One of the key attractions of Support Legal for me is the flexible approach to delivering legal services. This got me thinking about how clients can best leverage this flexibility, which might be new to them compared to traditional law firms. There is no doubt that legal advisors play a crucial role in helping businesses navigate complex legal landscapes, manage risks, and make informed decisions. However, the value derived from legal advisors often depends on how well the relationship is managed and how effectively businesses utilise their expertise. I believe that through genuine partnerships with clients, we can ensure timely and cost-effective delivery of tailored solutions. Here are my 8 top-tips on how businesses can get the most out of their legal advisors.
1. Clearly Define Expectations
Set Clear Objectives: The clearer clients can be about their legal needs and objectives, the better, whether it is managing day-to-day legal matters, handling specific transactions, or mitigating risks. Defining these goals will help ensure that legal services are aligned with the business’s overall strategy.
Establish the Scope of Work: A clearly defined scope of work and expected outcomes from legal advisors will help avoid misunderstandings and ensure that both parties are on the same page. This includes specifying timelines, deliverables, limitations to, and matters excluded from, the scope and the extent of involvement in various projects. In the unlikely event that any of these items are missing from the scope of work, ask your advisor to include them.
2. Foster Open Communication
Regular Check-ins: Regular communication is essential to keep your legal advisors informed about developments within the business and to ensure that legal strategies remain aligned with business objectives. Regular check-ins could include scheduled meetings, email updates and informal calls.
Request Proactive Advice: Legal advisors who understand the business’ operations and goals can offer valuable insights that help prevent legal problems before they occur. Businesses should request their legal advisors to provide proactive advice rather than just reacting to issues as they arise. To facilitate this approach with your legal advisors, it will be important to share all relevant information with them.
3. Build a Strong Relationship
Develop Trust: My most successful client relationships have been those with a strong foundation of trust. A relationship based on trust allows for more open and productive collaboration. The more transparent a business is about their challenges and needs the better. This will help legal advisors to become partners in the company’s success.
Understand Each Other’s Working Style: Every legal advisor has a unique working style, much like every business. Understanding each other’s preferences, communication styles, and expectations can lead to a smoother and more effective partnership. Ideally, your advisor will share their usual approach with you to ensure alignment with your business strategy. If not, businesses shouldn’t hold back from having that discussion.
4. Leverage Their Expertise Strategically
Involve Legal Advisors in Strategic Decisions: Legal advisors can offer more value when they are involved in strategic decision-making processes. Bringing your advisor into these discussions can lead to early identification of potential legal implications, which can help shape strategies that are both legally sound and aligned with business goals and prevent delays.
5. Manage Costs Effectively
Discuss Fee Structures: Discuss fee structures upfront. Cost effectiveness for clients should be a priority for legal advisors seeking to build long-term client relationships, and most firms will have a variety of charging options for clients, whether it’s hourly billing, fixed fees, or retainers. Understanding and agreeing on how legal fees will be charged helps avoid surprises and manage costs effectively.
Prioritise Legal Issues: Not all legal issues require the same level of attention or resources. Businesses should work with their legal advisors to prioritize legal tasks, focusing on those that are most critical to the business’s success and that provide the greatest value.
6. Measure and Evaluate Performance
Set Performance Metrics: For longer-term lawyer-client relationships, businesses could consider establishing key performance indicators to evaluate the effectiveness of their legal advisors. This might include metrics related to the quality of legal advice, responsiveness, cost management, and the successful resolution of legal issues.
Regularly Review the Relationship: Periodically reviewing the relationship with legal advisors helps ensure that the partnership remains productive and aligned with business needs. Feedback should be exchanged openly, and adjustments should be made as necessary to optimise the collaboration.
7. Integrate Legal with Business Operations
Embed Legal into Business Processes: Legal considerations should be integrated into the day-to-day operations of the business. This might involve embedding legal advisors in project teams, ensuring that contracts and agreements are reviewed before execution, and considering legal implications in business planning.
Encourage Cross-Functional Collaboration: Legal advisors need to work closely with various business functions within the client’s company, including finance, HR, and operations. This collaboration ensures that legal matters are addressed in a holistic manner. By taking this cross-functional approach, legal guidance becomes more practical and takes into account the broader business landscape.
8. Plan for Long-Term Legal Needs
As businesses grow and evolve, so do their legal needs. Collaborating with legal advisors to anticipate these shifts can greatly simplify the process. Whether it’s about business growth, such as entering new markets, acquisitions, or facing increased regulatory oversight, there are multiple strategies for meeting these longer-term business needs. These include establishing a compliance framework to proactively manage risk, building an internal legal team, and leveraging legal technology, all with the support of your legal advisors. Do you agree? Be sure to let me know your thoughts in the comments section below. Alison Hubbard is a Principal in Support Legal's Dubai office.
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