Major, Lindsey & Africa Releases New Tool to Help In-House Counsel Decide between Hiring Internal Lawyers or External Counsel

The tool conducts cost-benefit analysis for corporate legal teams to determine whether the legal workload justifies making an internal hire

Hanover, MD – (September 18, 2017) – Major, Lindsey & Africa, the world's largest legal search firm, today released the Make-Buy Analysis, an interactive tool that makes it easy for in-house legal departments to determine whether it makes financial sense to hire an internal lawyer to assume part or all of the workload of outside counsel. The tool calculates the estimated dollar and percentage savings available, as well as the breakeven point, for hiring in-house counsel.

"As corporate legal departments face increasing pressure from the C-suite to manage costs more efficiently, we wanted to build a tool to help general counsel and chief legal officers understand their spend clearly so that they can make informed decisions about hiring," said Greg Richter, Vice President of Major, Lindsey & Africa's In-House Practice Group. "The Make-Buy Analysis will help legal teams calculate whether the legal workload justifies an internal hire."

For every area of legal practice that the department would like to insource, the tool asks a series of questions to gauge different scenarios for the current legal workload. Questions range from the potential employees' salary and bonuses, working hours and holidays to the bill rates for outside counsel and support costs. In turn, the tool makes the following calculations:

• Compensation costs per year for new hire
• Total cost (compensation and overhead) per year for new hire
• Direct cash cost per hour for new hire
• Full cost per hour for new hire
• Breakeven point for new hire
• Minimum billed hours to break even
• Annual savings from hiring new in-house counsel

Depending on these outcomes, a general counsel or chief legal officer can provide data and metrics to the business team to make the case for additional resources. The tool not only helps management make financially sound hiring decisions, it also helps general counsel or chief legal officers put hiring into the context of the business' greater strategy. By understanding the costs of an in-house attorney, the tool can help legal management avoid over- or under-hiring internally, which can lead to inefficiencies and wasted resources.

To learn more about the Make Buy Analysis, please visit www.mlaglobal.com/makebuy.

About Major, Lindsey & Africa

Founded in 1982, Major, Lindsey & Africa is the largest and most experienced legal search firm in the world. With more than 25 offices worldwide, Major, Lindsey & Africa has earned recognition for its track record of successful general counsel, corporate counsel, partner, associate and law firm management placements. The firm also provides law firms and companies with highly specialized legal professionals on project, interim and temporary-to-permanent hire basis. Combining local market knowledge and a global recruiting network, Major, Lindsey & Africa recruiters are dedicated to understanding and meeting client and candidate needs while maintaining the highest degree of professionalism and confidentiality. The firm considers every search a diversity search and has been committed to diversity in the law since its inception. Major, Lindsey & Africa is an Allegis Group company, the global leader in talent solutions.

To learn more about Major, Lindsey & Africa, visit www.mlaglobal.com.