The Salaried Partner Dilemma: Part I

This is the introduction to a three-part series by Moray McLaren, on the two-tier partnership system many law firms are now employing.

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Despite ongoing predictions, the partnership model in law firms is still alive and well. As Mark Twain noted about his own death, not only were the reports of its demise greatly exaggerated but elite law firms continue to experience high growth and increasing profitability.

Understanding the changing expectations of their clients and people while managing profitability within the framework of the traditional partnership, however, is increasingly challenging.  

In this uncertain and ever-changing world, firms are quite rightly asking: Will what got us here get us there? Which aspects of our present approach are fit for purpose, and what needs to change with the times? In this three-part series—and follow-up to “Defining the Perfect Partner,” published in the November/December 2023 issue of The Practice—I seek to dive further into what partnership of the future looks like. To better understand the landscape, the series is based on a survey of 193 firms distributed to the officers and members of the International Bar Association´s (IBA) Law Firm Management Committee (LFMC) through July – September 2024.