According to an article by Jamie Heller on the Wall Street Journal’s Law Blog, law firms are not going to have a good year. In fact, according to a Wachovia Wealth Management group that services law firms, firms are looking at a downturn of 5% – 6%. And that “is going to be a good year,” or as one of the group’s members put it, “flat’s the new up.”

The evidence, especially in firms over 300 attorneys, shows that firms are tapping credit lines significantly, cutting non-producers (“dead wood walking the halls”), and more closely scrutinizing claims of laterals, according to the article.

But, as rainmakers know, they have nothing to worry about, as I pointed out in a post 3 ½ years ago, “Rainmakers Don’t Get Fired.” Things have not changed. Billable hours are not the test here.

Effective business developer = rainmaker = job security.