Best Practice: What size book of business does a lateral partner need?

Asked and Answered

By John W. Olmstead, MBA, Ph.D, CMC

Q. I am a partner in a mid-size firm in Memphis. We have 250 attorneys in the firm and I am considering making a move to a smaller firm. While I have a client base, I am not sure how much business would go with me. I am currently making $600k in compensation. With my experience - 25 years plus -- how important is a book of business initially? How big of a book will firms be looking for?

A. A portable book of business is critical - especially if you are looking to earn what you have been earning. A rule of thumb for many of the lateral moves that we have seen for compensation is 1/3 of book. You will need a book of $1.5 to $2.0 million to generate interest from major players.

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John W. Olmstead, MBA, Ph.D, CMC,(www.olmsteadassoc.com) is a past chair and member of the ISBA Standing Committee on Law Office Management and Economics. For more information on law office management please direct questions to the ISBA listserver, which John and other committee members review, or view archived copies of The Bottom Line Newsletters. Contact John at jolmstead@olmsteadassoc.com.