Assessing law firm growth can be challenging, especially for firms making the transition to expanded practice areas and operations.

As law firms experience success and case volumes increase, many attorneys struggle to manage their growing client base and workload, caught up in a tug-of-war between being both trial lawyer and business manager.

Discerning the Signs of the Need for Law Firm Growth

Knowing how to recognize growth pains and discern when it’s time to build out the operations of a law firm is key. According to Tim McKey, CEO of Vista Consulting, “Most attorneys of contingency fee law firms – both small and large lack the expertise and guidance in managing and leading a business that happens to practice law.”

“The signs are, if you look at a law firm as a pipeline, is it about to burst and in what position does that happen? And the way we take a look at those law firms is that we come in with an assessment,” he noted.

For contingency fee law firms headed on a trajectory of growth, there are four essential areas to look at when determining if a law firm is ready for growth and expanded operations:

How to determine if a law firm needs to grow?

• Assess how intake is functioning
• Identify how many cases, calls and leads are coming in
• Determine if the firm needs to accelerate cases
• Identify if the firm needs to grow in specialization

Importantly, law firm leadership needs to clarify its vision for growth and prioritize the areas, resources and technology needed to support the firm’s trajectory for growth.

“It’s really assessing and talking with the owners about where they want to be, gaining a vision, hearing what their vision really is for the size of their firm, revenue size and number of people. How the departments within the firm are functioning tells us if they’re ready for growth,” emphasized Tim McKey.

To learn more insights about assessing the need for law firm growth, click above to watch this video featuring Tim McKey, CEO, and Mary Ellen Murrah, Operations Consultant at Vista Consulting.

Creating a creating a clear and simple vision is another important area of focus for law firms.  Watch this video, which also features Mary Ellen Murrah, to learn more about creating vision and mission for law firms.

Unlock Your Cash Flow for Law Firm Growth – Meet with Esquire Bank Today

Whether your goal is investing in growth, expanding your practice, or improving your operations and cash flow, understanding your case inventory is an important valuation for your firm.

Leveraging your firm’s case inventory to finance case disbursements can allow you the flexibility and liquidity to pivot your focus to investing in digital marketing, technology, and staff, and ultimately build case value for your clients.