Cracks Appearing in Law Firm Associate Model:

Updated 3 months, 1 week ago

Reed Smith, the large Pittsburgh-based law firm, has announced a fundamental restructuring of its policies with regard to associate performance and promotion. According to an article in AmLaw Daily:

The firm has revamped its associate model, doing away with associate classes based strictly on entry date in favor of three associate groups that will have formal training from the time they enter the firm until they are ready to be considered for partnership. . . . The goal of the program is ...

to provide a road map for associates detailing the specific skills required at each of the newly created levels–junior, midlevel, and senior associates. Associates won’t be able to move to the next tier until they have met those requirements. Compensation will be tied to those competencies by 2011 as well.

Reed Smith’s new competency model covers four main areas–legal skills, citizenship, business skills, and clients–with a focus on nine core competencies within those areas. Those competencies include mastering fundamental legal skills, support of the firm’s culture, demonstration of leadership and business skills, and understanding and effectively managing client needs.

Each of the three associate levels will be tied to an “academy.” The firm will continue its “Reed Smith University,” which already offers 140 in-house courses. The new program will expand that training with courses and other opportunities tailored to the nine core competencies.

Or, as the headline in the Philadelphia Business Journal has it: “Reed Smith’s New Personnel Policy Allows it to Ditch Automatic Pay Raises.” Now that’s getting to the heart of the matter!

It’s hard to say whether this is an important departure from the standard model, or just an aberration — time will tell. But it’s a bold move; I wish them well with it, and hope that it is a harbinger of fundamental changes in the relationship between law firm associates and their employers, changes that are surely long overdue. Nobody who spends ten minutes looking at the way law firms are organized (including the way that associates are compensated) would conclude that the model makes a great deal of sense or achieves much in the way of efficiency. Change is undoubtedly coming, spurred on, predictably enough, by economic stress, and to my eye the Reed Smith experiment looks like it makes a good deal of sense. Compensation is, after all, supposed to bear some relationship — a close relationship, in a competitive market — to the actual skills that individuals possess and the manner in which they can deliver value to firm clients; tying that compensation rigidly to associate seniority makes about as much sense for law firm associates as it does for elementary school teachers, i.e., none at all.

In addition, to the eyes of a law professor — at least, to the eyes of this law professor — there could be some serious implications (and tremendous opportunities) for law schools here. Plenty of people have been complaining in the last decade or so about the fact that law schools do a poor job of preparing their students for the actual tasks they will be called upon to undertake as practicing lawyers. Much of that criticism is, in my opinion, well-deserved; there are many, many ways in which we could do a better job at helping our students develop the skills they’ll need to practice law. At the same time, teaching anything well is damned hard, and many law schools have lots of people working there who do it damned well. Reed Smith, according to the article and its press release, already offers 140 in-house courses, and will be expanding those offerings in the future as part of the implementation of this new training and promotion policy. Now, I’m sure that there are lots and lots of things that lawyers at Reed Smith can teach better than your average law professor; but I’m also certain that there are lots and lots of things I and my colleagues can teach more effectively than they can. Teaching is damned hard — ask anyone who does it well. If this Reed Smith experiment catches on — if, say, 20% of the large law firms in this country each start to offer hundreds of courses in-house, that’s a whole lot of new courses. If I were running a law school, I’d be looking for ways to collaborate in all of that, because it’s smack in the middle of our “core competencies”; and if I were running a law firm, I’d be really interested in hearing what the law schools have to say, and to think about ways in which the law schools could help them get where they want to get, for the same reason.

38 comments on this story

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nikiblack 3 months, 1 week ago on Twitter

"The Volokh Conspiracy » Cracks Appearing in Law Firm Associate Model:" ( http://bit.ly/2n2SWw )

wiselawlibrary 3 months, 1 week ago on Twitter

Cracks Appearing in Law Firm Associate Model: "some serious implications (and tremendous opportunities) for law schools." http://ow.ly/ynNW

Thomas DelRosario 3 months, 1 week ago on Twitter

The Volokh Conspiracy discusses changes to the Big Law model http://bit.ly/Xuejj

recruitermanbob 3 months, 1 week ago on Twitter

The Volokh Conspiracy » Blog Archive » Cracks Appearing in Law ...: Making money for the firm is very different.. http://bit.ly/1o743L

BobRast1 3 months, 1 week ago on Twitter

The Volokh Conspiracy » Blog Archive » Cracks Appearing in Law ...: Making money for the firm is very different.. http://bit.ly/315v6e

uberVU - social comments 3 months, 1 week ago on Wordpress

Social comments and analytics for this post...

This post was mentioned on Twitter by omarharedeye: “Cracks Appearing in Law Firm Associate Model” http://bit.ly/bqM72 Guess what’s going to fill it?...

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Blogvertize 3 months, 1 week ago on Twitter

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Mike McDougal 3 months, 1 week ago on Wordpress

Philosopher: I think that the average litigator would do a better job of teaching practical nuts-and-bolts litigation skills, for example, than a law school professor.

The three best professors I had in law school were practicing adjuncts. And their classes weren’t “nuts and bolts” classes. They were fairly normal upper class courses.

I wouldn’t say I had any truly bad professors ... See all content Hide content

Careless 3 months, 1 week ago on Wordpress

(bar exam, of course. A bar school graduate got me drunk earlier)

Careless 3 months, 1 week ago on Wordpress

Ok, I’ll ask as someone on the outside: how big is the difference between law school education, bar school requirements, and the law firm job requirements that follow? In other words, if there’s a disconnect between law school and the employers, is it because of the bar exam, or aside from it?

Cornellian 3 months, 1 week ago on Wordpress

but I’m also certain that there are lots and lots of things I and my colleagues can teach more effectively than they can.

If by “things” you mean something relevant to legal practice, then I’m wracking my brains trying to think of what those things might be. Most of the law professors I’ve met know almost nothing about legal practice.

Cornellian 3 months, 1 week ago on Wordpress

The big firm business model is certainly broken, but lockstep associate compensation isn’t the reason.

Tweets that mention The Volokh Conspiracy » Blog Archive » Cracks Appearing in Law Firm Associate Model: -- Topsy.com 3 months, 1 week ago on Wordpress

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Passionatematch 3 months, 1 week ago on Twitter

The Volokh Conspiracy » Blog Archive » Cracks Appearing in Law ...: But it's a bold move; I wish them well .. http://bit.ly/2iTmrt

yankee 3 months, 1 week ago on Wordpress

David Bernstein: A lot of these problems would be resolved if law school were part of a 4 or 5 year undergrad degree, with training like a residency expected thereafter for a year or two.

Wow, a rare point on which I agree with David Bernstein!

RR 3 months, 1 week ago on Wordpress

yankee:

You forgot to mention: much lower standards for publication.Very little of what passes for legal scholarship would withstand peer review in a journal of political science, public policy, economics, sociology, or political philosophy.

So true. One of my classmates had a PhD in a non-science discipline and was constantly appalled at what passed for scholarship, even at Chicago ... See all content Hide content

David Bernstein 3 months, 1 week ago on Wordpress

A lot of these problems would be resolved if law school were part of a 4 or 5 year undergrad degree, with training like a residency expected thereafter for a year or two.

ArrowSmith 3 months, 1 week ago on Wordpress

That assumes that law schools are trying to do that; they aren’t. Maybe they should be, but they aren’t. Law schools don’t think of themselves as trade schools.

Well maybe they think of themselves way too highly. What do they think they’re turning out artists?

Adult Video XXX 3 months, 1 week ago on Twitter

The Volokh Conspiracy » Blog Archive » Cracks Appearing in Law ...: Much of that criticism is, in my opinion, w.. http://bit.ly/1o743L

U. Ill. grad 3 months, 1 week ago on Wordpress

Plenty of people have been complaining in the last decade or so about the fact that law schools do a poor job of preparing their students for the actual tasks they will be called upon to undertake as practicing lawyers.

Last decade? I was complaining in the 1970s.

David Nieporent 3 months, 1 week ago on Wordpress

You mean law schools have three years to teach students core competencies and can’t do it? Whose idea was it to come up with a useless curriculum?

Not that this is news to anyone, but frankly, any teaching program that fails to deliver needed basics in three years is by any account a failure. And an expensive one at that.

That assumes that law schools are trying to do that; they aren’t ... See all content Hide content

yankee 3 months, 1 week ago on Wordpress

RR: What I gathered from it is that there are lot of law professors who essentially should be in the political science or public policy schools but don’t want to deal with the trouble of, you know, actually putting in the work of getting a PhD. Law prof: Less up-front work, and more prestige / higher pay than your grad school colleagues. What’s not to like?

You forgot to mention: much lower ... See all content Hide content

RR 3 months, 1 week ago on Wordpress

At my alma mater (Chicago), one of the most popular young professors (who’s no longer there) gave a talk on his view of the future of legal education. His view was that law schools should sort themselves into two categories: trade schools and post-graduate schools for the training of academics. He left no question that he preferred the latter.

What I gathered from it is that there are lot ... See all content Hide content

matt c 3 months, 1 week ago on Wordpress

oh please, lawyering is incredibly easy...which is why so many paralegals and secretaries do half the work. teaching legal strategy is the hard part and it comes from going to hearings, not writing briefs or doing legal research or having attended three years of classes.

frankly, the idea that good lawyering is hard to come by is ridiculous and only serves to venerate the legal profession ... See all content Hide content

theobromophile 3 months, 1 week ago on Wordpress

Associates won’t be able to move to the next tier until they have met those requirements. Compensation will be tied to those competencies by 2011 as well.

Currently, one of the few (or only) indicators of merit that law firms have, or seem to use, is alma mater and law review membership. While those things certainly indicate intelligence and diligence, they don’t always translate into good ... See all content Hide content

Mark Field 3 months, 1 week ago on Wordpress

I think that the average litigator would do a better job of teaching practical nuts-and-bolts litigation skills, for example, than a law school professor.

You’d think so, but a lot of adjunct profs aren’t very good. Teaching is itself a skill, and not an easy one to learn. Neither professors — mostly hired for their scholarship, as already noted — nor partners (good at generating business ... See all content Hide content

clean2green 3 months, 1 week ago on Twitter

The Volokh Conspiracy » Blog Archive » Cracks Appearing in Law ...: The firm has revamped its associate model, .. http://bit.ly/1nQIf4

Philosopher 3 months, 1 week ago on Wordpress

Law professors aren’t hired based upon their ability to teach. They’re hired based upon their scholarship.

I think that the average litigator would do a better job of teaching practical nuts-and-bolts litigation skills, for example, than a law school professor. Similarly, partners at a firm are probably just as good, if not better, at teaching associates what they need to know about a typical ... See all content Hide content

Randy 3 months, 1 week ago on Wordpress

You mean law schools have three years to teach students core competencies and can’t do it? Whose idea was it to come up with a useless curriculum?

Not that this is news to anyone, but frankly, any teaching program that fails to deliver needed basics in three years is by any account a failure. And an expensive one at that.

I agree that teaching the business end of law school is outside ... See all content Hide content

Mike McDougal 3 months, 1 week ago on Wordpress

yankee: The real purpose of this change is to drive down average associate compensation by making compensation less transparent.

I’m not so sure it’s the purpose, but it’s at least one likely side effect.

Duffy Pratt 3 months, 1 week ago on Wordpress

Claiming to teach particular legal business related skills has another advantage for the firm. It offers something to prospective associates that they can take with them when they get the boot. If they can market this aspect properly to prospective associates, they may be in a position to pay them less up front, and then kick them out earlier when they don’t meet whatever standards they put into place . ... See all content Hide content

practicing lawyer 3 months, 1 week ago on Wordpress

Law schools do a great job at teaching law, and a bad job at teaching law practice– perhaps in many ways this is unavoidable. But I doubt that traditional legal academics would be able to help a firm with programs like this, other than in CLE-type courses.

The courses dealing with client relations, rainmaking, and the like– heck, even the parts about the ins-and-outs of daily practice– are ... See all content Hide content

yankee 3 months, 1 week ago on Wordpress

Compensation is, after all, supposed to bear some relationship — a close relationship, in a competitive market — to the actual skills that individuals possess and the manner in which they can deliver value to firm clients

It is? I thought it was supposed to bear a relationship to supply and demand, which has only a tenuous relationship to “the manner in which they can deliver value to firm ... See all content Hide content

Mike McDougal 3 months, 1 week ago on Wordpress

but I’m also certain that there are lots and lots of things I and my colleagues can teach more effectively than they can.

Like . . .

omarharedeye 3 months, 1 week ago on Twitter

"Cracks Appearing in Law Firm Associate Model" http://bit.ly/bqM72 Guess what's going to fill it?

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