Since the recession of 2008, and with increasing global competition, businesses of all kinds — including law firms — have had to tighten their belts considerably. In this new economic reality, they must do a lot more with a lot less without compromising the quality of their products and services or skimping on employing a talented workforce to serve their customers.
Specifically, “less” for the law firm means reducing their office footprint and leasing costs. Historically, office occupancy represents the law firm’s second-largest expense — after employee compensation — and many firms are adjusting accordingly in several ways:
- Densification: Putting more people into less space — an important step since attorneys traditionally occupy 2 to 2.5 times more square footage per person than in other industries
- Bifurcation: Establishing satellite offices in lower-cost locations — a tactic often driven by alternative-fee arrangements, which are becoming the norm in the legal profession
- Moving support services and non-legal functions to lower-cost facilities