Buying signals

Take a squizz at the news any day at the moment, and there seems to be a section with somebody trying to give you a masterclass in negotiation strategy. Never give away your ‘tactics’ – the other side will always ‘run down the clock’ to the final minute, so don’t ‘blink’ first.

It all sounds rather hot-under-the-collar, to be honest. And kind of the exact opposite of what Briefing usually hears in its sphere of business management – that two sides should build up trust as they go back and forth to reach an eventual win-win, where value is relatively clear to all involved.

In this issue, Briefing focuses on how firms are feeling about the buy-side of legal business – and it’s an intriguing time to be doing so. A 2019 snapshot survey from the Buying Legal Council finds that total legal spend is on the rise again after several years of reductions. Accordingly, cost-conscious big legal spenders are seeing the value in going to the alternative legal provider group, which law firms are growing to recognise as compelling competition for their services.

SPENDING PATTERNS

Much focus has latched onto the ascent of legal operations through 2019, but research suggests procurement is still steadily increasing its power base alongside. How do law firms feel about that? Richard Brent reports on firms’ approaches to the most recent trends.

PROPELLING THE ENVELOPE

The combined litigation technology and legal project management team at Eversheds Sutherland – dubbed Propel – got together to tell Josh Adcock how bringing the team together was a no-brainer, and to explain the benefits of building bridges between disciplines.

CHANGING GAINS

Lucinda Case, lead for legal professionals, Europe, at Thomson Reuters, says some substantial changes for teams in the business, like hers, are focused on helping firms to see their strategic technology choices go that much further in the future.