The Most Collaboration I’ve Experienced in 30 Years as a Lawyer

When I joined FisherBroyles LLP nearly two years ago, I knew working at a distributed law firm would be life-changing in many ways. After 30 years of practice at traditional, large law firms, I was ready for the change and for new challenges.

At first, I wondered if I would feel isolated or have trouble getting the support I needed at an all-partner firm with nearly 300 attorneys, all working remotely. Frankly, I also wondered if FisherBroyles was a real law firm or just a collection of individual practices.

Spoiler alert – FisherBroyles is a real law firm. And a damn fine one at that.

In fact, it turns out that FisherBroyles has the most collaborative, collegial atmosphere I have encountered in 30 years of practice.

Here is when I definitively knew that FisherBroyles was a real law firm – shortly after arriving at the firm, an important client asked us to close a document-heavy, $100 million, “bet the house” transaction and to do so on a very tight deadline – just six short weeks. To make this work, I knew I needed to assemble a first-rate team, especially since the other side was one of the best known, most successful players in the market, represented by a storied New York City AmLaw 100 law firm.

I immediately reached out to firm leaders to assemble an effective deal team. At FisherBroyles, partners often request help by circulating an e-mail to a practice group or department. I prefer to find out who in the firm, is well-regarded in a particular area of the law or admitted in a particular jurisdiction, and then reach out directly.

Finding help at FisherBroyles is not difficult. Unlike traditional law firms, our unique approach to compensation creates an internal marketplace of experienced lawyers (to some extent competing for work). Each partner knows – based on the Firm’s upfront, fixed formula – exactly what they will earn per hour if they participate in a client matter. And our formula usually exceeds what partners earn in “traditional” law firms for work they do. In most instances, our working and origination credits are multiples larger than what they could receive at another firm. In nearly two years, the only time I have been turned down for help is when a partner was too busy to help and then I turned to someone equally as effective.

So, back to my deal. I needed a second chair? No problem – Rich in Chicago, a well-credentialed deal lawyer with plenty of subject matter experience ably assisted me in closing the transaction. Tax concerns? Jess, a tax partner in Detroit, stepped up. Help with FDA issues? Got it covered. Chris in our New York office had the necessary experience and handled the issues effectively. We have to provide an opinion? No worries. Tricia in our Cleveland office, and a member of the opinion committee, helped me navigate our process. IP issues? We have a robust IP practice and dozens of IP lawyers practicing in numerous segments of the IP world. Health care law? Check! I could go on.

We closed the deal, on time, and for half the fees charged by the New York lawyers on the other side. The client was incredibly happy and so were we. We could take pride in the work we did and the results we helped the client obtain.

One more thing – who was going to assemble the 949 page closing binder post-closing? Like most firms, we have great paralegals for that.

FisherBroyles attorneys are located in 23 markets in the United States and United Kingdom, including Philadelphia, New York, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, Miami, Chicago, Dallas, Palo Alto —and recently London. More locations, especially abroad, are likely to come on line soon.

Working with colleagues from our homes around the country was not any different than working with former colleagues in the office. As we worked together by phone, email and Zoom, my FisherBroyles colleagues and I learned about each other’s children, family and pets (sometimes through cameo appearances we all enjoyed). And let us face it, the remote model has become the new normal. Since that is the case, why not join a merry band of highly profitable lawyers who have been working this way for nearly two decades?

Working remotely also does not mean we do not see one another socially. Pre-pandemic, FisherBroyles held retreats for partners to meet and bond in person. Last year, we were scheduled to meet in Nashville (one of my favorite cities) before we were forced to cancel. Monthly partners meetings are held via Zoom, and my favorite part of these meetings is the time reserved for partners to thank colleagues for their help. It is always great to hear about collaboration in action.

As I mentioned in my last article, I feel so strongly about the FisherBroyles’ distributed platform that I am writing a series of posts on how FisherBroyles improves upon the traditional law firm model. Upcoming articles will focus on financial benefits, quality of life, providing increased value for clients, and who would benefit most from distributed platform model.

Please do not hesitate to message me on Linkedin or contact me at [email protected] if you have any questions or comments.