Outside Counsel 2025

Our panelists will share their collective wisdom about OCGs and engagement letters. OCGs are more complicated than ever, but also more important than ever. What are the best ways to organize your responses, ensure compliance, and keep the client informed? What are the best operational mechanisms for complying with OCGs, billing and collections? Who should handle requests for exceptions, variances, or alternate methods for compliance?

Perspectives from Clients

Outside counsel guidelines continue to be a major hurdle for firms and clients in many ways. Law firms now have to provide accurate and timely information to hundreds of clients who do not have uniform systems, or standard practices and have varied policies on so many components on rates, billing and collections. Also, clients face management pressure to ensure compliance with their requirements.

The Promise of AI: Opportunities and Challenges

Firms are eager to reap the benefits of AI. Firms are realizing that tantalizing advances with ChatGPT and other AI platforms are possible now. However, many firms still do not have processes and technology to easily make and keep AI commitments.

What are the next steps? Firms need to set expectations and understand client needs for AI solutions in order to collaborate with them. Legal and ethical risks are considerable are priority issues. OCGs may be one of the first areas where law firms implement AI solutions successfully. Cost of AI solutions and budgeting for 2025 is on firm leaders’ minds.

Understanding Engagement Letters and How They Differ from OCGs

Many firms also receive engagement letters from clients. How firms differentiate engagement letters and OCGs will be a topic of discussion?

The Faculty Includes Heads of Innovation, CFOs, Counsel, Directors of Conflicts and Partners:

Marcella Barganz, Counsel, Mayer Brown LLP, New York

Judy Berman, Director, Conflicts & Information Governance, Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP, New York

Robin Dupree, Director of Conflicts and Client Information, Eversheds Sutherland (US) LLP, Washington, D.C.

TJ Hooper, SVP, Associate General Counsel, Head of Legal Operations, Truist Bank, Charlotte, NC

Edward F. Macnamara, Chief Innovation Officer, ArentFox Schiff LLP, Washington, D.C.

Sean McNamara, Chief Financial Officer, Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP, New York

Joe McSpadden, Executive Vice President, Global Legal Services, Williams Lea, Chicago

Matthew A. Schwartz, Partner, Sullivan & Cromwell LLP, New York

Lawrence S. Spiegel, Partner and General Counsel, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, New York

Thomas G. Trujillo, Chief Innovation & AI Officer, SVP/Director MWAccel, McGuireWoods LLP, Charlotte, NC

Elizabeth Waggoner, Executive Director, Morgan Stanley, New York

Dawn S. Walker, Assistant General Counsel, Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP, San Antonio, TX

Topics for Discussion: 9:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. EST

The Client View of Outside Counsel Guidelines: negotiating rates, risks and compliance. Relationships with law firms: structure assessing risks.
Outside Counsel Guidelines, Engagement Letters, Resolving Conflicts
- Law firm views and perspectives in light of current economic trends. How are OCGs broadening in scope?
- How do firms review and comply with hundreds of different outside counsel guidelines?
- How to handle “blocked time”?
- Dealing with various types of fee arrangements including discounting, alternative fees, success fees
- How to handle updates to guidelines
- Pricing increases, rate structures, variable rate models
- Staying on top of OCGs: including when clients change the rules without fully informing you
- Engagement letters vary from firm to firm
- How to resolve conflicts and handle waivers
Using AI Solutions: Setting Goals, Targets
- Negotiating with and solving client needs
- Change management techniques. Adoption of AI technology for OCGs and engagement letters
- AI and analytics including measurement, monitoring and metrics
- Interpreting time entries: special problem of “blocked” time
- Time management: will the enhanced accuracy of AI lead to less blocked time or more?
Operational Issues
- Staffing and outsourcing
- Working with third party vendors
- Managing compliance
- Implementing process refinements, reengineering, technology
- Investments in technology and AI; budgeting
Negotiation, Risk Management
- Cloud computing
- Requirements by clients--more data, subjects, policies, AI
  - Reporting, security and compliance (including alternative methods). Does e-billing help to strengthen the process?
- Keeping clients informed
  - Handling exceptions, variances
  - Optimizing client satisfaction: using third party resources and AI
  - Best practices
  - E-billing accuracy
- Partner cooperation regarding timeliness, specificity, firm guidelines, penalties
- Meeting client demands for billing enforcement, disputes

CLE credit has been applied for.

About the Organizer:

Sandpiper Partners is dedicated to helping law firms, companies and non-profits achieve greater success in their endeavors including expanding existing activities and entering new lines of business. For 17 years Sandpiper has led the way in innovative business management solutions and education in the postgraduate legal field including running as many as 40 events a year for clients on various aspects of the business of law and substantive law topics. Its clients are located throughout the United States and Europe, and it has completed projects in more than a dozen U.S. cities, London, and continental Europe.

www.sandpiperpartners.com

About the Premier Sponsor:

Williams Lea is the global provider of skilled business-critical support services to financial, legal and professional services firms. We connect people, processes and technology to manage documents and streamline key operational functions. From our humble beginnings as a financial printer in London, to our position today as a global outsourcing leader, our business is built on a strong heritage, great relationships and a talented team. Our 6,000 worldwide employees work onsite at clients and onshore/offshore at Williams Lea operations providing unrivalled support and helping clients transform their support operations.

With revenues of over €400 million, Williams Lea is backed by Advent International, one of the largest global private equity investors.

www.williamslea.com