Some data about plans of general counsel not to expand internal litigation support staff

The recent report by Lexakos, Chief Legal Officer 2008 Strategic Planning Survey, draws on responses from more than 100 chief legal officers. According to Rick Wolf, founder of Lexakos, 86 percent of them “do not plan to expand internal staff dedicated to litigation support.”

How you interpret this finding depends on the size of the law departments in the respondent population. A large number of law departments are too small to staff a position devoted primarily to litigation support (See my post of April 15, 2006: solo GCs.). Of the remaining law departments in the Lexakos sample, some number may already have the person or two onboard and they need no one else. If you have headcount constraints a standstill position says nothing about the value the top lawyer might perceive of such a role. The finding also may suggest that the cottage industry of litigation support providers has done a good job in providing services (See my post of Feb. 9, 2006: cottage industry of litigation support; and Jan. 28, 2007: litigation specialty providers.).