Books Of Business

As a legal professional you need to be aware of a certain dynamic that occurs in the law firms of our friends in the City of London and across the Atlantic. What they have done in the face of the brutal and bloody competition is that they have largely thrown away traditional ideas of a law firm partnership and have replaced it with a 'Star' system where whoever has the largest book of business is king. In fact they seem to encourage very much this system.
A local analogy would be what is happening in the Ikoyi area of Lagos where new money is displacing the tastes of old money and turning the sedate residential area into commercial property with the usual effects.
Since the said law practice trend will eventually find its way to the Nigerian legal services space (if it is not thriving here already) you need to learn to develop a book of business that you significantly control and are responsible for, to get you the partner seat or a big fat profit sharing arrangement.
Adding this specific skill to all else that you are doing right now will be trying and if you keep reading this blawg and put heads together with two or three other professionals you can find your way to make it happen.
The summary for all this is that you get to eat what you kill at your law firm and not just on a selfish, personal level. You will build skills during the hunt, you will take some of the pressure off of your managing partner and you will earn some elbow room at the practice.
And if that was not clear enough, this: your law firm will appreciate it if you produce ideas, make great things happen when your MP is not looking and not just process the work or grind out the analyses. It will keep members who carry their weight and nothing is heavier than having your book of business.
Don't let the analogy of hunting and killing turn you off, it's something our friends in the City and across the Atlantic contributed to the global legal space.