Fraser Milner Casgrain to merge with two global firmschristine balderas/Getty Images/iStockphoto
It seems that some in-house counsel – the lawyers with corporate clients who hire external Bay Street law firms – are under no illusion that the recent intrusion of big, global law firms into Canada is going to save anyone money in legal bills.
The Canadian chapter of the Association of Corporate Counsel, an industry group for in-house lawyers, recently ran a non-scientific survey on its Web site that asked visitors for their opinion on Canadian law firms merging with global giants.
Asked if they believe "global law firms can provide more cost efficiencies," a whopping zero per cent said yes.
Almost 10 per cent did agree that they believed global firms "can better deliver consistency across jurisdictions," and almost five per cent said they believed global firms "more closely reflected the company's global business model."
But it seems the in-house counsel who clicked on this Web survey like their law firms local. Fifty-two per cent said they "believe in using local firms that are best in their respective practice area or market." Almost 24 per cent agreed that "conflicts are a potential problem for large global firms."
The results of the survey, which could be meaningless since it is not a scientifically conducted opinion poll, contrast with the happy clients that Canadian law firms that have entered into these global mergers tend to trot out.
Large clients have praised the mergers that created Norton Rose Canada. Many have said that using a global law firm is good for companies seeking to do business beyond Canada's borders – a sentiment that has clearly also driven Fraser Milner Casgrain LLP's recent move to become part of a new global firm called Dentons LLP.
But perhaps those who are visiting the ACC website these days are more fixated on their legal bills. The ACC would not say how many respondents clicked on the survey.
(Jeff Gray is a Globe and Mail Law Reporter.)
Jeff Gray