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CCCA_V4No4_ClientRevolution-FIN.qxd:CCCA_V1No1_DriversSeat-FIN.qxd 10/27/10 3:20 PM Page 33 “[DuPont] taught us a huge amount,in terms of the techniques not competition for every file,” he points out. Feature of budgeting and early case assessment and mitigation and impor- “What too many general counsel are fearful of doing is making tance of diversity and the importance of technology,” says Smith, a commitment for more than a short period or a complex matter whose firm adopted the model 12 years ago.“Eversheds took what at a time. They fail to commit.That is the single biggest internal it learned from its expe-rience with DuPont and built its own barrier in legal departments to doing new forms of business proprietary global account management system. arrangements with law firms.” “We collate all this information we’ve got on all these different It remains to be seen whether the return to economic prosper- cases in different countries, and feed that onto an extranet in the ity, whenever it occurs, will follow a different path than in past standard form,”says Smith.“We and the general counsel can mon- recessions. Back then, law firms would typically wait out tough itor at any time how many matters we’ve got on, what the budget economic times by keeping their heads down until business is, and how spending compares to the budget. It’s a very sophisti- returned to normal.But today,there’s a growing sense that the“old cated financial management tool that assists us in controlling and normal” is gone for good and the “new normal” will be the tem- reducing cost.” plate for years to come, if not decades. Smith describes the current climate that traditional law firms are facing as “the perfect storm.” A permanent revolution? Globalization, technology and an available pool of talent in low- Skeptics will argue that we’ve heard all this before and we’ll hear cost jurisdictions are conspiring to force global firms to rethink their it all again.Trends come and trends go, but law firms inevitably service delivery and pricing. CFOs, sometimes with the help of will continue to hold the upper hand and dictate the terms of their procurement professionals, are demanding that legal depart- relationships with their corporate clients. They point out that ment budgets be kept under control,if not cut back.And corporate tighter control over legal spend has been a topic of conversation counsel, Smith adds, are sharing information among themselves, for years without ever translating into reality. “making comparisons and making that information public. While the evidence against the skeptics is mounting, GCs are “Over the next few years,buying legal services will be very sim- still advised to proceed with some caution. Richard Stock of ilar to looking atTripAdvisor,or looking on the internet for restau- Catalyst Consulting warns law departments against the urge to rant reviews and hotel reviews.”That’s a whole new world for cor- foster too much competition among outside law firms,particular- porate counsel and the law firms that want to serve them. ly when they have the upper hand in these economic times. “Competition among your very best primary firms is healthy, but Yves Faguy is the senior editor of CCCA Magazine. Ainsi, « ils comprennent l’environnement de des fusions et acquisitions, ont été exclus. Tendance durable? ces firmes parce qu’ils y ont travaillé »,estime Tout de même, Tyco a laissé tomber 285 Reste à voir si le retour à la prospérité Kevin Derbyshire, conseil général chez E.I. firmes au profit de son nouveau partenaire. suivra un chemin différent que lors des DuPont Canada Company. « C’était un grand défi, se souvient M e récessions passées, lorsque des firmes ont À ces facteurs s’ajoute un marché légal Smith. Nous avons eu une période de baissé la tête pour attendre la fin des temps caractérisé par une compétition de plus lune de miel, puis les roues du chariot ont durs,jusqu’à ce que les choses retournent à en plus globale. Au Royaume-Uni, des commencé à trembler. Ni l’un ni l’autre la normale. firmes ouvrent la voie de cette adaptation n’avions travaillé dans ce genre de parte- Paul Smith ne croit pas que ce sera le à un nouvel ordre des choses. C’est le cas nariat auparavant – nous étions chargés cas. Les conseillers juridiques internes se de plusieurs firmes, dont Eversheds, qui a du travail de 285 autres firmes, incluant le parlent, dit-il, « et ils comparent et ren- été particulièrement habile à monopoliser droit du travail, le droit commercial, le dent ces informations publiques ». des clients majeurs à travers le monde. droit immobilier,et ce,à un taux fixe,dans « Je pense que vous pourrez voir qu’au En 2007, Eversheds a signé une entente 29 pays. C’était très ambitieux. » cours des prochaines années,d’acheter des de 10 millions de livres avec le con- Aujourd’hui, Eversheds couvre 65 pays services légaux deviendra très similaire à glomérat d’ingénierie Tyco, afin d’agir pour l’entreprise et a convaincu d’autres jeter un coup d’œil à TripAdvisor ou de comme son unique fournisseur de services géants, dont Samsung et Akzo Nobel, surfer sur le web pour trouver des cri- légaux. Certains projets majeurs, comme de l’imiter. tiques de restaurants ou d’hôtels. » HIVER 2010 CCCA Canadian Corporate Counsel Association 33