents of a method to absorb information more effectively urge you to learn in chunks, review the chunks, and test yourself (See my post of Nov. 19, 2009: “spaced education’”). A related method emphasizes even more the benefits of testing yourself on material you are about to review carefully.…
No general counsel wants to be surprised by some event, not if a lawyer in the department had some inkling it happened or might happen. Drop-ins, phone calls, hallway chats, emails, and scheduled one-on-ones are all means by which the top lawyer keeps in the know about what’s going on.…
Five organizations will vie in 2010 to win the favors of general counsel who lead legal teams at large US companies. The competition will be fascinating to watch and whatever the outcome will likely benefit all managers of legal departments. The Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC) leads the field in…
My friend, John Kelly sent me the last two issues of his Litigation Management Report. Both of them are about a dozen pages and contain three or four articles and other material. My sense of them is that readers involved with claims groups, insurance companies, or workers’ comp practices, both…