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GCs’ 2024 Outlook on Legal Budgets, Talent, and Innovation
Axiom’s third-annual research report dives into the mind of today’s General Counsels and reveals an urgency for in-house legal leaders to innovate new models to help their organizations thrive..
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What Will I Learn?
It’s no secret that GCs work in a risk-averse industry that’s historically been slow to embrace change. But if there’s one major take-away from this year’s national study, it’s that today’s GC has no choice but to flip that script.
In our latest report, we reveal why 97% of GCs continued to rely on expensive firms despite regretting it. You'll discover how capacity and expertise gaps push legal departments into costly outsourcing decisions. Learn why these choices are often made and how they affect your bottom line.
GCs overwhelmingly report their teams lack resources across the board—the necessary budget, staffing, technology, expertise, and team structure—to accomplish their required tasks.
As they continue struggling to do more with less, GCs face a succession of roadblocks, including an average 11% reduction in their legal department budgets. A full 63% of GCs have a high level of concern that their legal departments won’t be able to invest in the talent and resources they need this year. They need to flip that script by looking to innovative methods, solutions, and services that can help them achieve the flexibility, productivity, and efficiency “mission accomplished” demands.
In-house resources are lacking, but turning to law firms to handle everyday tasks isn’t an ideal solution either, GCs said.
Even as 81% of GCs report that their teams lack the necessary staffing to effectively accomplish their required legal and administrative tasks, 80% anticipate a likely headcount freeze this year, making it clear that adding more in-house resources isn’t likely. Yet while nearly all (97%) engaged the support of a law firm last year, all who did so (100%) found reasons to regret the alliance. The vast majority (89%) maintain law firms are not a completely effective solution to their resourcing challenges.
So, what’s a shrewd GC to do? Like all industries, the legal industry is evolving, and GCs can no longer count on or afford to stick with the business strategies that worked in the past.
Addressing outdated resourcing strategies requires adopting solutions such as new technologies, building out operations professionals within their legal departments, and rethinking how and when to partner with modern legal service providers.
Insights into the state of the in-house landscape are crucial to help GCs understand this matrix, the business and operational climate nationally, and innovations and other options now at their disposal to help them make informed, sound decisions for their teams and the organizations they serve.
Confronting the face of change, is it possible to work within tight budgets, tackle novel legal matters, and still mitigate risk?
Our research shows that it's possible to navigate tight budgets, tackle complex legal matters, and mitigate risk with the right resourcing matrix. GCs can optimize their teams and budgets by embracing AI-driven legal services, matching needs with qualified lawyers, and avoiding burnout—solutions that traditional ALSPs can't offer. Discover how to make smarter decisions with cutting-edge resources and strategies in our full report.
Interested in past editions? See how insights have evolved over time. View all GC Survey Reports