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Leaders in Legal Business
efficiency; and (3) structural changes challenging the traditional boundaries of legal practice. How big are
these changes? Here are some examples.
Our company, Pangea3 (a wholly-owned subsidiary of Thomson Reuters), employs approximately
1,500 full-time attorneys (largely in India), conducting large scale legal support projects for many
of the Fortune 100 and AmLaw 100 firms. We believe we are the largest private employer of
attorneys in a country of 1.2 billion people.
According to Legal Business magazine, a U.K.-based trade publication, one of the top 10 “overall
advisors” in the U.K. market is Axiom, a legal services company that is not a law firm.5 kCura, the
developers of e-discovery software Relativity, received $125 million from San Francisco-based
ICONIQ Capital to invest in people and technology.6
While we are fascinated by the disruptive changes brought by technology and globalization, we
have focused the remainder of the article on legal managed services (“LMS”) companies. These companies
are corporations (not partnerships or law firms) conducting large-scale legal-support services, traditionally
performed by law firms or corporate counsel. LMS companies are not staffing agencies that add temporary
body count to law firms or corporate legal departments. They are stand-alone businesses whose clients are
law firms and corporate legal departments. Over the past decade they have proven their ability to be better,
faster, and cheaper than the traditional legal players in a wide variety of legal-support tasks (contract
lifecycle management, litigation document review, M&A diligence). They have achieved this by
implementing: best-in-class business processes; high-end, permanent talent in lower-cost jurisdictions;
permanent task specialization and training; and dedicated technologists and cutting-edge technology.
Over the following chapter, we will discuss: the rise of legal managed services companies; the
workflows, processes, and technology they employ; and the future of the legal business structure. Finally,
we will touch on the benefits (yes, benefits) to law firms (even boring Biglaw firms) and what this radical
change all means.
THE RISE OF LEGAL MANAGED SERVICES
Axiom is based in the U.K. and works closely for clients in commercial transactions, M&A,
litigation, and other areas. Axiom’s lawyers are highly trained and carry top credentials. But Axiom is not a
law firm. It is a corporation that places its attorneys through insourced and outsourced solutions. Like many
good companies, Axiom prides itself on operational efficiencies that are rarely found in the traditional law
firm structure, like low-cost overhead, a culture of agility and flexibility, and a centralized command
structure. And perhaps the great distinction is that Axiom can — and does — receive outside
investment, operating formally in a way that blurs the line between business and law.
As mentioned earlier, Legal Business magazine proudly proclaimed that Axiom had breached the
top 10 “legal services providers” in the U.K. Outside of Axiom, the Legal Business list of prestigious
“firms” included all the usual suspects (Allen & Overy, Clifford Chance, Freshfields, Linklaters, Slaughter
and May, and DLA Piper). This was the first time a non-law firm has appeared in these ranks, but it will
not be the last. Legal Business noted that this breach of the coveted top 10 was “significant” and
“demonstrate[ed] how non-law firm providers are winning over some bluechip clients.”7 In our view, this
breach demonstrated something else: alternative legal services providers are not just “winning” the business
5 Joe Borstein, Alt.Legal: Apparently ‘Legal Provider’ is Not How the British Say ‘Law Firm,’ ABOVE THE LAW (October 24, 2014, 2:34 PM),
http://abovethelaw.com/2014/10/alt-legal-apparently-legal-provider-is-not-how-the-british-say-law-firm/.
6 Amina Elahi, kCura Gets $125 Million Investment from Iconiq Capital, CHICAGO TRIBUNE (February 3, 2015, 1:00 PM),
http://www.chicagotribune.com/bluesky/originals/chi-kcura-iconiq-capital-funding-bsi-20150203-story.html.
7 Sarah Downey, The Clients’ Verdict: Linklaters Wins Best Firm in Show from Annual In-House Survey, LEGAL BUSINESS (October 7, 2014,
2:00 PM), http://www.legalbusiness.co.uk/index.php/lb-blog-view/3053-linklaters-wins-best-firm-in-show-from-annual-in-house-survey.
157
efficiency; and (3) structural changes challenging the traditional boundaries of legal practice. How big are
these changes? Here are some examples.
Our company, Pangea3 (a wholly-owned subsidiary of Thomson Reuters), employs approximately
1,500 full-time attorneys (largely in India), conducting large scale legal support projects for many
of the Fortune 100 and AmLaw 100 firms. We believe we are the largest private employer of
attorneys in a country of 1.2 billion people.
According to Legal Business magazine, a U.K.-based trade publication, one of the top 10 “overall
advisors” in the U.K. market is Axiom, a legal services company that is not a law firm.5 kCura, the
developers of e-discovery software Relativity, received $125 million from San Francisco-based
ICONIQ Capital to invest in people and technology.6
While we are fascinated by the disruptive changes brought by technology and globalization, we
have focused the remainder of the article on legal managed services (“LMS”) companies. These companies
are corporations (not partnerships or law firms) conducting large-scale legal-support services, traditionally
performed by law firms or corporate counsel. LMS companies are not staffing agencies that add temporary
body count to law firms or corporate legal departments. They are stand-alone businesses whose clients are
law firms and corporate legal departments. Over the past decade they have proven their ability to be better,
faster, and cheaper than the traditional legal players in a wide variety of legal-support tasks (contract
lifecycle management, litigation document review, M&A diligence). They have achieved this by
implementing: best-in-class business processes; high-end, permanent talent in lower-cost jurisdictions;
permanent task specialization and training; and dedicated technologists and cutting-edge technology.
Over the following chapter, we will discuss: the rise of legal managed services companies; the
workflows, processes, and technology they employ; and the future of the legal business structure. Finally,
we will touch on the benefits (yes, benefits) to law firms (even boring Biglaw firms) and what this radical
change all means.
THE RISE OF LEGAL MANAGED SERVICES
Axiom is based in the U.K. and works closely for clients in commercial transactions, M&A,
litigation, and other areas. Axiom’s lawyers are highly trained and carry top credentials. But Axiom is not a
law firm. It is a corporation that places its attorneys through insourced and outsourced solutions. Like many
good companies, Axiom prides itself on operational efficiencies that are rarely found in the traditional law
firm structure, like low-cost overhead, a culture of agility and flexibility, and a centralized command
structure. And perhaps the great distinction is that Axiom can — and does — receive outside
investment, operating formally in a way that blurs the line between business and law.
As mentioned earlier, Legal Business magazine proudly proclaimed that Axiom had breached the
top 10 “legal services providers” in the U.K. Outside of Axiom, the Legal Business list of prestigious
“firms” included all the usual suspects (Allen & Overy, Clifford Chance, Freshfields, Linklaters, Slaughter
and May, and DLA Piper). This was the first time a non-law firm has appeared in these ranks, but it will
not be the last. Legal Business noted that this breach of the coveted top 10 was “significant” and
“demonstrate[ed] how non-law firm providers are winning over some bluechip clients.”7 In our view, this
breach demonstrated something else: alternative legal services providers are not just “winning” the business
5 Joe Borstein, Alt.Legal: Apparently ‘Legal Provider’ is Not How the British Say ‘Law Firm,’ ABOVE THE LAW (October 24, 2014, 2:34 PM),
http://abovethelaw.com/2014/10/alt-legal-apparently-legal-provider-is-not-how-the-british-say-law-firm/.
6 Amina Elahi, kCura Gets $125 Million Investment from Iconiq Capital, CHICAGO TRIBUNE (February 3, 2015, 1:00 PM),
http://www.chicagotribune.com/bluesky/originals/chi-kcura-iconiq-capital-funding-bsi-20150203-story.html.
7 Sarah Downey, The Clients’ Verdict: Linklaters Wins Best Firm in Show from Annual In-House Survey, LEGAL BUSINESS (October 7, 2014,
2:00 PM), http://www.legalbusiness.co.uk/index.php/lb-blog-view/3053-linklaters-wins-best-firm-in-show-from-annual-in-house-survey.
157
