Finger on the Pulse, Not the Ballot Box: Midsize Firms Rarely Use Partnership Votes

May 23, 2018Media Mention
Mid-Market Report

Midsize law firms hold tight to the culture of partnership that binds their respective colleagues together, often commenting that they are more “old school” than their larger counterparts that operate more like corporations. But that doesn’t mean they are hamstrung by things like partnership votes that could slow down decision-making.

In fact, while many large firms are actively pulling back from holding partnership votes, midsize firm leaders say little has changed in the way they approach partnership votes because it has always been relatively limited. It’s easier in a smaller firm, they say, to build consensus without requiring votes.

“Historically, and more recently, the way I and our five-member executive committee that runs the firm operates is that we really, in almost all instances, make decisions based on consensus,” says Bob Baradaran, managing partner of 90-lawyer, Los Angeles-based Greenberg Glusker. “Not that we necessarily take a vote by a person, but we kind of gauge the temperature of what most of the partners are thinking and essentially manage the firm accordingly.”

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