As Big Law budgets grow, law firms are pouring more resources into business development for associates. Mayer Brown recently expanded an associate-driven program run by associates and associate-level employees. Mary K Young notes that every firm is a little bit different in how they develop business.

Cravath Swaine & Moore’s move to raise associate salaries beyond the scale set by its rival Milbank pressures less-profitable firms to ponder pay bumps they can’t afford. While firms in the top tiers of revenue and profitability are likely to follow Cravath’s lead - and several already have - others in the industry are ill-positioned to do so. Peter Zeughauser observes that the prospect of Cravath-type raises will stress a lot of firms. Some will avoid such raises and suffer the fall-out of “more poaching” from firms that can pay top compensation.

International law firms operating in China have trimmed headcounts in China and Hong Kong as a result of the weaker economic environment. Peter Zeughauser observes that the China market isn’t for everyone, so firms need to chart their own China strategy. He also highlights a bigger common problem facing international firms in China at the moment, and that is the rise in sophistication of homegrown Chinese firms.

A hiring spree during recent years left many firms overstaffed. Citing economic headwinds and slowing demand, some large law firms are tightening their belts, shrinking their attorney ranks and eliminating professional staff. The decline in demand for legal work last year followed years of growth driven by a boom in mergers-and-acquisitions work, prompting hiring sprees accompanied by six-figure bonuses for even lower-level attorneys. Peter Zeughauser observes that the demand for legal work “has fallen off the cliff. The firms that were really red hot and significantly over-hired are the first movers to lay people off.”

Mary K Young writes about the process of law firm mergers, the growing urge for firms to combine, the sensitivity around post-merger firm names, and retaining brand equity.

Greentarget and Zeughauser Group’s latest State of Digital & Content Marketing Survey — our first in three years — revealed that clients of professional services firms see diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) as a key business priority.

While international partner promotions were essentially flat from 2021 to 2022 among Am Law 100 firms, some U.S. firms have nonetheless chosen to invest heavily in their global talent. The message from those firms has been clear: Global markets and international talent matter. Mary K Young comments on the rise in international promotions this year and how promotions may relate to each firm’s individual strategy.