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CCCA_V3No2_RFP-FIN.qxd:CCCA_V1No1_DriversSeat-FIN.qxd 4/27/09 5:39 PM Page 31 Requests for proposals by companies to find suitable Feature law firms isn’t new, but best practices are emerging — as is a growing debate about whether this tool really accomplishes what corporate counsel need. By Patti Ryan I n 2007, Bruce Futterer, vice-president and general counsel for GE Canada, launched what most lawyers would consider by any measure a mammoth request-for-proposal (RFP) process. Having determined that his company had legal needs in 21 different practice areas, he sent a detailed,substantial RFP to 34 law firms across Canada and asked them to submit bids to be appoint- ed one of several preferred providers in each area. No doubt, that created an onerous process for each interested law firm — but the job was no easier on Futterer’s end. He collated all the responses and populated spreadsheets to visualize and compare the content of the various offerings. He winnowed the list of suitable candidates down to 20, spent a full week interviewing their representatives, and eventually offered three-year contracts to 18 firms — slightly more than half the number originally invited to bid. e law firm That process was three months in the planning and six in the execution, says Futterer — and he remains convinced that it was worth the effort. “The benefit for us was the opportunity to meet face-to-face with the managing partners of all the major firms in the country and their teams,” he says.The process also enabled him to reduce his company’s legal spend. RFPs, in his opinion, are an excellent intelligence-gathering and rela- tionship-building tool.“I think it was very successful, and we will go back to the market again in 2010,” he says. Futterer won’t be the only one.The use of RFPs is on the rise by companies looking to hire law firms for everything from one-off business transactions to multi-year standing contracts. In-house counsel are coming to appreciate the ability of the RFP process to minimize costs, impose struc- MARK STEGEL ture and control on spending, and yield added value. RFPs are also about “applying a discipline and structure to the purchase of a very valuable serv- ice that, absent oversight by a general counsel, can become somewhat wasteful,” says Futterer.“The ÉTÉ 2009 CCCA Canadian Corporate Counsel Association 31