Expense predictability has been a long-standing issue for corporations using external legal counsel. It comes as no surprise that most in-house legal professionals are uneasy and uncertain about the exact expenditure incurred by the use of outside counsel.
According to a recent study by the Association of Corporate Counsel and Everlaw, the percentage of corporate legal professionals who claimed they were ‘somewhat satisfied’ or ‘extremely satisfied’ with the predictability of costs related to external counsel is surprisingly low. To co-op with the unpredictable costs, 66% of professionals revealed they would be moving more legal work in-house. Above the Law
Transferring more work in-house as a reaction to uncontrollable costs shows that corporations see this as a viable solution to manage legal spending. This change could have potential ripple effects on law firms and their billing models. However, for these firms to remain appealing to corporations, maybe it’s time to reconsider their billing strategies and work towards a more predictable and transparent model that would align better with the needs of corporate legal departments.
In conclusion, the persisting dissatisfaction of in-house counsels’ towards the billing by outside counsel demonstrates a need for change within the overall legal industry. A shift towards a more transparent and predictable billing model might bring about a substantial transformation and help usher legal services into a new era.