In June, Virtual Law Partners got a new client. Cloudmach is a software company incorporated in Delaware and based in St. Petersburg, Russia. It was brought to the firm by partner Gerry Murfitt, a lawyer licensed in California and living in Cali, Colombia.
To Murfitt, these far-flung locales illustrate the advantages of a virtual law firm. "My clients don't really care if I'm communicating with them from my home in Colombia rather than the Bay Area," says Murfitt, who previously worked at Heller Ehrman and Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe.
VLP is the latest venture from Craig Johnson, the Silicon Valley lawyer-entrepreneur who created the Venture Law Group, and is only one of a handful of firms that is trying to remake the business model by cutting out expensive office space and having all of its lawyers work from home. Founded with eight partners last spring, VLP now has 45, and expects to end the year with over 60 partners. FSB Legal Counsel, launched in 2002, has doubled in size to 45 partners in the last year, and co-founder Kevin Broyles says the firm may hit 100 lawyers in the year ahead. Rimon Law Group, a virtual firm founded in March 2008 by two former Ropes & Gray associates, has grown from five lawyers to 23.
Though the firms wouldn't disclose their financials, both VLP and Rimon both say that their revenue is up 15 to 20 percent each month. Broyles says that FSB's revenue increased 100 percent between 2007 and 2008.
The model is relatively straightforward. The virtual firms hire only partner-level lawyers with an established client base, cut their Big Law rates in half, and let them keep almost all of what they bill. At VLP, for example, partners with ten to 15 years of experience bill $275-$400 an hour. The lawyers operate remotely, but they tap into a larger infrastructure with centralized billing, IT support, marketing, and recruiting efforts. They also share work frequently, communicating through video chat or e-mail as needed.
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Source: Law.com
By: Francesca Heintz
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