Law departments should move away from open-door policies. Lawyer experience is, on average, more senior than it was 10 years ago, with less delegation by inside counsel than ever. Up to 1/3 of in-house counsel are focused on low-value work. Leadership must identify enough special projects, strategic activity and complex work to replace at least 600 hours per year of practice per lawyer. Failure to act means that the law department is a poor return on investment.

The CEB reports that, for two reasons, the relationship-based business model for corporate law departments is fundamentally unsustainable. First, the number of individuals calling on inside counsel for routine matters has proliferated beyond the company executive team. Second, most internal clients want resolution not a relationship. Some General Counsel are conducting detailed studies of demand patterns affecting their resources. Others are introducing protocols and programs to make many regular clients self-sufficient.