The Price of Time: Should Law Firms Sell Minutes or Value?

“Billing was the lifeblood of the firm. Everything revolved around it. Promotions, raises, bonuses, survival, success,” John Grisham writes in his 1991 novel The Firm. Decades later, fees are still hardwired into the fabric of Big Law where time is tallied and traded in six-minute and 15-minute intervals.

I'm Caroline Byrne, Associate Editor at Law.com International, bringing you this week's edition of The Global Lawyer.

While there has been a slow pivot toward alternative fee arrangements in the last decade, many firms still cling to the tenet of the billable hour, even as artificial intelligence reimagines its contours.
Some partners simply don’t see the upside of adopting AI technology that can surpass the efficiency of an associate. AI could slash hours devoted to contract reviews and due diligence, but if that time isn’t billable, where’s the advantage?
Lawyers and time are like clients and expectations—both demand careful management but don’t always receive it...

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