Is the traditional law firm model on the wane? Is the market ripe for disruption? More particularly, are we about to see the emergence of more ‘boutique’ law firms outside the dispute resolution space?
US boutique success
In the past 20 years we have seen the rise of the US law firm in London. It has reached the point where very few areas of law truly remain the sole preserve of UK firms. Magic Circle firms, once so dominant, are scrambling to counteract the threat the US firms pose.
In a sense, the US firms in London were, and many still are, boutiques. In the noughties the Magic Circle model remained supreme and ‘full-service’ and ‘global’ was what the clients, and the banks in particular, demanded. The Silver Circle emulated the Magic Circle model, and it was felt that for the US firms to play catch-up was an overwhelming challenge. Building scale and having multiple overseas offices were deliberately intended to create barriers to entry.
However,
