Verbatim: What Clients Say
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In-House Counsel Say It's About Relationships
At a time when companies are building up their in-house legal staffs, outside counsel need to strengthen their client relationships, now more than ever.
"We've reported on convergence programs, alternative fee arrangements, the use of metrics, and value challenges," writes Anthony Paonita, editor-in-chief of Corporate Counsel magazine, in the October issue. "You could be under the impression that picking a law firm has become an exercise driven exclusively by math and cold, hard logic.
"But it isn't. Maybe commoditized legal services can be bundled and sent offshore. But the practice of law remains a uniquely human enterprise, and personal relationships and comfort with a partner still count for a lot." The magazine's cover story, "The Buddy System," reveals what keeps four in-house counsel loyal to their outside counsel.
Kraft Foods deputy general counsel Willie Miller says at least part of Kraft's outside counsel selection is based on personal attributes. "We want people that we like to work with. If I'm going to be locked up (for long periods of time), it's got to be (with) somebody that I'm going to be happy working with. I don't care how smart they are."
Miller told Corporate Counsel what sets Foley & Lardner's Jeanne Gills apart from other outside counsel. "She listens to the conversations, to the discussions that we're having, and then she responds in a manner that helps us to get where we want to go."
Perkins Coie partner Lynn Hvalsoe has been in charge of the firm's relationship with Coinstar, Inc., for the past six years. A former GC herself (at Nintendo), she understands Coinstar legal chief Don Rench's needs. "It's very important to us that we're providing them with excellent legal service every day," Hvalsoe says. One way she does that is to realize the importance of understanding the company's business.
Mary Frances Edmonds, vice president and assistant general counsel of The Williams Companies, credits Kean Miller's Blane Clark with having her back. She says that it's not uncommon for outside counsel to curry favor with management, but Clark never breaks rank. "Law firms aren't always that way with in-house counsel."
UPS's Richard Rufolo and Alston & Bird partner Steve Ensor attribute the quality of the partnership between the firm and UPS to a sharing of basic core values: integrity, trust and loyalty. Ensor says the firm's attorneys have worked hard to learn as much as they can about UPS's business. Just as new UPS in-house counsel do, the firm's UPS team spend a day riding "package cars" and delivering parcels.
When the economy slid in 2008, UPS and Alston & Bird analyzed where they could control or cut costs, and agreed on alternative fee arrangements.
Rufolo told Corporate Counsel that trust makes their partnership strong. "It goes beyond just the legal advice. It drives the relationship."
How do you find out what your clients want from their relationships with your firm? Strategic Client Interviews will tell you.
For more information on Strategic Client Interviews, contact Joyce K. Smiley at 561-775-9755, or jsmiley@jkscompany.com. On the web at jkscompany.com.
Verbatim: What Clients Say is published electronically by JKS & Company LLC/Strategic Client Interviews. Copyright 2011 JKS & Company LLC. All rights reserved.
email: jsmiley@jkscompany.com
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