The MPF Webinar Series
Our popular MPF Webinar Series - “The Law Firm of the Future” - is presented on the third Wednesday of the month to help firm leaders look achieve long-term, proactive, forward-thinking, and strategic approaches to their firms and the business of law. These 60-minute Webinars are complimentary for our readers. The on-demand recordings and handout materials are listed below.
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BIG BOLD Predictions for 2026 ** NEW **
By Managing Partner Forum with Uri Gutfreund
An MPF Webinar Originally Broadcast on December 17, 2025
145 managing partners and law firm leaders participated in the live Webinar. As always, we provide timely benchmarking data sourced from leaders of smaller and midsize law firms. Here are some highlights:
- AI integration is now the #1 focus for smaller and midsize firms in 2026, according to participating firm leaders. Talent recruiting and marketing/business development are also on the priority list for many firms.
- 48% of firm leaders say that "junior lawyers not stepping up" is their biggest concern for 2026.
- 29% of firm leaders say that "higher rates" is the top strategy to improve profitability in 2026. But that's down sharply from last year's end-of-year survey. For the first time, Technology/AI shows up as the #2 strategy for improve firm profitability.
- After three consecutive years of bold rate-setting, many firms are planning significant rate increases yet again in 2026. Most firms (51%) are looking at 4-7% rate increases, while 18% say they plan 8% or more.
- In general, law firm leaders are an optimistic bunch when asked about the future of their firms, and this year is no exception, with 56% forecasting “significant" or "somewhat" improved performance next year. Only 12% forecast a decline in performance.
Click here for the On-demand Recording.
Click here for the Handout Materials.
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Beyond the Basics:
The "BBB" Provisions Every Managing Partner Should Know
By Managing Partner Forum with Deb de Vries and Paul Gregory
An MPF Webinar Originally Broadcast on November 19, 2025
We presented our 63rd edition of The MPF Webinar Series hosted by Uri Gutfreund and me. We invited Deb de Vries and Paul Gregory of Anchin to discuss actionable insights and year-end tax strategies, as well as key provisions of the Build Back Better (BBB) legislation that directly impacts smaller and midsize law firms. Here are a few survey highlights:
- 59% of participating firms operate as “partnerships,” including LLPs, LLCs, and PLLCs. 19% are C Corporations. 16% are S Corporations.
- 25% indicated that they are planning to take advantage of accelerated depreciation as allowed in the BBB legislation.
And here are a few points of advice we offered:
- Now is the time of year to talk to your firm’s professional advisors – CPA, insurance, real estate, etc.
- Review/update your firm’s partnership agreement every two years
- Start early when planning for the admission of new partners and the departures of senior lawyers
Click here for the On-demand Recording.
Click here for the Handout Materials.
Click here for Highlights and Recap by 9Sail.
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Strategies to Improve Profitability in 2026
By Managing Partner Forum with Rob Mattern, John Beyer and Pierce Campbell
An MPF Webinar Originally Broadcast on October 15, 2025
The overall demand for legal services is forecast to increase next year, however much of the increased revenue for many law firms will be offset by the higher-than-expected growth in costs that law firms will be experiencing, including investments in technology and AI, attorney salaries, staffing costs, real estate, and vendor contracts.
As many law firm leaders are in budgeting mode for 2026, it was only natural that we turn to our friends at Mattern to discuss strategies and tactics to improve your firm's revenue and profitability in 2026 and beyond. Our speakers were Rob Mattern from Mattern & Associates; John H. Beyer, Esq. from Parker Poe; and C. Pierce Campbell, Esq. from Turner Padget. Here are some of the things we learned:
- 48% of firms said it was their firm’s #1 strategy to improve in 2026. Most firms, plan to be fairly aggressive in setting billing rates in 2026.
- Tracking and improving the efficiency of your administrative team and professional support staff was named a top priority.
- Our panel suggested that records retention was one such area to reduce expenses. We also talked about unused/underutilized subscriptions that may have accumulated over the years.
- Of course, we discussed the opportunities associated with generative AI and its integration into the practice of law.
Click here for the On-demand Recording.
Click here for the Handout Materials.
Click here for Highlights and Recap by 9Sail.
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Content-Fueled Business Development:
How Smaller and Midsize Firms Can Compete with BigLaw
By Managing Partner Forum with John Hellerman and Michael Zukewich
An MPF Webinar Originally Broadcast on September 17, 2025
This month, we invited John Hellerman and Michael Zukewich to talk to us about business development for smaller and midsize law firms. 90 managing partners and firm leaders participated in the live session and, as always, we featured plenty of live audience polling. Here are some of the things we learned:
- 36% of firms require individual business development plans for all lawyers. On the other hand, 48% of firms do not.
- 53% of firms provide business development training for their lawyers.
- 51% of firm leaders say that their firms measure and reward the non-billable time that associates invest in marketing and business development activities.
- When it comes to PR, 55% of firms say their biggest challenge is measuring ROI on the time and money invested.
Click here for the On-demand Recording.
Click here for the Handout Materials.
Click here for Highlights and Recap by 9Sail.
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Associate Attrition and Hiring:
Insights on Hiring, Attrition, and the Legal Talent Market
By Managing Partner Forum with Skip Horne, Jennifer Mandery and Fiona Trevelyan
An MPF Webinar Originally Broadcast on July 16, 2025
Ninety-five (95) managing partners and firm leaders participated in this week’s live webinar with our friends from NALP (National Association of Law Placement) Foundation. We discussed findings of their most recent survey about associate hiring and attrition, and our guest speakers were: Fiona Trevelyan, President and CEO; Jennifer Mandery, Vice President for Research and Skip Horne, Vice President for Engagement.
Here is some of what we learned:
- In 2025, recruiting and retaining legal talent are the #1 and #2 priorities for midsize law firms.
- In 2024, the associate attrition rate was a whopping 31% for firms with fewer than 100 lawyers. This attrition rate is far higher than that of larger firms.
- 40% of departing associates leave for another firm. 18% move to in-house counsel positions.
- Fall is the time of year that sees the most movement, with 40% of associate attrition occurring in Q3. Q4 is the next most active quarter.
- “Boomerang” associates – those that left the firm only to return in the same calendar year – comprised 11% of associate hires in 2024.
As always, the session was packed full of some great benchmarking data.
Click here for On-Demand Webinar.
Click here for Handout Materials.
Click here for Highlights and Recap by 9Sail.
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Aligning Tech and Strategy:
IT Success Factors for Smaller and Midsize Law Firms
By Managing Partner Forum with Corey Castillo and Morris Tabush
An MPF Webinar Originally Broadcast on April 16, 2025
Our April MPF Webinar brought together 70 firm leaders to explore the intersection of technology and law firm strategy with Corey Castillo, COO of Lagerlof LLP; and Morris Tabush, Founder and President of Tabush Group. Here are a few key takeaways:
- Most Firms Are Approaching Generative AI with Extreme Caution
73% of participants reported that their firms are approaching AI "very cautiously," while only 9% are embracing it "enthusiastically." - Increased Investment in IT and Training
Firms report that they are investing between 2% and 9% of revenue – indeed a very wide range – into technology. In many cases, IT has surpassed office rent as the second largest expense after employee salaries. The average spend is around 4–5%. - Strategic Tech Adoption Is on the Rise
Smaller and midsize firms are taking a more strategic, long-term approach to tech investment, with user adoption remaining the top concern.
As always, the session was fast-paced and included live polling.
Click here for On-Demand Webinar.
Click here for Tabush Technology Survey Report.
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2025 Report on the State of the US Legal Market:
The Implications for Smaller and Midsized Law Firms
by Managing Partner Forum with Bill Josten
An MPF Webinar Originally Broadcast on March 19, 2025
Our guest speaker was William Josten, Esq., ALRAP from Thomson Reuters Institute. During our session, we discussed TR’s Report on the State of the US Legal Market and its implications for smaller and midsized law firms. Here are a few things we learned:
- Big Rate Increases Again in 2025. After two years of strong rate increases, smaller and midsized firms were aggressive again in 2025. 31% reported rate increases of 4-5%. 30% reported rate increases of 6- 9%, and 12% reported increases of 10% or more.
- And Rate Increases Are Holding. 51% of firm leaders reported that increases are holding in “almost all” cases. Another 38% said they are holding in “most” cases, and only 1% report that they have achieved rate increases less than half the time.
- Billable Hour Expectations Continue to Decline. The billable hour expectation for Associate Attorneys continues to decline. Expectations now average about 1700-1750 billable hours, down from 1,800 hours in 2023 and 2024.
- Associates Are Still Falling Short. In spite of the lower expectations, only 8% of firm leaders said that Associate Attorneys hit their numbers consistently; 38% said they hit their numbers most (50-80%) of the time and 33% said they hit their numbers only some of the time.
- Getting Nervous about the Economy. Finally, firm leaders are starting to express concerns about US economic conditions. 56% said they were "somewhat concerned." 24% said they were "very concerned."
Click here for On-Demand Webinar.
Click here for Handout Materials.
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Elevating Firm Growth: A Strategic Blueprint for Managing Partners
by Managing Partner Forum with Mark Carlson, Ben Chiriboga and Don Mrozek
An MPF Webinar Originally Broadcast on February 19, 2025
Thank you to our speakers Mark Carlson, Esq. from Baker Donelson; Ben Chiriboga from Nexl and Don Mrozek, Esq. from Hinshaw & Culbertson. Key takeaways:
- Strategic Growth: Successful firms follow a firm-wide plan, while others grow more opportunistically.
- Mergers & Acquisitions: Most small and midsized firms are open to mergers, with 12% willing to be acquired by a larger regional or national firm. However, most prefer to lead in any combination.
- Lateral Hiring: Written integration plans, including a critical 90-day check-in, significantly improve success rates.
- Hiring Tools: Invest in robust candidate assessment tools to avoid costly missteps.
As always, we conducted live polling during the session, and the results are available in the handout materials. This was our 57th MPF Webinar since 2020.
Click here for On-Demand Webinar.
Click here for Handout Materials.
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Strategies to Improve Your Firm's Profitability in 2025
by Managing Partner Forum with Peter Berlowe and Tedd Drattell
An MPF Webinar Originally Broadcast on January 15, 2025
One-hundred twenty five (125) managing partners and firm leaders participated in this month's MPF Webinar. Our guest speakers were Peter Berlowe, Esq. and Tedd Drattell. Here are a few survey/polling results from the group assembled:
- “Billable hours” and “collections” are what get measured most in smaller and midsize law firms. We think that “client satisfaction” and “talent attrition” are also important things to track.
- The billable hour expectation for Associate Attorneys keeps tumbling with fifty-two percent (52%) of firms now in the 1600-1800 hour range.
- Here again in our informal survey, we see aggressive rate increases in 2025, with fifty-four percent (54%) of firms reporting rate increases in the 4-6% range. Twelve percent (12%) of firms sought rates increases of 10% or more.
- When it comes to time-keeping practices, fifty-five percent (55%) of firms say they expect time to be entered on a daily basis.
Click here for On-Demand Webinar.
Click here for Handout Materials.