Noting the lack of a strong response, Marc Totaro, national manager of professional services at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, said: 'We're not seeing the same responses from the top legal firms. They're not talking around diversifying their core offerings as well, so I think there's a real challenge there for the legal industry as the larger [accountancy] firms provide an additional source of competition.' PwC, for instance, has stated its intention to become a top 20 international law firm.

Exceptions to the rule

Lawyers Weekly, however, says that some law firms are, in fact, diversifying - and it points to MinterEllison as one such innovator and Herbert Smith Freehills as another. Source: Lawyers Weekly