In-House Counsel, Legal Operations

Law Schools Are Finally Starting to Do Their Part

Now it’s your turn, Corporate America

By Brad Blickstein  
on

This summer, we’ve seen story after story about law firms raising associate salaries, but only a bit of public outcry from their clients. That’s likely because many (most?) law departments refuse to pay for first-year associates anyway. They realize that three years of legal theory and not much else leaves new associates ill-prepared to deliver them much value. They refuse to pay bills from first-year associates and they are certainly not going to hire them directly. Their position is clear: New lawyers have just not developed the right skill set to help the law department.

Which begs the question: What if they did? What if new lawyers were appropriately trained? What if they did have the right skills. What if they did provide actual value? What if law departments could hire lawyers with not only practical legal skills, but also a working knowledge of in-house practice, business fundamentals and a good understanding of how to use technology? How many law departments would hire new lawyers then?

To quote Mr. Owl from the old Tootsie Pop commercial, “One, two, three….three.”

That’s the number of law departments that hired interns from the Institute for the Future of Law Practice Boot Camp this summer. (All of the 40+ of the IFLP graduates were place in internships, but almost all were at law firms or alternative legal service providers.)

Only Archer Daniels Midland, Cisco and Univar took advantage of IFLP’s Internship Program, which delivers law students with just those skills.

All IFLP interns must have completed at least one of its Boot Camps, whose curriculum includes four elements:

• Introduction to In-House Practice
• Business Fundamentals
• Practical Legal Skills
• Tech Industry

Sponsored

It’s not a coincidence that these are exactly the skills that in-house counsel and legal ops professionals say they are looking for from young lawyers. And yet, after years of complaint by the in-house community about the disconnect between what law schools teach and what they need, only three took advantage.

IFLP was formed earlier this year and is led by Indiana Professor of Law Bill Henderson. It is a nonprofit collaboration between law schools, law firms, corporate legal departments, #NewLaw service providers, and legal technology companies. In Henderson’s blog post announcing the Institute back in February, he wrote “Legal education and the legal profession are at an inflection point where traditional models of education and practice no longer fit the shifting needs of the market…IFLP is fortunate to have an anchor set of legal employers who want to create a talent pipeline that combines traditional training in substantive law with foundational training in data, process, technology, and business.”

So far, however, it has been mostly law firms and alternative legal service providers who have taken advantage of the program, not the law departments who complain so loudly about the need for talent.

A recurring theme in this column is the gap between hype and reality; between bluster and authenticity; and between those who like to whine and those who look to do something. In-house counsel love to write articles and speak at conferences and complain that they are not getting the support they need from law firms and law schools. But at least some of the blame lies with themselves. Sellers tend to change their product offerings when customers stop buying, and customers are buying in droves.

Put a different way, it’s not about words. It’s about actions.

Sponsored

So here’s my challenge: stop whining and start doing something about it. Take a graduate of IFLP’s Boot Camp for an internship, either for a traditional role or one in legal operations. Then hire them after law school to leverage their expertise in business fundamentals and technology. That’s what you’re looking for, right? Or are you all talk?

And until you do, stop accepting interview requests and sitting on panels complaining that law schools are not serving your needs. They are starting to listen to your words; now it’s time for you to back it up.

IFLP is Launching its 2019 Skills & Internship Program at an event on September 12 in Chicago. Or contact them at here.

[UPDATE: please note that Auto-Owners Insurance also participated in the IFLP intern program]

Brad Blickstein is principal of the Blickstein Group, a consultancy helping businesses serve corporate law departments and law firms. He also is publisher of the Annual Law Department Operations Survey, which for 10 years has provided the most comprehensive data and analysis on the Legal Ops function.

Topics

, , , , , ,