LinkedIn
Facebook
Twitter
Whatsapp
Telegram
Copy link

Have you ever wondered why your clients prefer your law firm over others? Or perhaps what they particularly dislike about your own legal services? Our survey gauges the opinions of in-house counsel around the region on their pet peeves with law firms, as well as what hot topics have them engaging with their own legal teams. Putro Harnowo reports.

In a recent survey conducted by India Business Law Journal’s sister magazine, Asia Business Law Journal, it was found that slow turnaround time and overpricing were the top turn-offs for clients in Asia when working with their counterparts in law firms.

As we narrowed down the list of top complaints, poor quality of service, unmet expectations and poor communications were also among the top five grievances that made these clients unhappy. We were also curious to know what necessitates the appointment of different law firms, and why some in-house counsel choose to work with a specific firm.

We found that emerging technologies have unlocked new opportunities for businesses worldwide, and that in-house counsel increasingly see the potential for legaltech to make their lives easier. Importantly, in-house teams look for firms that can expedite difficult challenges.

“As business entities with multi-state operations, we require law firms who can support us on a day-to-day basis on issues in relation to our projects,” says Satish Chopra, vice president at Rohan Rajdeep Tollways. “An important aspect of our working relationships that we have with our law firms is to have a dedicated resource for fast turnaround time. This definitely adds more value to our business.”

Chopra cites as an example the dispute resolution process in India, which is “time consuming” and “a hindrance”. Law firms that can deliver success in this situation are most preferred, he says.

Regionally, many of the opinions shared by in-house counsel are ubiquitous. Regular monitoring and sharing of information about regulations before they are signed into law are among the services that Maria Concepcion Simundac-Delos Santos, lead legal counsel at ING Bank in Manila, expects from law firms. Being aware of such upcoming changes, companies are able to give their input to regulators and anticipate potential impact.

Maria Concepcion Simundac-Delos Santos“Cybersecurity and fintech are ever-changing landscapes,” says Simundac-Delos Santos. “It is good if law firms can keep their clients up to date about the latest trends in the industry and their legal impacts.”

Speed and quality

Solving unprecedented problems in a timely fashion is the main task for which in-house counsel need outside assistance. However, among 76 respondents to our survey, more than half cited slow turnaround and pricing issues as the most common complaints, followed by poor quality of service, unmet expectations, and poor communications. When it comes to billing methods, the majority of in-house counsel preferred project-based fees and flat rates, rather than the conventional hourly rates.

To support the need for agile workflow and efficient output, our survey found that almost all in-house counsel have a positive attitude towards legaltech.

“We have standardised documents being used on a daily basis. We have a strong intranet facility for sharing documents and information. We have systems for data management,” says Srividya Sridhar, deputy vice president at Tata Capital Financial Services.

Almost half of the respondents (48%) said it was important or very important for law firms to utilise the latest legal technology, while a similar number (46%) thought it was moderately important. Five respondents said legaltech was only slightly important.

“Our biggest challenges are the tight timeline with the complexity of the transaction, and the ever-changing requirements of authorities from multiple jurisdictions,” says Michelle Hung, general counsel and company secretary at COSCO Shipping Ports in Hong Kong.

You must be a subscribersubscribersubscribersubscriber to read this content, please subscribesubscribesubscribesubscribe today.

For group subscribers, please click here to access.
Interested in group subscription? Please contact us.

你需要登录去解锁本文内容。欢迎注册账号。如果想阅读月刊所有文章,欢迎成为我们的订阅会员成为我们的订阅会员

已有集团订阅,可点击此处继续浏览。
如对集团订阅感兴趣,请联络我们

LinkedIn
Facebook
Twitter
Whatsapp
Telegram
Copy link