April 12, 2013

A consensus seems to be emerging that lower demand for law school graduates will become a permanent feature of the legal market, most notably in large law firms whose business model has been based on a large number of associates at the bottom of a pyramid with a small number of equity partners at the top. Lower demand reflects the impact of forces such as intensified client insistence on cost-effective legal services, the growth of more widespread expertise in mapping and disaggregating legal work, the use of increasingly sophisticated technology and communication systems, the development of new forms of collaboration between clients and outside lawyers, the provision of a larger portion of legal work by in-house counsel in some corporations, and the emergence of networks and supply chains as basic units in the provision of legal services.

This symposium will explore the potential implications of this major shift in how legal work is organized and provided, and how careers in the law are unfolding. Scholars from a variety of disciplines will offer insights into what may lie ahead for the legal industry as these trends accelerate, addressing issues ranging from the evolving structure of law firms and legal work to the training and career paths of young attorneys.

As with previous symposia, our aim is to provide an active dialogue between scholars and practitioners. Scholars will gain a keener understanding of the texture and experience of law practice from thoughtful lawyers who daily confront the challenges of a profession in the grip of tumultuous change. Practitioners will gain insight into larger structural forces and trends that might otherwise escape their attention.

We hope you will explore the shifting nature of the legal profession with us at Georgetown.

Program Agenda

Please visit the Program Agenda website to view the full program agenda for The Shrinking Pyramid: Implications for Law Practice and the Legal Profession.