The new rules of law

Historically, legal has not been a primary lever of bottom-line improvement strategies. This is understandable. The legal function is unique with its own language, culture, and objectives, and deciphering the nature and fair value of specific legal activities can be difficult for non-practitioners.

In particular, procurement specialists have had difficulty defining their role within this complex spend area, caught between delivering savings and mitigating business risk. For companies entrenched in ‘bet-the-company’ litigation, the situation is amplified. The tendency is for outside council to leave no stone unturned, consequently driving up legal fees, yet the benefit of incorporating spend management processes is considered untimely and risky.