Insights On The Future Of Legal Work.

The Corporate Transparency Act Takes Effect Soon; Companies Face New Requirements in 2024

In the ever-evolving landscape of financial regulation and corporate transparency, the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) has emerged as a pivotal piece of legislation. Enacted in 2021 as part of the National Defense Authorization Act, the CTA will require most new and existing legal entities operating in the United States to file reports with the federal government regarding their beneficial owners. The CTA goes into effect on January 1, 2024, and its key provisions are described below.

Does the ‘Work from Anywhere’ Practice Model Lead to Increased Revenue? The Data Shows It Can.

The allure of working from home is here to stay. The pandemic showed us that not only is it possible, but it’s far more desirable for many, many lawyers and staff. Given the choice between taking a break from work by gossiping around the office water cooler or picking up their child from school, many have chosen the latter. Who needs to spend $20 on lunch when you can prepare a cheaper, healthier and more delicious lunch in your own kitchen? Why not clear your head by taking your dog for several walks throughout the day? And no one needs to sit in more traffic, ever. 

Unveiling the Digital Metamorphosis: Technology's Impact on the Legal Industry

The impact of technology on the legal industry is profound and multifaceted. It's not merely about adopting new tools - it's about redefining the way legal professionals think, collaborate, and serve their clients. Embracing this digital metamorphosis is not an option but a necessity for lawyers seeking to remain relevant and effective in a rapidly changing world. The fusion of legal expertise and technological innovation holds the promise of a more empowered, efficient, and accessible legal landscape for all.

Women In Law Session 3: “Redefining Your Personal Brand”

In the third session of our Women in Law: Redefining Success 2023 Series, our panel of attorneys shared their journeys of building their personal brand – the challenges they faced, the benefits they saw – and why cultivating a personal brand is so crucial in the practice of modern law.

Why D&O Coverage is Important

Like many legal issues, D&O coverage is often the last thing on the mind of a start-up founder. Nevertheless, addressing early on whether your company needs D&O coverage will likely pay large dividends down the road, while also protecting your hard-earned investment in the near-term. It’s just one more area where every start-up could use the help of a good, experienced general counsel. If you have questions about D&O insurance or would like to discuss risk mitigation strategies for your company, please contact Robert Gans at rgans@scalefirm.com.

The rise of remote firms heralds a new era of boutique law firm mergers

The nature of law firms is changing rapidly, especially as firms strive to stabilize in a new post-pandemic reality. One of those realities is that law firms today are increasingly less local. Many traditional firms are struggling to redraw boundaries around the once indispensable requirement for its lawyers and staff to do their work primarily from a common office. Technology and the pandemic have helped the practice of law shift to less localized but equally connected modes. Remote firms like Scale LLP, which uses technology and a distributed platform to deliver services to its clients from primarily virtual spaces, are on the rise and growing and have even begun to snap up high-quality boutiques that fit their brand and profile.

What can the legal world learn from research on collaborative cultures and the rise of ‘conscious leadership’ in Silicon Valley?

It’s not hard to reach the conclusion that collaboration feels better, but is it any better for the bottom line? Despite what many lawyers believe, there is evidence in an article by Heidi Gardner, PhD at the Harvard Business School, about a collaborative culture’s positive impact on client revenue in the legal practice.

Leading IP boutique Creedon PLLC joins Scale LLP as the rise of remote firms drives a new era of firm mergers

Scale LLP announced today that it has acquired leading Texas IP boutique Creedon PLLC as part of its ongoing national expansion through strategic partnerships. James Creedon, whose firm received the Reisman Award in the Community Champion category, will join Scale LLP as its new Deputy Managing Partner, Impact Initiatives.

Veteran Tech GC Goes Back To Private Practice At Scale

Silicon Valley virtual full-service law firm Scale LLP is bolstering its attorney roster with the addition of an experienced financial technology general counsel as its latest partner, the firm announced Monday....

Virtual law firm Scale absorbs Texas IP firm in first acquisition

Virtual law firm Scale said Tuesday that it has brought on small Texas intellectual property firm Creedon in the first of what it hopes may be a series of acquisitions. James Creedon and two other attorneys from his firm have joined Scale, a Silicon Valley-founded law firm where lawyers work entirely remotely. Scale, which debuted in 2020, is among so-called "distributed" or virtual firms that use technology to operate without physical offices and embrace a non-traditional law firm business model.

Texas IP Boutique Acquired By Virtual Firm Scale LLP

Dallas-area intellectual property boutique Creedon PLLC has been acquired by virtual law firm Scale LLP, the firms announced Wednesday....

Your new remote law practice is better. Why go back?

A remote practice affords attorneys more time, money, and flexibility. Before you go back, you might ask what you’re going back for.

Women In Law Are Driving An Entirely New Practice Model

The traditional path for women in the legal profession remains riddled with inequities. Entrepreneurial attorneys like Heather Cantua, Amy Duvanich, and Jamie Wells are driving an entirely new way to practice -- exercising greater autonomy over how they work, finding more compensation and more time for their passions, ultimately achieving their own meaning of success.

Prominent Fintech GC Jason Altieri Joins Scale LLP as More In-House Lawyers Return to Private Practice

Jason Altieri joins Scale LLP, bringing 25 years’ experience as a nationally known fintech GC and corporate specialist; Altieri’s move follows a trend of GCs returning to private practice.

Scale Aims To Grow Virtual Law Firm Model With Texas Tie-Up

After virtual law firm Scale LLP struck a deal to acquire Dallas-area intellectual property boutique Creedon PLLC earlier this month, the leaders of the two firms told Law360 Pulse they were...

Boutique Northern California Real Estate and Litigation Team Joins Scale LLP

The Silicon Valley-based remote work firm continues its national growth with the addition of a Northern California team of real estate, wealth planning and litigation pros.

Leaving Your In-House Role: You Don’t Need A Portable 'Book' To Be Successful

Traditionally, in-house legal roles have offered more accommodating schedules and opportunities to gain valuable business experience. Now though, the calculus is changing and you no longer need a portable “book” to grow a fulfilling practice. See how in-house attorneys are defining success on their own terms.

Why Scale LLP Is Driving A ‘Great Redefinition’ Of Attorney Success

These lawyers built a practice that benefits the pocketbook — and the soul. Here’s how they did it.

Is virtual firm Scale LLP the wave of the future?

Years ago, when my husband was a Big Law litigation associate, we took our kids on a vacation to Disney World. Each night after everyone else went to bed, he stayed up until all hours working, using the hotel bathroom as his “office” so he wouldn’t disturb us...

Patreon delivers on its commitment to creators with a tailored legal offering built by Scale

In 2013, YouTube musician Jack Conte and his college roommate, developer Sam Yam, turned an innovative idea into a fully-functioning web-based service (in the span of 6 weeks!) designed to help artists and creators like himself get paid for their work, and in doing so, achieve both the creative and financial freedom to continue doing what they love.

Synthetaic’s innovative RAIC technology is transforming AI with help from Scale’s deep bench

Synthetaic is a VC-backed, end-to-end artificial intelligence company that works with leading companies and organizations to accelerate insights derived from AI. The company was founded in 2019 by Corey Jaskolski, inspired by his conservation work as a National Geographic explorer and fellow.

Alinea Invest is breaking boundaries for underrepresented groups in finance with support from Scale

Alinea Invest is a VC-backed fintech company focused on building an investment platform designed for first-time investors, particularly women and minorities with little to no financial fluency. The company’s founders, Eve Halimi and Anam Lahkani, first identified the need for more accessible and meaningful investment opportunities as undergraduate students at Columbia University.

Antitrust Laws Protect Innovative Startups & Small Businesses

Small businesses and start-ups tend to operate on tighter profit margins than do larger, more established enterprises, making them particularly vulnerable to anticompetitive threats in the marketplace. Fortunately, the U.S. antitrust laws are designed to promote robust competition for businesses of all stages and sizes. Learn more about how the antitrust laws can protect small businesses.

8 Crucial Risk Mitigation Strategies for Startups from a Former Litigator

For young start-ups with limited capital, founders are typically even more focused on devoting resources to growth initiatives rather than paying lawyers to prevent missteps regarding seemingly arcane or theoretical matters. However, those issues being ignored are usually far from trivial.

Law Firms Are More Profitable Than Ever (So Why Aren’t They Promoting More Equity Partners?)

In its annual survey of law firms, Wells Fargo’s Legal Specialty Group found that most firms reported increased revenue in 2021, with the top 50 firms reporting 16% growth on average.

Lawfully Remaining in the US After a Layoff: Immigration Options for Foreign Tech Workers

Foreign-born tech workers in the U.S. face uncertainty following recent layoffs in the tech sector and a worrying economic forecast for the months ahead.

Managing Customer Complaints to Mitigate Risk: Be the Canary in the Coal Mine

No matter what business you’re in, dealing with unhappy customers can be tedious, time consuming, and a distraction from more important business objectives. However, there are benefits to being a so-called “canary in the coal mine.” Customer complaints actually provide important feedback for any company

The Rise of the Lawyer Entrepreneur

Interview with Scale Founding Partner, Adam Forest

Why Startups Need a General Counsel

It’s hard to imagine most start-ups embarking on a capital raise without an experienced Chief Financial Officer or other key personnel responsible for the venture’s success, but many of these same companies often view a general counsel as an unnecessary extravagance.

Can Remote Work Solve BigLaw’s Gender Problem?

Law firm life has changed in the last two decades, and for a majority of attorneys, not for the better.

It’s Time to Scrap Rule 5.4 (and Allow Outside Investment in Law Firms)

The American Bar Association’s (ABA) Model Rule of Professional Conduct 5.4, adopted in most states, effectively prohibits investment in law firms by non-lawyers.

Go solo, but don't go it alone

If you’re an in-house or BigLaw attorney, there is a statistical probability that you have thought about pivoting away from those traditional paths at some point in your career. You may be contemplating your options and wondering what it would be like to establish your own practice. Would you have enough steady business to pull it off? What are the risks? Would you have time to do the other things that bring you joy in your life? Would you be happy?

Former CLO And Biglaw Partner Joins Virtual Law Firm As Managing Partner

With the legal industry in flux, the lines between traditional law firms and virtual law firms are blurring

How the Best Attorneys Leverage LinkedIn

The most successful attorneys are brilliant personal brand builders who have mastered how to tap into the power of their LinkedIn network in order to engage the community, develop business, or generate new career opportunities. We’ve compiled a list of essential best practices followed by attorneys at Scale LLP to help make sure you’ve taken all the steps to optimize your LinkedIn profile and build awareness and engagement around your personal brand.

Blazing a New Legal Career Path

We recently got the chance to sit down with a community of entrepreneurial attorneys to share lessons learned from their not-so-linear legal career experiences - off the traditional path - to create a whole new way of practicing law.

Is Being “Online 24/7” Good for Business?

Around-the-clock online availability has long been considered a “non-negotiable” expectation by many in the legal profession. But it begs the question - is being “online 24/7” really what it takes to be a successful lawyer? New research suggests it may actually hinder attorney performance and client service.

Is It Time to Abolish the Bar Exam?

Professor Carter argues that bar exam requirements—and needlessly high passing rates, or “cut scores”–are anti-competitive.

To Diversify Their Outside Counsel, Clients Should Think Beyond Big Law

Women’s history month is coming to a close, and I’m reading a story about Coca-Cola struggling to figure out a way to diversify its outside counsel.

Is there a growing need for the fractional GC?

Flexible work is on the rise. In the wake of the pandemic, Great Resignation, economic downturn and mass layoffs, many attorneys are redefining what it means to be successful. These conditions have turned out to be the perfect storm for a surge in the “fractional GC”.

Legal Market Report Says Firms Will Struggle to Retain Talent

The 2022 Report on the State of the Legal Market published by Georgetown University Law Center and Thomson Reuters confirms that, despite record profits, law firms still struggle to recruit and retain talent.

Top 3 Goals for Attorney Success in 2023

The Scale Community gathered this year in Denver for its firmwide attorney retreat to discuss what it would take to build, grow and thrive in 2023. Here are the top 3 goals from those discussions that can help the broader attorney community as we all look ahead to the year as it unfolds.

New Virtual Firm Grows With Talent From Big Law

Virtual firm Scale is emerging out of 'stealth mode' – and growing fast

The Virtues of a Virtual Practice in Summer

With summer only a month away, attorneys are thinking about how to juggle their summer plans while keeping up with their practice obligations. Now more than ever, a remote work practice is enabling more attorneys to do that with greater ease.

The Operational GC: Are Your Lawyers as Agile as Your Company?

Agile Development meets the practice of law.

Law Firms Can Thrive in a Coming Recession. History Provides a Guide.

Most economists believe the U.S. is headed for a recession in 2023–or is already experiencing one.

Lawyers May Work From Home, but Will Firms Ditch Those Expensive Leases?

Bloomberg reports that in the last week of December, 2021, over 40% of US workdays were worked from home, according to economists. Before the pandemic, that number was 5%.

Virtual law firms scale up amid 'forced experiment' of remote work

Women in Law: Redefining Success 2023 Series

The great redefinition of success in law is here, and women have a large role in driving that change. That’s why we’ve brough together women and allies in the practice of law for Scale LLP’s Women in Law: Redefining Success 2023 Series, a quarterly webinar series where we hope to spark meaningful conversation and build a strong network of allies and accountability partners in order to build a fulfilling practice for 2023 and beyond.

Women in Law Session 1: “Redefining The Career Path”

In the first session of our Women in Law: Redefining Success 2023 Series, three attorney panelists shared their not-so-linear legal career experiences in their journey to now finding themselves at Scale LLP.