Dewey's failure - the causes

Numerous commentators have approached the failure of Dewey & LeBoeuf, the largest American firm ever to file for bankruptcy. The firm borrowed beyond capacity, offered generous compensation packages to lateral hires, and saw its top talent head for the door after signs of financial trouble. ' In fact, the firm’s behavior might not have een considered imprudent in times gone by, before the global financial crisis and the resulting cuts to corporate legal budgets. The biglaw model is not equipped to respond to the pressure to slash fees, and this article diagnoses some of the problems, including the difficulty of making quick hard decisions for such large groups of leaders, the almost maniacal focus on yearliy profits, and the decoupling of earnings and profits.

Dewey's failure - the causes theatlantic.com Mon, Jun 4, 2012