Short Paper on Canadian Legal Market

INDIVIDUAL ASSIGNMENT – SHORT PAPER ON THE CANADIAN LEGAL MARKET

Executive Summary

I selected the law firm industry in Canada as the topic for my paper. This industry is facing unprecedented competition and is struggling to maintain its client base and margins. I will provide an overview of the environment in which law firms operate and the organization structure and business model. I will then identify some game changers and current challenges facing by the industry. I will profile the law firm of Borden Ladner Gervais (“BLG”) LLP where I started my law practice as an associate in 1999. As of February, 2014, BLG was the largest law firm in Canada by number of lawyers with 769 lawyers in 6 offices across the country. However, it was the only law firm in the list of 15 largest law firms in Canada without any offices outside Canada. As such, I will attempt to identify some of the pros and cons of BLG going abroad and conclude with some general recommendations for the law firm sector in Canada.

Law Firms – the Environment and Key Business Drivers

Lawyers are in the business of providing professional services and like most businesses, they exist to make profits and add value to their customers. Law firms do this by matching their core competencies of knowledge and expertise in the areas of law that match the needs of their customers. In order to be responsive to the market and changing client needs, law firms must be able to adapt and supply what the market wants. For law firms, the key to success is to attract and retain talented lawyers with the right expertise that will allow them to attract clients and generate revenue.

I have heard that there was a time when lawyers charged clients by the number word (hence, the inordinate number of words used in legal documents). While I haven’t come across a legal service provider who charged its clients by the word, the most common way lawyers’ bill for their services today isn’t all that different. The...