Henry Gottlieb’s article on “Swimming with the Big Fish” that appeared in the New Jersey Law Journal and Small Firm Business relates several examples of where small law firms have been hired by large corporations.
But it is important to understand why. One or more factors pop out from the article as being helpful and may increase your chances of being hired:
*Prior relationship (even as opposing counsel).
*Provide specialized niche services.
*Credibility in the niche practice (e.g., leadership of bar committees in field)
*Lower fees than BigLaw.
*Not high profile cases that have attention of senior management (“You’re under the radar,” according to Rees Morrison of Hildebrandt International).
*Local issues (e.g., real estate leasing, zoning, land use issues), but not necessarily. Other niche areas mentioned include health law, SBA loans, employment law.
*Creativity (do something different for clients beyond engagement)
The important legal marketing point is that if you are good at what you do, and can identify to general counsel a niche area that can help them, the size of your law firm won’t be the issue.