Editor’s letter

I am writing this foreword on ‘Earth Day’ – April 22nd. It is commonly taken to be the day – in 1970 – that the modern ‘environmental awareness’ movement was born. Proposed by US Senator Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin, millions of Americans took to the streets to protest for a cleaner, greener, more sustainable world.

Almost 40 years on, however, and ‘the environment’ is now a key political football. Businesses, including law firms, routinely pledge to cut their carbon footprints and implement greener systems. But, the Kyoto Protocol of 1997 notwithstanding, it seems as hard as ever to reach a global consensus on the extent of collective action.

At the same time, the fraught journey of the Olympic torch around the world in 2008 has not had quite the symbolic significance the organisers would have wanted. The ultimate ideal of unity through sporting endeavour may remain intact, but the various protests and re-routings serve rather to remind us (as if a reminder were needed) that cultural and historical barriers are much harder to cross than the ever-shrinking geographical ones in an increasingly globalised economy.

Globalisation of the legal profession was a key theme for Bob Heslett, deputy vice president of the Law Society, who gave the keynote address at Ark Group’s annual LEX event back in March 2008. However, this trend was manifestly something to be welcomed from a business perspective. “Protectionism is not necessary,” he explained, pointing out that the relatively recent influx of ‘US firms’ into London had awakened serious interest in the capital all over the world. Further liberalisation of the Indian legal market remains an issue, but in March Fox Mandal Little (FML) also became the first major Indian law firm to open for business in London. The firms Taylor Wessing, Mayer Brown and Kendal Freeman (now merged with Edwards Angell Palmer and Dodge) were also singled out by Heslett for their commitment to going down the global route.

The main challenges for UK law firms in 2008 come from within – regulation and consolidation. Heslett predicts many more mergers in the years ahead, a significant reduction in the total number of firms, and the burden of LLP status leading fewer people to pursue partnership in the first place. Commoditisation, meanwhile (something Heslett’s own firm, Beachcroft LLP, has seen), may well see more experienced solicitors leave and less expensive ones arrive.

Opportunities and challenges ahead then, but Heslett’s main message was the inevitability of change. The “old ethos of professional life” would need either to adapt, or surrender, to modern businesses displaying “a tremendous professional ethos”, he neatly concluded.

Further presentations included Linklaters’ business management director, Martin Lewis, on innovation, and Abby Ewen, IT director at Simmons & Simmons, detailing the firm’s current trialling of ‘presence’ technology, such as webcams, for a more seamless mobile and home-working experience.

Certainly, technology remains a constant challenge; the pressure always there to improve working efficiency, while endlessly catching up with the chameleon-like tactics of an army of spammers and hackers.

The term ‘spam’ has apparently been used for unwanted e-mails for 15 years this April. Billions are sent out every day - clogging inboxes, slowing down businesses and contaminating computers with viruses. It is timely, therefore, that I recently spent an evening with a number of law firm IT directors and Software as a Service (SaaS) company Mimecast, discussing the intricacies of new approaches to e-mail management. The event was hosted by the London office of Mimecast client Ashurst, which, IT director Chris White explained, has moved from having 1.5 full-time employees dedicated to e-mail management, to spending just four hours a week monitoring the issue.

Finally, another (nicer) anniversary I must confess I have only just noticed…that this is Volume 11, Issue 1 of Managing Partner ─ so a decade in operation. I have only been ensconced in this chair for the past 15 of those issues and I’m sure a lot has changed, but I would like to take this opportunity to thank all those who have contributed since the start. And of course, I readily welcome any ideas, or feedback, you may have to help make the next ten years even more informative.

Richard Brent

Editor

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