Wal-Mart Thinks Lawyers Make Too Much

Finally, a headline written by me that I can actually get on board with! Actually, what big-time corporate lawyers make is really none of my concern [insert “let the marketplace determine what a law firm can charge” argument here], and Wal-Mart actually states its none of its concern either in a memo to Wal-Mart’s Outside Counsel Network:

The salaries that law firms choose to pay their junior associates are none of our concern. We have every reason to be concerned, however, about the impact of salary hikes on law firm billing rates. Based on the size and frequency of the rate increase requests that we have seen over the past three years, it appears that many of the requested increases are largely attributable to the steady, nationwide increase in junior associate salaries.

Wait...so, actually, Wal-Mart IS concerned that lawyers are making too much. More to the point, Wal-Mart execs think THEIR lawyers make too much, and well, they just aren’t going to take it anymore, announcing a moratorium on rate increases.

We’ll have to see how this plays out (perhaps Wal-Mart is trying to start a legal fee revolution - the Che Guevara of the corporate world), but attempting to bully top-100 law firms the way you do your suppliers just doesn’t seem destined to produce similar results. Wal-Mart may have its fair share of legal problems, but the company still needs its lawyers far more than lawyers need Wal-Mart’s business; strangely enough, there are quite a bit of corporate clients out there for top-100 firms to bill through the nose.

Anyway...evil lawyers versus evil Wal-Mart. Ready, set, discuss. You can find our post on The Wall Street Journal article here, the Blog of Legal Times here, and so on and so forth.

Posted by Corey Himrod on Tuesday, November 06, 2007

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