Law Firm Population Changes

While at a recent conference, the speaker mentioned several interesting statistics about the “changing face of America.” In the year 2000, 70% of our population was non-Hispanic White; that percentage will drop to 52% in the year 2050. Similarly, the Hispanic population will double between 2000 (13%) and 2050 (25%). The Asian population will also double from 4% to 8% in the same time frame.

If it is true that people buy from people who mirror them, then law firms’ “cast of characters” will have to change. This is a really strong business case for diversity! Some Corporate America entities have already fired their law firms when they failed to provide the appropriate diversity responses desired by the client. That, more than being the “right thing to do,” will claim the attention of lawyers. And it is happening now.

Good questions to ask yourself, irrespective of the size of your law firm (including sole practitioners):

• What does my law firm look like (color, ethnicity, etc.)?
• What does my client base look like?
• What client base do I want in the future, and what do they look like?
• Is there a match between my law firm and the client base I want?

Categorized in: Management