Collaboration, strong networks key to small and mid-sized firms’ global strategies: law firm leaders

Law firm leaders lent insights for a report on how independent firms can compete with global firms

High-quality work and a collaborative approach can go a long way towards raising a law firm’s profile to international clients, even if that firm chooses not to open offices abroad, Torys LLP Managing Partner Matthew Cockburn said in a new report on how independent law firms can compete on an international scale.

Released Monday during the International Bar Association’s annual conference, which runs from Nov. 2 to Nov. 7 in Toronto, the report gathers insights from national and regional law firms across Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the US, and Canada on strategies for staying competitive on a global scale against a handful of large firms with offices on multiple continents. In Canada, these firms include Dentons, Norton Rose Fulbright, and DLA Piper, Cockburn said.

The report was compiled by UK-based legal public relations firm MD Communications, with information gathered this fall.

“Don’t underestimate the value of being a good, collaborative law firm that’s easy to work with — if people enjoy working with you and know you’re high quality, that really can contribute to a successful international strategy and profile without necessarily having to build a bunch of offices,” Cockburn said.

Cockburn also said Torys, which has offices in Canada and New York, doesn’t plan on opening new international offices anytime soon, despite his observation that “very few deals are 100% domestic Canadian — almost every deal has a US, European, or Asian element.”

Opening international offices “is extremely difficult and expensive, and most major markets already have a wealth of established firms,” Cockburn added. “What we do instead is make sure we have strong relationships with trusted firms around the world, so we can offer our clients seamless, high-quality service wherever they need it.”

Other law firm leaders quoted in the report emphasized the importance of maintaining strong relationships with firms and lawyers worldwide.

David Kaufman, director of global strategies at the US firm Nixon Peabody, said the firm never aspired to open a lot of offices internationally. The firm has four offices outside of the US.

“Instead, we rely upon great relationships with law firms around the world,” Kaufman said. “Rather than open an office that is the 54th best office in Stuttgart, we’d rather work with the best office in Stuttgart.”

Kaufman also partially pointed to Nixon Peabody’s decades-long membership in TerraLex, a group of law firms that collaborate to serve international clients, as “an important part of our global strategy.”

Sean Fogarty, managing partner at Atlanta and Washington, DC-based firm Arnall Golden Gregory, meanwhile, credits the firm’s longstanding participation in the International Bar Association with developing its international reach and global network.

He also pointed to one advantage that mid-size or national firms often have: more competitive pricing.

“That global model doesn’t translate well into most non-US jurisdictions, and we are hyperfocused on taking advantage of this,” Fogarty said. “For many clients and referrers, their constantly increasing prices are an issue.

“Our rates are more commensurate with the top rates outside the US. We are primarily talking with larger UK-based firms that don’t have a US presence,” Fogarty added. “We’re focused on conveying the sophistication of mid-sized firms.”

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