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6 Firms Make Their Debut On In-House Atty's Fave List
By Megan Stride
Law360, New York (December 3, 2010) -- Six law firms established themselves as the cream of the crop for client service for
the first time this year, using attorney-training initiatives and an emphasis on open communication to meet their clients'
needs, according to a new survey of corporate counsel.
The BTI Client Service A-Team 2011 report by The BTI Consulting Group Inc. (Wellesley, Mass.) ranks Bradley Arant Boult
Cummings LLP, Ogletree Deakins Nash Smoak & Stewart PC, Bingham McCutchen LLP, Eimer Stahl Klevorn & Solberg
LLP, Lathrop & Gage LLPand Thompson Coburn LLP among the top 30 firms for client services for the first time in the
survey's 10-year history.
The scores sum up responses from nearly 300 corporate counsel at Fortune 1000 companies. The report recognizes law
firms that received corporate counsel's highest ratings across a range of categories.
BTI President Michael B. Rynowecer said that most of the 2010 list's rookie firms made a strategic decision during the past
few years to improve client service and to make that effort part of the strategic direction of the firm.
Simply talking about new goals wouldn't have been enough, Rynowecer said; to climb their way onto the list, firms needed
to implement actual change.
Bradley Arant marketing partner Paul P. Bolus said the firm's leadership has placed more of an emphasis on the importance
of listening to what clients want, when they want it and the best ways to accommodate them.
"I think it starts at the top," Bolus said. "Our managing board has really emphasized to attorneys how important client
services are."
Timely communication and a team approach to projects, which provides more points of contact for the client, have been
key tenets of the firm's efforts, Bolus said.
Ogletree Deakins has amped up its efforts to ensure that the quality of client services is high and consistent between all of
the firm's 40 offices, according to Kim Ebert, the firm's managing shareholder.
"Our attorneys have been taking that advice to heart and providing that level of service on a national basis to our clients,"
Ebert said.
Ogletree Deakins' well-received seminars, e-alerts and newsletters also probably helped place the firm in BTI's top 30, Ebert
said, adding that the firm has managed to maintain a high level of service while growing dramatically, hiring more than 100
attorneys in 2010.
According to Rynowecer, Bingham McCutchen has been steadily increasing its performance in client services every year
over the past five years or so, improving as the firm has evolved through several mergers and acquisitions.
"These are not marginal moves," BTI's president said. "They are major and measurable across-the-board improvements."
With 27 attorneys, Eimer Stahl is one of the smaller firms to make BTI's top 30 list. Its inclusion shows a firm's way of doing
business carries more of an impact on client services than its size does, Rynowecer said.
Eimer Stahl's founding members were previously partners at Sidley Austin LLP, a BTI client service Hall of Fame firm that has
been one of the few leading the rankings since the survey's first year.
Sidley Austin's client service commitment "clearly carried over" to Eimer Stahl, Rynowecer said.
Client feedback surveys aimed at pinpointing clients' needs have recently become an important initiative at Lathrop &
Gage, according to Brian Fries, chair of the firm's litigation division and a member of its executive committee.
The surveys have helped the firm to communicate with clients in the way that works best for them, whether by e-mail,
video conference or face-to-face meetings, Fries said.
Lathrop & Gage has also worked hard to understand clients' businesses and industries in order to help them be proactive in
addressing legal issues that may be on the horizon, Fries said.
"You need to be there with the client arm and arm, understanding what they're doing," Fries said. "You can't just parachute
in on a particular problem, you need to be rowing the boat with them all the time."
Thompson Coburn chairman Tom Minogue attributed the firm's jump in rankings in part to the project management
training partners complete, which he said helps them stay on budget for clients and run projects more efficiently.
This year, the firm also launched a propriety software system that allows lawyers to track project budgets in real time,
according to Minogue.
"Efficient provision of legal services within budget to clients is a priority item in our place," Minogue said.
Given the economic squeeze many law firms and corporate clients have felt in the past few years, providing valuable service
is especially important in the current market, Minogue said.
"The mantra is to just overwhelm your clients from a client services perspective," Minogue said. "Everyone is just more
appreciative than they ever have been before of client relationships."