In-House Counsel Don't Intend to Give You Hours

In-House Counsel Don’t Intend to Give You Hours

It’s June 1st. Summer is upon us! Yay. So how are you doing for hours? As much as we talk about merit-based compensation and alternative fee arrangements — surprise — billable hours are still here and still very, very important. But if in-house attorneys have anything to say about it, your hours will be low […]

By Elie Mystal on June 01, 2010 4:18 pm

It’s June 1st. Summer is upon us! Yay.

So how are you doing for hours? As much as we talk about merit-based compensation and alternative fee arrangements — surprise — billable hours are still here and still very, very important.

But if in-house attorneys have anything to say about it, your hours will be low this year…

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According to a survey picked up by the Texas Lawyer, in-house counsel plan to do everything they can to keep hours low:

Don’t look for increased billing opportunities from in-house clients during the coming months. Only 10 percent of the in-house lawyers surveyed by recruiting company Robert Half Legal say they will increase the amount of work they give outside counsel during the next 12 months. While 61 percent of the in-house lawyers expect to maintain current levels of outside work during the coming year, 25 percent say they will decrease their use of outside counsel, according to the report.

Well, on the bright side, fewer hours means more time to enjoy things like the just completed three-day weekend. Hell, if in-house attorneys really don’t want to use your services, might as well take this Friday off too and have an excellent three day work week.