Legal Project Management
and KM
Mara Nickerson, Osler Hoskin & Harcourt LLP
Andrew Terrett, Borden Ladner Gervais LLP
Chris Boyd, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati
Sponsored by the ILTA Knowledge Management Peer Group Steering Committee
2011 ILTA KM White Paper
Mara Nickerson
Mara Nickerson
 5 offices (4 in Canada, 1 in New York)
 450 lawyers
 Chief Knowledge Officer (KM, PD, Library, Conflicts &
Records)
 Practice Innovation Office
Andrew Terrett
 Largest law firm in Canada – 750 lawyers, IP agents
and other professionals
 Six offices across Canada
 Director of Knowledge Management at BLG
The “New Normal” in Canada
 Impact of global recession not as severe as the US
 No banking crisis but manufacturing severely impacted
 Unemployment peaked at 9% down to 7.5% currently
 Legal services
 US and Canadian law firm marketplace largely
comparable
 But less Legal Process Outsourcing, less eDiscovery than
the US
 Globalisation - Norton Rose/Ogilvy Renault merge
operations
 But there is a clear demand for “more for less”
 AFA’s, Legal Project Management
Legal Project Management vs
Process Improvement
 LPM - A disciplined approach to managing a legal
matter to ensure that it is completed on time and on
budget, to achieve the client’s objectives.
 LPI - A systematic approach to analyzing how we
conduct a legal matter (or any process that is part of
a matter) to systematize and refine it, to create
efficiencies — reduce “waste”.
Law Firm Economics and KM
 The billable hour and the
“productivity paradox”
 AFA’s change this –
“KM push” becomes “lawyer pull”…
 KM as “the middle office”
How does KM fit into LPM?
Case Studies
Osler’s Five Steps To Effective
Matter Management
Step 5
Matter Wrap-Up
Step 4
Communicating
with the Client
Step 1
Matter Intake
Step 2
Planning
Step 3
Managing
the Work
10
Case Studies
The Business Drivers
Budget perspective
 Aderant Expert
 AFA’s – Budget Manager
Scheduling perspective
 MS Project Server 2010
Driven by client need rather than “top-down”
Getting Started
 Identify clear business drivers – where are
the pressures?
 Find a champion
 Start small – identify a lawyer or group willing
to try a different approach
 Tie in existing KM tools
 Communicate, communicate, communicate
Recommended Reading
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ILTA KM White Paper, June 2011
Legal Project Management by Steven B. Levy
Legal Project Management: Quick Reference Guide by Jim
Hassett
Project Management for Lawyers, Barbara Boake and Rick
Kathuria, Managing Partner/Ark Group, Spring 2011
LegalBizDev blog http://adverselling.typepad.com/
3 Geeks and a Law Blog http://www.geeklawblog.com/
Lexician - Steven Levy http://lexician.com/
Corcoran’s Business of Law Blog - Tim Corcoran
http://www.corcoranlawbizblog.com/category/legal-projectmanagement/
At the Intersection- Pam Woldow http://pwoldow.wordpress.com/
Legal Project Management – Paul Easton
http://legalprojectmanagement.info/
Questions