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Private Draft QVM - Quality, Value, and Metrics
utilization and allocation of a firm’s resources because a client will get exactly what he or she needs,
and the firm knows whom to contact for assistance without arduous research or the fear that the
resulting work will be sub-par. By illustrating that the law firm is invested in the client, word will
spread that this firm is attentive and accommodating. If there were a name to these theoretical
client standards such as the ISO 9000 and ISO 9001:2008, which immediately says “compliance and
consistency” even to lay businesses, clients would be even more likely to pursue a given firm.
Instituting these standards will require a reallocation of firm resources and an initial investment of
both time and money. Conversely, the attention to client needs speaks to a firm’s value of customer
loyalty, a virtue that can only help a law office succeed in this economic climate. As an added level of
comfort, clients will be able to reach out to a dedicated team that is devoted to their questions and
concerns. In terms of financial resources, qualified individuals would be hired in order to focus on
these new ventures. Surveys could be sent to clients following their engagement with an attorney,
which would be returned to analysts with the ability to distill the raw data. This would allow a firm to
operate at peak capacity. These newly-created teams could generate a baseline reading by utilizing
social media, cold calls to previous clients, and reviews online before any client standards are
implemented in order to see the true benefit of focusing on these principles.
II. A Road Map – The Four Perspectives
The legal profession is governed by ethics rules.4 These rules have been adopted to protect clients
and define professionalism. In general, there are two types: “Thou shalt nots”5 and the aspirational.6
However, unlike other professions, the legal profession has not adopted any objective measureable
standards of quality.
This paper discusses the benefits for business clients, law firms, and the legal profession as a whole
from the establishment of measureable objective quality standards. It is a call to action to the
institutions that represent the various constituencies to come together to establish these standards
for the benefit of business clients and the legal profession.
Overview
Professional service providers include the legal, medical, and accounting professions.7 Each has the
same characteristic features such as professional associations, centralized knowledge bases,
established training, licensing boards, work autonomy, colleague control, and codes of ethics. Each
aspires to high standards of professional and intellectual excellence. Members of a profession are
individuals whose qualities of autonomy and allegiance are more extensive than those found among
other groups. Their clients are assured they are making responsible decisions.
However, professions vary considerably on the definition and enforcement of quality principles and
standards. A comparison between the legal and accounting professions illustrates vast objective and
subjective differences in their respective approaches. In the accounting profession, results are
repeatable and costs can be evaluated. Accounting associations have institutionalized the standards
and principles that are uniformly accepted worldwide. Of course, the challenge is greater in the legal
4 ABA MODEL CODE OF PROFESSIONAL RESPONSIBILITY,
http://www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/migrated/cpr/mrpc/mcpr.authcheckdam.pdf; see also the IBA INTERNATIONAL CODE OF
ETHICS (1988); https://www.ibanet.org/Article/NewDetail.aspx?ArticleUid=BC99FD2C-D253-4BFE-A3B9-C13F196D9E60.
5 IBA INTERNATIONAL CODE OF ETHICS (1988); https://www.ibanet.org/Article/NewDetail.aspx?ArticleUid=BC99FD2C-D253-
4BFE-A3B9-C13F196D9E60 (the Code of Ethics contains has more than 30 prohibitive references).
6 In 2011, the IBA adopted the International Principles on Conduct for the Legal Profession (2011) to replace the IBA International Code of
Ethics (1988); each is an aspirational principle, but neither represents objective or measureable standards.
7 See Professional, MERRIAM-WEBSTER, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/professional.
5
utilization and allocation of a firm’s resources because a client will get exactly what he or she needs,
and the firm knows whom to contact for assistance without arduous research or the fear that the
resulting work will be sub-par. By illustrating that the law firm is invested in the client, word will
spread that this firm is attentive and accommodating. If there were a name to these theoretical
client standards such as the ISO 9000 and ISO 9001:2008, which immediately says “compliance and
consistency” even to lay businesses, clients would be even more likely to pursue a given firm.
Instituting these standards will require a reallocation of firm resources and an initial investment of
both time and money. Conversely, the attention to client needs speaks to a firm’s value of customer
loyalty, a virtue that can only help a law office succeed in this economic climate. As an added level of
comfort, clients will be able to reach out to a dedicated team that is devoted to their questions and
concerns. In terms of financial resources, qualified individuals would be hired in order to focus on
these new ventures. Surveys could be sent to clients following their engagement with an attorney,
which would be returned to analysts with the ability to distill the raw data. This would allow a firm to
operate at peak capacity. These newly-created teams could generate a baseline reading by utilizing
social media, cold calls to previous clients, and reviews online before any client standards are
implemented in order to see the true benefit of focusing on these principles.
II. A Road Map – The Four Perspectives
The legal profession is governed by ethics rules.4 These rules have been adopted to protect clients
and define professionalism. In general, there are two types: “Thou shalt nots”5 and the aspirational.6
However, unlike other professions, the legal profession has not adopted any objective measureable
standards of quality.
This paper discusses the benefits for business clients, law firms, and the legal profession as a whole
from the establishment of measureable objective quality standards. It is a call to action to the
institutions that represent the various constituencies to come together to establish these standards
for the benefit of business clients and the legal profession.
Overview
Professional service providers include the legal, medical, and accounting professions.7 Each has the
same characteristic features such as professional associations, centralized knowledge bases,
established training, licensing boards, work autonomy, colleague control, and codes of ethics. Each
aspires to high standards of professional and intellectual excellence. Members of a profession are
individuals whose qualities of autonomy and allegiance are more extensive than those found among
other groups. Their clients are assured they are making responsible decisions.
However, professions vary considerably on the definition and enforcement of quality principles and
standards. A comparison between the legal and accounting professions illustrates vast objective and
subjective differences in their respective approaches. In the accounting profession, results are
repeatable and costs can be evaluated. Accounting associations have institutionalized the standards
and principles that are uniformly accepted worldwide. Of course, the challenge is greater in the legal
4 ABA MODEL CODE OF PROFESSIONAL RESPONSIBILITY,
http://www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/migrated/cpr/mrpc/mcpr.authcheckdam.pdf; see also the IBA INTERNATIONAL CODE OF
ETHICS (1988); https://www.ibanet.org/Article/NewDetail.aspx?ArticleUid=BC99FD2C-D253-4BFE-A3B9-C13F196D9E60.
5 IBA INTERNATIONAL CODE OF ETHICS (1988); https://www.ibanet.org/Article/NewDetail.aspx?ArticleUid=BC99FD2C-D253-
4BFE-A3B9-C13F196D9E60 (the Code of Ethics contains has more than 30 prohibitive references).
6 In 2011, the IBA adopted the International Principles on Conduct for the Legal Profession (2011) to replace the IBA International Code of
Ethics (1988); each is an aspirational principle, but neither represents objective or measureable standards.
7 See Professional, MERRIAM-WEBSTER, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/professional.
5
