Social Enterprise, Health and Wellness and the Law: A New Frontier

Carson Porter, Rimon PC, Practice Chair

Lara Pearson, Rimon PC, Chief Sustainability Officer

Inna Wood, Rimon PC, Associate

As the late, great soul singer, Sam Cooke, sang: “A change is gonna come…” And here we are in 2012 and change is upon us: changes in the way we deliver healthcare in the U.S.; changes in the way we view personal health and wellness; changes in the way we look at our collective commitment to social good; and, even changes in the legal structures available to those wishing to develop enterprises aiming to positively impact our world.

Charge for Value not Time: Why Alternative Fee Arrangements Make Sense

A business is defined by what it sells. A fairly obvious proposition, one would think. Well, then, what is it that law firms sell? The obvious answer should be solutions to legal problems. But, too many law firms are not in the business of selling those services, they are oddly in the business of selling hours.

LegalZoom Sued in Class Action Suit for Unauthorized Practice of Law

LegalZoom, as referenced in http://www.rimonlaw.com/blog/2011/05/31/e-law-firms-versus-document-mills, is an online service that allows people to economically generate their own legal documents, which are customized by a series of questions – think TurboTax for law.  Though customized, the product is still based on a limited set of templates.  LegalZoom is based in California, and was founded by Robert Shapiro, who is known for being part of O.J. Simpson’s defense team.

Alternative Fee Arrangements

The most radical changes in law firm billing which have occurred during the last two years has been the advent of value billing Alternative Fee Arrangements (“AFA’s). These billing arrangements are aimed at destroying or at least seriously maiming the invidious hourly billing process, which creates economic incentives for inefficiency. The hourly rate may be either dead, suffering a lingering death or in a simple state of somnolence, depending only on whether the observer is an optimist, a pragmatist or an ostrich.

The Life and Death of the Billable Hour

The evolution of alternative fee arrangements and value billing.

An alternative to the Traditional Law Firm Business Model

The traditional top-tier law firm model is based on a business structure of years gone by. Consequently law firms are operating inefficiently and in an antiquated fashion. This leads to under-served clients and a high rate of dissatisfaction among top-tier lawyers.

There is a better way. By modernizing the law firm business model, and thus allowing attorneys more freedom to serve their clients, firms, attorneys, and clients will all benefit.

Time for a New Kind of Law Firm

The traditional law firm is based on an outdated feudal system that creates inefficiency, unhappy lawyers, and underserved clients.  Adopting business models from other industries, cloud computing, and virtualization has allowed for new law firm models.  These models allow attorneys better lives through increased freedom and productivity, and also allow for better client service.

Beyond the Virtual Law Firm: Thinking Outside the Cloud

Cloud technology allows attorneys to work anywhere they have a secure internet connection.  This provides for greater flexibility, happier lawyers, higher profits, and better-served clients.  However, a pure virtual law firm is not the answer.  Law firms need to think outside the cloud: they need to utilize all the benefits of the 21st Century without throwing out the important aspects of traditional law firms in the process.