Re-upped Round up August 24 Am Law and Above the Law on Outsourcing

Steven J. Harper who is an adjunct professor at Northwestern University who retired as a partner at Kirkland & Ellis, after 30 years in private practice writes a column in Am Law ,Outsourcing: The New and Improved Business Model Big Law Needs?.Steven J. Harper who is an adjunct professor at Northwestern University who retired as a partner at Kirkland & Ellis, after 30 years in private practice writes a column in Am Law, Outsourcing: The New and Improved Business Model Big Law Needs?.He quotes the New York Times article and says “Outsourcing is particularly advantageous for mundane legal tasks–due diligence on corporate deals and document review for major litigation matters. What client can resist paying “one-third to one-tenth” of a big firm’s hourly rates for such work? The challenge will be to identify the limits in this and put systems in place to assure quality output. Due diligence seems unimportant until a major potential liability gets overlooked. Document review is dull, but large lawsuits have turned on an internal memo buried in a gigantic collection; a discerning eye made all the difference..He also goes on to add that “With these trends, new law school graduates will face shrinking labor markets, especially at entry-level positions in big firms. But for the fortunate few who get jobs, their work could get better as outsourced labor performs some of the menial tasks that now account for most young associates’ billable hours”..Elie Mystal of Above the Law analyzes this article in AmLaw and writes “If outsourcing catches on, the structure of a law firm in 2020 could be wildly different from the structure of a law firm in 2010. But maybe that’s a good thing. Let’s face it: whether you’re being paid $145K, $160K, or even (dare to dream) $190K, spending 2,000 hours a year on menial document monkey tasks is no fun. If some of these rote, mind-numbing functions can be done by attorneys overseas, attorneys in the U.S. might have a reason to actually bring their brains to work, along with their mouse-clicking index fingers.”