While I have complained about the lack of benchmark metrics for practice areas (See my posts of July 20, 2005 and of May 28, 2005 on this missing set of metrics.), in fact some have appeared.
Metrics for litigators are discussed (See my posts of Jan. 25, 2006 on lawsuits pending; May 31, 2005 on Canadian case loads per litigator; and June 15, 2006 on claims per lawsuit.). Intellectual property data also shows up (See my posts of Aug. 3, 2005 and July 18, 2006 on patents; and April 9, 2006 on trademarks.) as does data on international mergers and acquisitions deals per lawyer (See my post of Dec. 22, 2005). Contracts handled per commercial lawyer make an appearance (See my post of Jan. 6, 2006.) and hints of HR matters per lawyer (See my post of Jan. 3, 2006 on EEOC charges and June 7, 2006 on lawyers per 1,000 employees.).
Still incognito are metrics that suggest the appropriate staff for environmental work, antitrust and import/export. Soon these too, and other practice group metrics, will be unmasked (See my post of April 7, 2006 on international lawyers in the US; and Dec. 22, 2005 on compliance spend compared to legal spend.).