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03 December 2015 / Dr Marc K Peter
Issue: 7679 / Categories: Features , Profession
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Dr Marc K Peter explains how mid-sized law firms can use technology to succeed in a challenging marketplace

In today’s legal market, it is no longer enough for law firms to excel at providing legal advice to their clients. Consumers are getting smarter and, in response, law professionals have to increase the effectiveness of their client servicing, the quality of their legal information, and the business processes of their practice.

It is only by understanding the challenges facing the legal profession as we move towards the 2020s, that organisations supporting the industry can truly provide value and return on investment. In a series of interviews conducted in July this year, a number of partners of mid-sized law firms discussed the challenges and opportunities facing their business. During discussions, four core issues affecting law firms in today’s market were identified (see diagram below).

Attracting new business in a competitive marketplace

Finding and retaining new clients is a challenge for any business. However, since the legal industry was deregulated four years ago, lawyers have had to work

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

DWF—19 appointments

DWF—19 appointments

Belfast team bolstered by three senior hires and 16 further appointments

Cadwalader—Andro Atlaga

Cadwalader—Andro Atlaga

Firm strengthens leveraged finance team with London partner hire

Knights—Ella Dodgson & Rebecca Laffan

Knights—Ella Dodgson & Rebecca Laffan

Double hire marks launch of family team in Leeds

NEWS
Charlie Mercer and Astrid Gillam of Stewarts crunch the numbers on civil fraud claims in the English courts, in this week's NLJ. New data shows civil fraud claims rising steadily since 2014, with the King’s Bench Division overtaking the Commercial Court as the forum of choice for lower-value disputes
Bea Rossetto of the National Pro Bono Centre makes the case for ‘General Practice Pro Bono’—using core legal skills to deliver life-changing support, without the need for niche expertise—in this week's NLJ
The Supreme Court issued a landmark judgment in July that overturned the convictions of Tom Hayes and Carlo Palombo, once poster boys of the Libor and Euribor scandal. In NLJ this week, Neil Swift of Peters & Peters considers what the ruling means for financial law enforcement
Small law firms want to embrace technology but feel lost in a maze of jargon, costs and compliance fears, writes Aisling O’Connell of the Solicitors Regulation Authority in this week's NLJ
Charles Pigott of Mills & Reeve reports on Haynes v Thomson, the first judicial application of the Supreme Court’s For Women Scotland ruling in a discrimination claim, in this week's NLJ
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