Small law firms stay close to clients, broaden expertise to keep profitable - Houston Business Journal:

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The partners at the small firm, which has 11 quickly reevaluated their business plan and cost aggressively recruited new clients and reduced overheade by renegotiating their legal malpractice insurance premiumse and outsourcing informationtechnology functions. “Our practice is a bit broader than other firms of asimilar size, and whilre the real estate and businesd practice has slowed a fair bit recently, our businesd litigation practice has always been counter-cyclical,” said partner Jim Bickerton. “When the pie people tend to fight overit more. This has helpecd us keep a better balance.
” For example, the firm wasn’f shy about shopping around for quotes on legaomalpractice insurance, which can cost about $100,00p0 a year per attorney. It also saved more than $15,00o by outsourcing I.T., getting a remotee host server and upgrading its existinfg phone system instead of buyingnew equipment. Law firmes are businesses much likeany other, and the recessionm is leading many attorneys to pull out time-tested strategiees for keeping costs in line whilwe looking for new ways to make Smaller law firms, which are hit especiallh hard if one client leaves or cuts back are trying to be innovative and resourceful.
One strategy is Small to mid-sized which usually employ fewer than 25 specialize in certain practice areas rather than trying to bea one-stopo shop for legal services. For example, a law firm best knowmn for negotiating new real estate deals now has to showclientes it’s just as strong in selling assets, or even bankruptcu issues. And it’s essential to builde a solid network with other firmsz and attorneys in town who can offert expertise and legal services in areasw a smallfirm can’t, said Barruy A. Sullivan, managing partner for Bickertob LeeDang & Sullivan.
you may want to grow into those competencies, but for a relativelyg small firm, trust that your clients will appreciate that,” he said. Most firmx rely on referrals and word-of-mouth, whicnh most partners say is more valuable thantraditional “Our best marketing is the work we do for our said Duane Fisher, managing partnedr of , which specializes in corporatwe finance, commercial litigation and real estate law and employw 23 attorneys. “And so often, client s on the other side ofthe table, who’v e even been represented by someone else, wouled give us a call and ask if we could work with them on an unrelaterd case.
” To maintain relationships even when litigationj isn’t pending, firm partners frequentlyy take clients on “lessons lunches to rehash recent cases and see what came out of Small firms also try to link up with nationakl firms and groups. Honolulu civil litigation firm , which has 11 was picked to join the Internationaol Society of PrimerusLaw Firms, whichh touts itself as an exclusive international alliance of independent law firms. The applicatioj process was rigorous, partner Arthu Roeca said. Even in the recession, firms such as , whicnh specializes in commercial litigation, aren’t afraif to grow and expand.
It has 17 attorneys and two new associateds will join the firmin August. “Being smaller forcexs you to be creative to find a and one of the things that sets us apart from our competitorse iswe don’t look at ourselvesx as just lawyers providing legal services,” said managing partnefr Harvey Lung. “We’re problem solvers. We hire everh year and, no matter we’ve never not hired, because the business mode depends on the firm continuingto grow.
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