Legal News
Law firms see outsourcing as the future
31/10/2011
A survey of law firms has revealed they believe that outsourcing business and legal functions will help them fight off competition from new market entrants.
The survey of 169 firms by Connect2Law, the lawyer-to-lawyer referral network set up by Manchester firm Pannone, found that only 11 % viewed the Legal Services Act as an opportunity, with 77.3 % believing outsourcing business processes will help them compete with the back-office resources available to new entrants.
However Connect2Law found that many are failing to act, with apathy and arrogance being blamed for the lack of action by many lawyers to explore the massive cost-saving opportunities presented by outsourcing back office functions such as HR, marketing and IT.
According to the survey, only 52% had actually outsourced any of their back-office functions, mainly just minor functions such as payroll and typing.
Charles Layfield, head of Connect2Law, said: “Outsourcing business functions will be the key to survival for many firms in the new legal landscape and the dynamic ones recognise the huge advantages it offers – mainly reducing their cost base enabling their business to grow. However, there is still reluctance by many lawyers who arrogantly assume they can do everything from IT to marketing.”
