http://www.mpmagazine.com/ The latest headlines and articles Managing Partner Magazine (c) 2008, Ark Group Ltd. All rights reserved. http://www.mpmagazine.com/display.asp?articleid=6552CB79-F4CC-4DEA-93F1-21A90501E2F8 Today’s law firms clearly require strong leadership if they are to prosper in competitive times. But what are the actual skills that need to be nurtured – and who in the firm needs them? 22 September 2008 http://www.mpmagazine.com/display.asp?articleid=F20BFBCB-DDF4-413A-AF13-B98246D11C47 MUCH AS the idea of collaboration may warm the heart, in a service business world beset by fear of scarcity, it can seem anathema. In his new book We-Think, Charles Leadbeater highlights the success of hybrid models that are producing impressive results in a variety of sectors without compromising financial rewards. Leaders in these businesses have given permission (a very ‘top down’ practice) for such hybrids to evolve. 28 September 2008 http://www.mpmagazine.com/display.asp?articleid=F40CAA2F-1B5A-4DDB-BC30-DC6206465C59 Despite almost a year of ‘credit crunch’ headlines and gloomy growth forecasts, chief executive Andrew Chalkey remains optimistic about the health of the economy – and its opportunities for Boyes Turner. He tells Richard Brent why the firm is recruiting more heavily than ever. 22 September 2008 http://www.mpmagazine.com/display.asp?articleid=A539E650-BBAC-4CFE-B8D1-0ABACC17676A OVER TWO-FIFTHS (43 per cent) of UK and international law firms expect they will be involved in a transformational merger within 12 months, according to new research. 22 September 2008 http://www.mpmagazine.com/display.asp?articleid=9C40005D-155C-47C9-92E8-1828800A217F KIRKPATRICK & LOCKHART Preston Gates Ellis LLP (K&L Gates) has devised a scheme to help lawyers leaving the firm for personal reasons to maintain their connections to both the firm and the profession. 22 September 2008 http://www.mpmagazine.com/display.asp?articleid=C82B552C-0476-4400-BE43-B0B6D02E85D1 THE UK’s top-100 law firms have weathered the ‘credit crunch’ in the year ending 30 April 2008, with an average increase in fee income of 13.2 per cent, according to Deloitte. 22 September 2008 http://www.mpmagazine.com/display.asp?articleid=857063D8-35AD-408C-BD57-A952446512C6 KIRKPATRICK & LOCKHART Preston Gates Ellis LLP (K&L Gates) and Kennedy Covington Lobdell & Hickman, LLP (Kennedy Covington) are to merge, effective as of 1 July 2008, following a vote at both partnerships. 22 September 2008 http://www.mpmagazine.com/display.asp?articleid=F76FB8E8-8690-4497-B579-72FFC48BD0DB BUYERS OF legal services in the UK are set to increase their spending with national and regional law firms in 2008, at the expense of the magic circle, according to new research. 22 September 2008 http://www.mpmagazine.com/display.asp?articleid=51F86448-A83F-4E58-A3B5-9B7322005438 While 98% of lawyer respondents use computers at work, only about 25% use software to enter their time... Clearly, something is wrong with this picture. 28 September 2008 http://www.mpmagazine.com/display.asp?articleid=A7332859-2415-4F6E-9AD7-9E5EAE91B709 In the current climate of economic uncertainty, legal marketing professionals are being asked two key questions by partners; can a law firm’s website generate new business, and should you be trying online advertising? 28 September 2008 http://www.mpmagazine.com/display.asp?articleid=E9E7341F-DE51-4FB2-B031-033AB72781E0 “WHY ELSE does a managing partner exist if not to make decisions?” This was a comment recently made at a conference I was chairing. Three things immediately struck me. Just how much autonomy do managing partners have in their decision making? What issues affect decision making in professional firms? 28 September 2008