1 “Changing Legal Terrain: Beyond The Traditional, Alternative Business Structures” By Steven M. Richman 1 Introduction Alternative Business Structures is a term that means different things to different people. At its heart, it involves delivery of legal services. Increasingly, traditional models of that provision do not hold. This article touches on some of the changes underway in the United States, one of the, if not the, largest national legal market in the world.
Access to Justice Rationales Traditional law firm models still persist, with most lawyers still in the range of solo practitioners to small firms. As reported as recently as 2012, the ABA reports in The Lawyer Statistical Report, American Bar Foundation, 1985, 1994, 2004, 2012 editions, the following:
Solo 49% 2 – 5 lawyers 14% 6 – 10 lawyers 6% 11-20 lawyers 6% 21 – 50 lawyers % 6% 51 – 100 lawyers 4% 101 + lawyers * 16% Most, that is, seventy-five percent of (75%) American lawyers are in private practice. They continue to utilize billable rates, even as more companies are looking for fixed fee or other arrangements. As reported in the July 15, 2013 ABA Journal, ““The average billing rate for partners ranged from about $343 at firms of 50 or fewer lawyers to $727 at firms of more than
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