New York Times: At This Firm the Clients Hire Inside Consultants

September 30, 1993 — The New York Times reports that Bickel & Brewer employs 10 in-house litigation consultants—accountants, financial analysts, IT experts, and others—to handle pretrial work typically outsourced, a practice begun three years earlier. Co-founder William A. Brewer III cited savings of $100,000 for Bellcore, $200,000 for American Medical International in a dispute with Creighton University, and $500,000 for Robert Woolley in litigation involving Embassy Suites. Brewer said fixed costs and early immersion have, on average, cut clients’ legal fees in half; Daniel F. Kolb of Davis Polk called the approach promising but noted many firms cannot justify permanent staff.

"We saved one client, Bellcore, some $100,000 in a telecommunications patent dispute," said Brewer. "We saved American Medical International Inc., a hospital corporation, $200,000 in a dispute with Creighton University in Omaha. And there was $500,000 in savings for Robert Woolley, chairman of a hotel properties group, in a dispute involving the Embassy Suites hotel chain."

Read the full article here.