What's Hot in 2005

Long-time Law Practice magazine columnist and strategic marketing guru, Robert Denney, shares his 16th annual report on the pulse of the legal services market in the current issue of Law Practice magazine.  His “What’s Hot and What’s Not” is always worth a read.  So what’s hot, according to Denney?  Employment law, IP, and contingency litigation are “red hot”, while white collar crime, real estate, corporate, immigration, education & school law, and Indian & gaming law are among the hottest areas.  There are some areas starting to heat up including mergers and acquisitions, media law, health-care mediation, and pharmaceutical work.  Cooling off are bankruptcy, personal injury, and environmental work.   As for marketing trends, seminars are still a great way to attract attention, according to Denney. Extranets are cooling fast, and “branding” is cooling too.  Finally, Denney adds in a few trends in law firm management and governance, including the fact that many firms remain undercapitalized, firms are not sufficiently dealing with culture issues, and law firm leaders are still not receiving sufficient management and leadership training.  Can I get an “Amen?”