Dr Beaton is the author of a book, Re-making Law Firms - Why and How, which is due for release in January. Describing the use of freelances as a useful part of a survival strategy for legal practices, he said: 'The BigLaw model has been around in its current form since the Second World War. It has served clients and owners and employers … extraordinary well but, like all business models, they eventually run out of puff.'

Start with part of a firm

The use of freelance lawyers converts one heavy item of expenditure - personnel costs - from being a fixed to a variable cost. Since some fixed costs - the use of premises, in particular - cannot be made variable, it is especially important to get the best out of those that can be made variable, according to Dr Beaton. He suggests starting in a part of a firm, learning how to do it there and then expanding as the appetite grows. Source: Lawyers Weekly