That’s the generation that basically looked at what CEOs were making in the 1980s and thought, “hey, we should make that much too”. However, there were limited ways to do that with the billable hour. So, they took the law firm culture from more of a family-like profession (where most lawyers make partner and parter is a job for life) to a pyramid structure where those who were already partners (them, at the time) were on top, followed by other tiers of lesser partners, associates, and counsel. Partners who weren’t driven enough to give up their lives to billing also are shown the door. This started with the bigger firms, and has trickled down to where even tiny firms in small towns have multiple tiers.

One problem with that is that, really, most lawyers are poor business people. They didn’t foresee that operating more like a business would open them up to business-like consequences (especially higher associate turnover) and related costs.

Old partners who read this will probably respond with the typical legal bravado: these billing requirements are for the tough, and those weaklings out there can’t hack it. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to hack it through life — I’d rather have time for friends and family, and other interests. A broken family seems to be a common theme among these “tough” high billers.

So, the next time you hear an attorney in their 60’s grouse about associate turnover or the young associates wanting to have lives, remember it is that generation that set the current course, but failed to really realize the goal — CEOs work very hard, but they are able to sell companies on their value without submitting time tickets.

In addition to managing multiple projects, delegating tasks effectively, marketing themselves & their office, and competing in this new legal environment (which may include competing against outsourced services from other nations), businesses must maintain a profitable enterprise by consistently managing expenses, making wise decisions when spending money for marketing, office space, the hiring of employees, etc., and keeping awareness that the revenue/expenditure correlation must be regularly analyzed for prifitability. Our goal should not be based on courtroom wins alone. Our goals should also entail building a successful business enterprise.

Too many business offering a great product or service fail in this ever-increasing competitive free-market system because of their lack of knowledge, or lack of appreciating the value, in business acumen.

Finally, sending new lawyers out into the ultra-competitive legal arena without preparing them with the proper business acumen is like teaching law students case law without teaching procedure. It makes success much more difficult than it really needs to be.