The introduction of Female Mentoring at Freshfields (London-based global firm) is to be congratulated and condemned at the same time – perhaps King Solomom would have a different take on this but here is mine. I applaud: – the motives (diversity – attracting and keeping more women in a firm that lacks the degree of
The Future of Law Books
Richard Susskind opines on the future of law books. 
In his article: It’s a book, but not as we know it, reader Richard explores whether (or when) we will give up law books in favor of devices like the Sonyｮ Reader. PUNCHLINE: Susskind is probably right – it is not whether; it’s when
Mission Impossible: Serve and Satisfy?
Seth Godin provokes our thoughts with a very quick intellectual journey through service to expectations. In his post, What customer surveys measure, he teaches us not that serving and satisfying is impossible but that it is possible to do the former extremely well without doing the latter. TRANSLATION FOR LAWYERS: Excellent legal work is
Fabulous Article by Bruce Marcus features 65 client teams at Akin Gump
(Click on photo for bio.) Bruce adds this terrific article to The Marcus Letter: ALL TOGETHER NOW – IT’S OUR CLIENT The Client Service Team As A Growing Phenomenon 
The article features Iris Jones who breathed life into this concept at Akin Gump. Bruce speaks very highly of her and her achievements – click on
Brilliant or… you decide!
RollOnFriday is making fun of London based law firm CMS Cameron McKenna but do they deserve it – you be the judge. CMS Cameron McKenna is no slouch. According to their web site, they:
* are the primary counsel to 20 of the FTSE 350 * acted for 107 of the FTSE 350 in 2004-5
Avoiding the Nuclear Option
My colleague Ed Wesemann has a very interesting piece on using retooling as an option to terminating the underproductive partner. He notes that the termination option is often used because: “they simply don’t have the confidence that any other option will work”. In this post, Ed covers: Selecting Partners for Retooling The Retooling Process (Five
It’s their funeral…
I am generally critical about how law firms are managed, although always out of a sense of affection and respect for my profession. Even I was shocked by what I read about the management in Dorsey & Whitney’s London office:
But old-fashioned bad management is apparently playing its part too: one partner issued an email
Allen & Overy creates Managing Associates category
The legal profession is extremely fragmanted. There is no IBM, Ford or even Price Waterhouse Coopers in the legal profession – the mega law firms are tiny. I believe that explains why there has been so little R&D and innovation in the profession. That may be changing. According to Bruce Macewen’s Adam Smith Esq. post
Stephanie West Allen – Don’t Deck the Clown
Stephanie West Allen After seeing my post called “Fun in a law firm? You bet!”, Stephanie West Allen has authorized me to share with you a glorious little piece of work she did in 1997 called DON’T DECK THE CLOWN悠NVITING HUMOR INTO THE LAW FIRM Have a look – Download file – there may be
Clifford Chance Managing Partner Too Rusty to Return to Practice
Peter Cornell, Managing Partner, Clifford Chance I admire 53 year old outgoing Clifford Chance Managing Partner Peter Cornell for his integrity and self awareness in saying that “his skills as a lawyer were too rusty for him to return to practice” according to an article in today’s New York Law Journal by Anthony Lin titled: