The market for legal services is growing increasingly more competitive. How is your firm planning to stand out? Join Joshua Lenon, Clio’s Lawyer in Residence, in this 1-hour session to explore the 2021 Legal Trends Report in detail and discuss what the data means for law firms and legal professionals like you. In this CLE-eligible webinar, you’ll learn: The biggest takeaways from Clio’s research into 2021 legal trends What today’s clients look for in hiring a law firm Recommended actions for optimizing your firm’s success in 2022 and beyond https://www.clio.com/events/webinar-2021-legal-trends-report/

1. Key Insights from the
2021 Legal Trends Report

2. Joshua Lenon
Lawyer in Residence
E: Joshua@clio.com
T: @JoshuaLenon

4. Clio App Data
Aggregated and anonymized data from tens of
thousands of legal professionals in the United States.
Legal professional and
consumer surveys
We surveyed 1,056 legal professionals and
1,002 consumers in May and June 2021.
Longitudinal Study
This year’s report includes a multi-year study
of over 1,600 law firms grouped into three cohorts—
growing, stable, and shrinking.
Data Sources

5. Cloud-Based Client-Centered
&

6. Our sixth annual edition
Legal
Trends
Report
2016
Powered by Clio

8. 2016-2020:
Breakthrough Insights

9. #1:
Introducing the
Law Firm “Funnel”

10. Utilization rate
Number of billable
hours worked
Number of
hours in a day
30%
Realization rate
Number of billable
hours invoiced 81%
Number of billable
hours worked
Collection rate Number of hours
collected upon 85%
Number of billable
hours invoiced
÷ =
÷ =
÷ =
Law firm key performance indicators (KPIs)

11. 1.9 hours realized 6.1 hours missing
5.6 hours missing
2.4 hours utilized
Utilization rate
8 hour work day
1.6 hours collected
6.4 hours missing
How many hours were billable?

12. #2:
What happens to the
missing six hours?

13. 48%
Administrative tasks
16%
Licensing
and continuing
education
16%
Office
administration
15%
Generating and
sending bills
1
1%
Configuring
technology
6%
Collections
Too much time eaten
by non-billable
administrative tasks
Not enough clients to
support billable targets
33%
Business Development

14. 62%
37%
31%
28%
16%
13%
13%
7%
6%
Get a referral from friend/family
Use an online search engine
Get a referral from another lawyer
Look in a lawyer directory or listing
Look in the yellow pages
Contact a lawyer seen in a TV ad
Contact a lawyer seen in an online ad
Contact a lawyer heard in a radio ad
Contact a lawyer seen on a billboard
How do consumers find a lawyer?

15. 67%
Responds to first call/
email right away
64%
Offers free
initial consults
47%
Offers fixed fees
28%
Let’s clients pay
by credit card
27%
Exchanges
texts with clients
19%
Great-looking
website
What potential clients look for

16. #3:
The chasm between lawyer
and client expectations.

17. LAWYERS CLIENTS

18. 46% 46%
31% 31%
30%
32%
28% 29%
45%
27%
17%
51%
15%
33%
1
1%
25%
8%
40%
Disparity between
lawyers and clients
Anxiety Control Annoyance Anger Confusion Relief Urgency Disbelief Frustration
Lawyer perception of client emotions
Actual client emotions
Client emotions vs lawyers’ perceptions

19. Communication by type:
In person Phone Email Website or online portal/app Other
39% 51%
Lawyers
18% 7%
70%
Consumers
Perception vs. reality: telling a lawyer all the facts or details of a situation

20. Communication by type:
44% 44% 8%
Lawyers
23% 14%
55% 5%
Consumers
In person Phone Email Website or online portal/app Other
Perception vs. reality: learning about the legal aspects of a case

21. #4:
Do law firms deliver on
client expectations?

22. 100%
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
100%
Timely response
Easy to understand
Understanding process
Knowing next steps
Answering each question
Cost expectations
Friendly tone
Getting a meeting request
Most important 2nd most important 3rd most important
Importance to clients

23. of consumers expect a
response to an initial
inquiry within 24 hours.
79%

24. So, we put 1,000 law
firms to the test…

25. 60% never responded
to the inquiry at all.

26. #5:
Which firms are winning?

27. New casework and firm revenue
compared to previous year
20%
10%
0%
-10%
-30%
-20%
Jan 2020
Feb
2020
M
ar 2020
Apr 2020
M
ay 2020
Jun 2020
Jul 2020
Aug
2020
New matters (YoY)
Revenue (YoY)

28. Revenue advantages to using
technology solutions (per lawyer)*
2019
2020
$40,000
$30,000
$20,000
$10,000
Electronic
payments
Client
portals
Client intake
and CRM
Multiple
solutions*
$0

29. YOUR FIRM THE CLIENT JOURNEY
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30. Areas of focus in 2021
What changes in client expectations are here to stay?
What advantages are successful firms capitalizing on?
What investments can firms make to adapt to these conditions?

31. Download the
2021 Legal Trends
Report
clio.com/ltr

32. Apply the
2021 Legal Trends
Report
clio.com/ltr

33. Part I:
Changes in client expectations
are here to stay.

34. – Steven, Solo Family Attorney
“Resiliency is just learning
how to change with the times,
learning how to be okay.”

35. 2018
Clients look for more remote options today
2021
Lawyers with remote options
Lawyers with in-person options
23% 79%

36. • Reaching out to a law office
• First meeting/consultation
• Receiving status updates
• Communicating about key decisions
• Receiving reminders
• Viewing or sharing documents
• Making payments
Intake
During a
matter
Concluding
a matter
The Client Journey

37. Phone
In person
Email
Text message
Secure mobile app
Website chat
71%
71%
59%
53%
52%
47%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
Reaching out to a law office

38. In person
Phone
Video conference
Email
Text message
Secure mobile
76%
70%
58%
54%
48%
47%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
First meeting or consult
Website chat 45%

39. Factors influencing choice of lawyer
100%
50%
25%
0%
Responsiveness to questions
Price transparency
Free consultations
Payment plans availability
Positive online reviews
Personal recommendation
Searchable online
Provide remote options
Available outside business hours
Available via text or IM
Support online bookings
75%
Somewhat positive influence
Very positive influence
26% 26% 28% 30% 33% 34% 33% 34% 35% 33%
33%
60% 59% 56%
51% 49% 47% 47% 45% 44% 44%
39%

40. – Constance, Solo, Estate Planning & Probate
“That instant response expectation
needs to be managed with clients,
more than anything else.”

41. Communicating about key ideas
75%
During a Matter
71%
61%
57%
56%
53%
51%
44%
43%
0% 20% 40% 60% 80%
In person
Phone
Video conference
Email
Secure client portal
Text message
Secure mobile app
Website chat
By mail

42. Receiving status updates
73%
During a Matter
68%
60%
61%
59%
56%
45%
0% 20% 40% 60% 80%
Phone
In person
Email
Secure client portal
Video conference
Text message
Secure mobile app
By mail
66%

43. Making payments
Online
Automated Payment
Mobile app
In person
By mail
Phone
66%
61%
61%
59%
47%
46%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
Concluding a Matter

44. 60%
First meeting
or consult
Communicating about
key decisions
Receiving
status updates
Viewing or sharing
documents
58%
61%
49%
Consumer preference for video conferencing

45. – Melissa, Senior Paralegal
“As much as we appreciate more
electronic communication features and
video chat, the clients do too. They
don’t have to take off a half day of work
to drive over here to sign paperwork.”

46. 69% 72%
59%
Millennials Gen X Baby Boomers
Expectations of remote options vary based on age

47. Consumers expect both in-person and remote options from lawyers
Hired a lawyer
Never hired a lawyer
79%
67%
0% 20% 40% 60% 80%

48. of consumers are more
likely to hire a lawyer
who o
ff
ers the option to
communicate remotely
79%

49. of consumers expect
lawyers to o
ff
er the
option of a completely
remote client experience
67%

50. A sea change has happened with expectations around remote
options
Going remote is not all-or-nothing—meet clients where they expect
to be met
Client expectations can also be learned behaviours—set and meet
them
Client expectations: takeaways

52. Part II:
Growing firms have advantages
driven by technology

53. – Melissa, Senior Paralegal
“We couldn't let the pandemic stop
the mission. So we had to adapt
and luckily our files were all in
our Clio document management.”

54. Revenue growth between firms
120%
40%
0%
100%
80%
60%
20%
2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
Growing Firms
1
12%
Revenue growth
57%
Matter growth
57%
Client growth
32%
Lawyer growth
100%
0%
-50%
75%
50%
25%
-25%
2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
Stable Firms
0%
Revenue growth
-1%
Matter decline
1%
Client growth
-5%
Lawyer decline
0%
-40%
-60%
-10%
-20%
-30%
-50%
2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
Shrinking Firms
-54%
Revenue decline
-40%
Matter decline
-39%
Client decline
-17%
Lawyer decline
Revenue Clients Matters Lawyers

55. Revenue growth
100%
Growing
Stable
Shrinking
50%
0%
-50%
2014 2016 2020
150%
2018

56. Utilization rate
among firms
40%
Growing
Stable
Shrinking
30%
20%
10%
2014 2016 2020
50%
2018

57. Realization rate
among firms
100% Growing
Stable
Shrinking
90%
80%
70%
60%
2014 2016 2020
2018

58. Collection rate
among firms
100% Growing
Stable
Shrinking
90%
80%
70
2014 2016 2020
2018

59. Rate of client portal adoption*
Jan 2015
100%
90%
80%
70%
50%
Jan 2017
Jan 2018
Jan 2019
Jan 2021
*Normalized based on total adoption among growing firms
Growing Shrinking
60%
Jan 2016
Jan 2020

60. Rate of client intake and CRM adoption*
Jan 2019
100%
80%
40%
Jul 2019
Jan 2020
Jan 2021
*Normalized based on total adoption among growing firms
Growing Shrinking
60%
Jul 2020

61. Adoption rate of firm reporting tools*
Jan 2017
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
Jan 2018
Jan 2019
Jan 2020
Jan 2021
*Normalized based on total adoption among growing firms
Growing Shrinking

62. of law firms report the most common reason
for clients not paying their bills is that they
lack the funds to pay a bill all at once.
44%

63. Rate of online payments adoption*
100%
75%
50%
0%
Jan 2017
Jan 2018
Jan 2019
Jan 2021
*Normalized based on total adoption among growing firms
Growing Shrinking
25%
Jan 2016
Jan 2020

64. of lawyers plan to
accept online payments
beyond the pandemic
96%

65. Based on online payment data we see that
when collecting fees via secure online credit
card payment platform, firms get paid
faster than by other means.
39%

66. 72%
When it comes to payment plans,
53%
of law firms are equipped
to offer payment plans.
of consumers would prefer to pay their
legal fees via a payment plan, while

67. Technology-enabled firms are winning by adapting to client expectations
The performance bar is shifting—what was once innovative is now a basic
expectation
Flexibility is key—throughout the client journey
Growing firms: takeaways

68. Part III:
How law firms are investing

69. of attorneys were
very con
fi
dent in
their knowledge of
their annual revenue
40%

70. of
fi
rm managers
were very con
fi
dent
about knowing their
fi
rm’s revenue in the
previous year
51%

71. 20%
Managing
Partners/Solos
Senior Partners Paralegals Administrative
Staff
51%
48%
43%
Confidence in knowing their firm’s revenue performance
27%
Associates

72. Confidence in knowing firm revenue
Very confident
Somewhat confident
Slightly confident
Not at all confident
40%
40%
1
1%
9%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40%

73. – Terry, Partner Attorney
“Basically it's the client
objectives, demands, or requests
that drive our spending.”

74. Very involved
Involvement in firm finances
54%
Not at all involved
16%
Slightly involved
13%
Somewhat involved
17%

75. Partner/solo attorney
Administrative staff
Legal support staff
Associate attorneys
Contractors & freelancers
Other
86%
15%
1
1%
7%
1%
5%
100%
75%
50%
25%
0%
Financial involvement by role

76. of attorneys reported
low con
fi
dence
in their knowledge
of
fi
rm spending
42%

77. of attorneys believed
their
fi
rms did spend
strategically
80%

78. Where law firms would spend additional funds* Would not spend on
Would spend on
Non-lawyer staff
Associate lawyer staff
Office space
Practice management software
Digital and traditional marketing
Hardware
Professional services
Marketing website and domain
Utilities and connectivity
Business communication software
0% 20% 40% 60% 80%
Legal research software
*Based on the availability of $5,000 in funds

79. Expenses among lawyers who are very involved in finances Large expense
Moderate expense
Non-lawyer staff
Associate lawyer staff
Office space
Practice management software
Digital and traditional marketing
Hardware
Professional services
Marketing website and domain
Legal research software
Utilities and connectivity
Business communication software
0% 20% 40% 60% 80%
27% 26%
25% 15%
23% 35%
10% 57%
10% 16%
9% 36%
9%
9%
34%
23%
7% 30%
29%
27%
3%
2%

80. What legal professionals say should be a large firm expense
Associate lawyer staff
Non-lawyer staff
Practice management software
Digital and traditional marketing
Hardware
Professional services
Marketing website and domain
Legal research software
Utilities and connectivity
Business communication software
Office space
37%
29%
18%
8%
17%
15%
10%
13%
10%
12%
9%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40%

81. – Rose, Solo Attorney
“I don’t need to be spending time
traveling and I don’t need to be
spending this amount of money.
So the office went.”

82. Client expectations are driving incremental investments into
remote experiences and away from office spaces.
Law firms struggle to know their business performance well.
There is a clear opportunity: firms report differences in what
they actually spend on vs what they want to spend on.
Law firm investments: takeaways

83. Part IV:
Conclusion

88. Lawyaw

89. Change is a client-side force.

90. – Marshal McLuhan
“The products of modern science
are not in themselves good or bad;
it is the way they are used that
determines their value.”

92. Part V
Additional Resources and Questions

94. All New Clio Payments
• Manage billing, payment collection, and reporting in one system
• Remain compliant with Trust Accounting rules without any effort
• Handle payments and customer data securely
Available on

95. Sign-up to Clio Payments
You can start accepting payments in moments

96. Who can use the new Clio
Payments?
• All US Customers are eligible
• Available in all Clio Manage
Subscriptions

97. Secure eCheck
• Give clients flexibility to pay with
their preferred method without
any extra effort by you
• Save time with one collection
workflow

98. Saving Payment
Method
• Preferred payment method is
stored
• Credit cards automatically
updated
• Can be used to pay bills for
payment plans

99. Payment Plans
• With Secure eCheck, Debit, and
Credit Card payment options
• More Installment Cadences
• Multiple Payment Plans per Client
• Enhanced flexibility with more
editing capabilities

100. Get the new
Clio Payments
Make sure to have bank information
and SSN ready

101. • Clio’s Legal Trends Reports
• Upcoming December CLE Webinar: How to Get More Out of Cloud
Technology at Your Law Firm
• Innovate Legal Online: Clio Cloud Conference 2021 Encore Series
•November 18: [Replay + Live Q&A] The Wow Factor Trifecta: Brand,
Marketing & Driving Referrals
•November 19: [Replay + Live Q&A] Improving Service to Better Guide
Your Clients
•November 22: [Replay + Live Q&A] From System to Software:
Mapping Your Law Firm Tech Stack
Upcoming Resources

105. Joshua Lenon
E: joshua@clio.com
T: @JoshuaLenon
Thank you.