Upping the ABS pace

Law firms are failing to appreciate the potential speed of impact of alternative business structures (ABSs). ABS licences will be available in less than 18 months, however, when asked to think ahead to 2015 by legal recruiters Badenoch & Clark, associates and partners predicted that change would be “slow” and “evolutionary not revolutionary”.

Colin Loth, a senior manager at Badenoch & Clark, says: “With financiers such as Lyceum Capital, Lloyds Development Capital and Investec already expressing interest in investing, the industry is set to experience change at a far faster pace than partners are anticipating” (see Comment, p 781).