Brad is a legal industry futurist – he has developed a national reputation for his insight into the changing ways that legal services are being consumed and delivered in the modern marketplace.
As the co-head of Baretz+Brunelle’s NewLaw practice group, he helps clients see the future – educating them on the industry’s evolution of legal services and their consumption, and helps position them for success by developing novel products, systems and solutions, which make the delivery of legal services more modern and efficient. Brad is also the founder and principal of Blickstein Group, the leading industry intelligence firm focused on helping legal service providers better understand and serve their clients and providing information about law departments and legal operations.
A highly respected legal industry strategist and futurist, Brad has been responsible for multiple initiatives that have created a deeper understanding of — and driven change in—the market for legal services. Before most corporations even had legal operations departments, he launched his Annual Law Department Operations Survey, which remains the most comprehensive survey on the topic. He also conceived the long-running Annual Legal Spend Survey, and in 2019 published the Legal AI Efficacy Report. Like much of Brad’s work, these surveys bring clarifying, evidence-based knowledge to subjects that more frequently inspire conjecture and fear.
Brad is a frequent speaker and writer who has contributed regularly to Above the Law and Legaltech News. Before consulting clients in the legal industry, he was among a small team that launched Corporate Legal Times (now Inside Counsel), the first publication directed to in-house counsel. He subsequently led a management buyout of the media company behind the publication and served as its chief executive.
Brad is a fellow in the College of Law Practice Management, an invitation-only organization of judges, lawyers, academics and others dedicated to excellence in law practice management. He is a graduate of the University of Chicago.
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bblickstein@baretzbrunelle.com
It’s pretty simple. Because law departments are being asked to apply business discipline. This means they are professionalizing their buying of legal services. They also have new options, like automation, ALSPs and the Big Four. The result? Law firms are starting to feel the pressure and are reacting by bringing new legal service delivery models to market.
The biggest changes are going to come when law firms stop being reactive to client requests and realize that by being proactive – with that NewLaw initiatives – they can be even more valuable to their clients. And with that increased value comes more profit. Once big firms start coming to the table with new offerings, the pace of change will accelerate. I think, rapidly.
Law departments and others on the client side will continue to push for incremental changes. But the big changes will come once law firms understand how new models can improve their own financial performance.
“Talk about a dream. Try to make it real.” There’s been tons of talk, which is important. But it’s time to start executing.
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