What to do when a partner is not doing the business

The nature of our profession has changed a lot over the years. There used to be only one legal framework – partnership – which, whether big or small, was built on trust. Now there are different types of business model and non-lawyer investment. Thirty years ago, one heard of nightmare cases of partners who did little or no work and were rarely seen in the office, or others who got fees from another role which were not paid to the partnership.

Working life has moved on. The profession is not as lucrative but is far more competitive. Everyone has to work harder.

Covid and technology made it easier for underperforming fee-earners to ‘fly under the radar’ and avoid supervision. It is more difficult for managing and senior partners to tackle these problems. Disputes are costly and damage reputations.

Divided into four parts, this book looks at: the causes of underperformance; its effects on the wider firm and others; how to deal with partner performance issues; and how to manage a firm to achieve better performance.

Underperformance, or poor partner performance, is difficult to challenge because partnerships are, by definition, a mix of characters doing varied fee-earning. Solicitors are often good at advising other people but not so good at managing themselves. Underperformance is not only about poor profitability, but also risks when cases go wrong or when incorrect decisions are made. Billing is not straightforward. A partner might argue that their field of law is more challenging than others, less profitable, or that billing timescales are longer. There may be changes in the market which the partner cannot control.

This book is very good at encouraging us to analyse these issues and to do something positive to confront them. There are clear risks in not taking any action – profitability falls and other staff may leave. The writers encourage firms to look at the whole picture and possible causes of problems without being judgemental. These factors can include stress in the office or outside, physical and mental illness, and substance misuse. Another factor could be failure to embrace technological change, diversity and different ways of working.

Strategies may include bringing in an external coach and professional help to tackle specialist issues. Plans may include setting goals and standards.

The challenges and advantages of partnerships are nicely summed up: ‘Finding the right balance between the wants and needs of the individual partner and the wants and needs of the wider partnership and firm is very difficult... yet the concept of partnerships (even if it might be packaged within different legal forms) remains the default choice…’ There is a lot in this practical book that is useful.

David Pickup is a partner at Pickup & Scott Solicitors, Aylesbury