Legal sector research: Highlights from “The Age of the Client” by LexisNexis

Posted on: May 27, 2015

Some recent Legal sector research, the LexisNexis Bellwether Report 2015 http://businessoflaw.lexisnexis.co.uk/download-the-bellwether-report-2015/ obtained the views of 118 lawyers and over 500 private clients.

The main findings are that:

• Increasing client power
  • “A new breed of smart client has emerged – empowered by technology and the internet, always searching for best value and very much aware of their own importance as customers” heralding a revolution in the traditional client/lawyer relationship
  • Most lawyers (80%) believe their service is “above average” but only 40% of private client interviewed say that the service they receive is at this level
  • Clients want more control, regular updates and more involvement and are more likely to question, rather than take advice at face valueService level gap
  • “Clients don’t tend to expect a high degree of rapport when they enter into the relationship, As one client put it “Lawyers are not people people” another said “They talk more than they listen, which is a big turn-off. I judge them based on the questions they ask” 
• Mismatch between client and lawyer expectations
  • The top five things that clients look for in a solicitor are:
    • Clear indication of the likely costs/fixed fees
    • Regular updates on progress
    • Charging system explained clearly at outset
    • Appreciates client needs and expectations when taking the case on
    • Personally responds to emails/calls within 24 hours
• Need to specialise
  • “More firms are going to have to become more specialised. Because there are all these competitors who can do the bog-standard work”
  • 60% of the firms interviewed described themselves as specialist
• Demand for fixed fees
  • Demand for fixed fees has risen but “many independent lawyers are putting off the decision, perhaps equating it with a “race to the bottom” approach”
• Client retention worries
  • “6 out of 10 lawyers see retaining clients as a challenge”
• Biggest challenges
  • The biggest challenges are seen as follows:
    • Continuing demands of compliance/regulations (85%)
    • Attracting new clients (34%)
    • Keeping working practices and systems up to date (75%)
    • Retaining clients/decline in client loyalty (72%)
    • Low levels of implementation
  • 80% of lawyers describe their firm as “actively embracing change” but yet “Out of the 15 changes monitored, lawyers had implements an average of just over five”
• The projects which most firms had implemented included:
  • Website development (86%)
  • Investing in training (83%)
  • Actively measuring client satisfaction (75%)
• Anticipated growth
  • Despite 90% of lawyers believing they’re operating in a period of unprecedented change, “Two in three lawyers expect their business to grow in the next five years”
• What it takes to be smart
  • Smarter firms are likely to adopt the following:
    • Client servicing (transparency, above average service)
    • Information and support (information access, staff training)
    • Business management (forward thinking, development strategy, outsourcing
    • Process: tools and software (tech advanced, investment in systems)
    • Flexible working
  • “67% of entrepreneurs who strongly agree they get a real buzz out of practising law and only 27% of non-entrepreneurs do”