The catalyst to transformation in the legal industry will be more radical than the adoption of artificial intelligence or other trendy technologies. Practice disruption—a project management-centric approach—can replace a law firm’s top-down structure and rigid mindset. Firms that don’t embrace it risk being left behind.
Legacy Model
The centuries-old law firm model has partners at the apex and overworked associates forming the base. Associates often find themselves reporting to multiple partners—a recipe for stress as they complete 60-plus-hour workweeks. This contrasts with industries where a project manager is the first line of defense between producers and new work.
Non-lawyer staff could theoretically bridge this gap, but those professionals are generally viewed as back-office staff, not vital leaders. It’s no surprise that hungry, business-minded college grads aren’t lining up to apply for jobs at law firms. The burnout caused by the traditional model isn’t just a problem for lawyers; it’s also a problem for clients. When lawyers are spread too thin, they can’t devote the attention necessary to deep legal work, so quality suffers.
When lawyers oversee workflow management, client matters languish. Overextended lawyers serve as the primary contact, and clients are burdened with the responsibility of repeatedly asking for status updates.
A Better Way
During my first career in advertising at a 200-person agency, senior management picked me, a fresh college graduate, to join a brainstorming meeting for a major brand. This inclusiveness fostered a creative culture, generating the best ideas for clients and energizing young professionals.
When I entered the legal profession and experienced its top-down structure and rigid mindset, I recognized that it didn’t have to be this way. Inspired by my previous experience, my law partner and I reimagined our law firm.
Practice Disruption
Practice disruption flips the old paradigm. We rejected the culture of elitism, elevated non-lawyer staff, and replaced organized chaos with carefully crafted processes. Our firm employs project managers (PMs) instead of paralegals. Lawyers are organized into PM-led teams, not lawyer-run practice groups. PMs lead weekly team meetings to align on client priorities and determine who needs support, fostering cross-team collaboration based on client needs.
Elevating PMs into leadership roles is often criticized as being incompatible with a lawyer’s duty to supervise. However, this view perpetuates a culture of ego and classism. Empowering non-lawyer staff with agency and leadership doesn’t undermine legal responsibilities. Instead, treating PMs as leaders facilitates efficient operations, enabling lawyers to focus on deep legal thinking.
Disrupt or Die
Burnout pervades the legal profession, with a 2023 Bloomberg Law study finding that lawyers feel burnt out almost half the time, unable to disconnect from work. Associates are increasingly viewing the traditional career path as a futile pursuit. The pyramid won’t stand if its base crumbles.
Clients are also affected by poor communication and lack of progress. According to the American Bar Association, poor communication is one of the top reasons clients file complaints about their lawyers. Early adopters of practice disruption are demonstrating that there is a better way—one that positions PMs as internal advocates for clients.
Clients no longer have to act as their own PMs. Lawyers and clients shouldn’t settle for the traditional law firm paradigm. Instead, law firms should lead the charge in practice disruption to avoid being left behind.
This article does not necessarily reflect the opinion of Bloomberg Industry Group, Inc., the publisher of Bloomberg Law and Bloomberg Tax, or its owners.
For more on this topic, you can refer to the original article by Jordan Teague, a founding partner at Campbell Teague, on Bloomberg Law.