Canadian Lawyer

w w w . C A N A D I A N L a w y e r m a g . c o m M A Y 2 0 1 6 23 discussed internally and with the client, and then addressed. Melissa LaFlair, a Canadian lawyer who runs LaFlair Legal and Project Manage- ment Services, says more business clients who regularly require legal services are now doing cost-benefit analysis. They're examining their options, looking at the possible outcomes, and determining the related costs to help them figure out what they want to pursue. "There's a mature legal market and there are more lawyers than there are people who need them," says LaFlair. "Clients need to be more involved and they just can't give [the problem] to the lawyer to go away" because you need to look at the context of how that issue fits into the bigger picture. She says often busi- ness clients come in thinking they have a business problem when it is actually a legal problem or it contains legal elements. And the objective is to not isolate the legal issue but to put it into the overall context of the business. She suggests a file initiation checklist is a good way to start to narrow in on the client's expectations. It covers not just the retainer letter material, which is more oriented toward the firm, but the busi- ness needs, the problem from the clients' perspective, their risk tolerance, budget, timeline, who is involved, and the clients' availability. That checklist is a reminder for the lawyer or law firm to look at the various aspects of the clients' needs, not just to simply focus on the single problem. When that is captured, it can be shared with assistants or others on the team who may be involved in that file. One of the processes is to marry what the lawyer does with finding out what's unique about that client and getting the two to work together as effectively as pos- sible. "Figure out how to scale your efforts to the needs of the client," says LaFlair. Capture the expectations in writing, if only through an e-mail. Law firms have reacted to changing cli- ent needs by adjusting their staffing levels to accommodate fluctuations in demands, says Volkert. "What that has led to is a real focus on 'right-sizing' law firms from a focus on full-time hiring perspective as well as how to use temporaries or project or consulting services more effectively. At the same time, corporate clients, in-house counsel, general counsel, litigation counsel, [and] compliance officers [are] looking at how do they work effectively with outside counsel and have third-party experts come in to help them on various related issues." He points out that many lawyers left larger firms to open boutique practices often resulting from pricing pressures from their business clients. Operating on a smaller scale allowed them to continue doing high-level work but at a more flexible price point. When Williams launched her firm five years ago, she implemented a project man- agement approach to the firm's service pro- visions to make sure it would be responsive and the files are managed in a certain way. Now, with a staff of 12 and a search on for two more, as well as the development of Williams HR Consulting, with an addi- tional four employees, Williams is ready to revisit the issue and once again gauge the needs and wants of her clients to ensure she remains ahead of the curve and on top of her clients' demands. 82 Scollard Street, Toronto, Canada, M5R 1G2 Contact Stacey Ball at (416) 921-7997 ext. 225 or srball@82scollard.com web: www.staceyball.com Ball Professional Corporation Excellence in Employment & Labour Law • Counsel in Leading Cases • • Author of Leading Treatise • Wrongful Dismissal Employment Law Human Rights Post Employment Competition Civil Litigation Appellate Advocacy Disability Referrals on behalf of employees and employers respected Ball_CL_Mar_12.indd 1 12-03-13 2:27 PM Order # 804218-65203 $46 2 volume looseleaf supplemented book Anticipated upkeep cost – $3 per supplement 4- supplements per year Supplements invoiced separately 0-88804-218-3 Shipping and handling are extra. Price(s) subject to change without notice and subject to applicable taxes. 00227VI-A48890 Canadian Employment Law Stacey Reginald Ball More than 6,145 cases cited Canadian Employment Law is a one-stop reference that provides a thorough survey of FNQMPZNFOU law and analysis of developing trends, suggesting potential avenues of attack as well as identifying potential weaknesses in the law. Canadian Employment Law has been cited by the Supreme Court of Canada, in superior courts in every province in Canada, and is used in law schools throughout Canada. CANADA LAW BOOK ® Available risk-free for 30 days Order online: www.carswell.com Call Toll-Free: 1-800-387-5164 In Toronto: 416-609-3800 Also available online on WestlawNext® Canada EmploymentSource™

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