Law firms have been experiencing a good run lately. Billing hours and rates have gone up, and many practices have achieved record revenues. According to the ABA Journal, quite a number of law firms saw an increase of 12.5% in revenue in 2024. That’s quite impressive in any industry.
Not many lawyers are this lucky, however. Some are leaving between 10% to 15% of their billable hours on the table, according to a study shared in the National Law Review. That’s real money slipping through the cracks. The problem is not that they’re not working hard enough. It’s because they’re drowning in inefficient processes that waste time and resources.
The solution? Adopting a lean mindset. This doesn’t mean cutting corners or squeezing more hours out of your team. It’s about working smarter, so that you can cut out the fluff, save money, and finally focus on delivering client value.
To implement a lean mindset, your law firm can start with the following four key areas:
1. Automate Tasks with Relevant Tools
If you ask most lawyers what slows them down, paperwork is usually high on the list. Even in 2025, many law firms still spend hours doing paperwork tasks that software can do in minutes, from drafting documents to recording client intake, scheduling, billing, and more.
The question is, why not automate these tasks? CRMs can handle virtually everything to do with clients, and there are countless numbers of law practice management software that can help with clients, cases, time, billing, and communication, all in one secure platform.
In fact, the goal in 2026 and beyond should be to integrate artificial intelligence into your legal workflows. Way back in 2023, Goldman Sachs predicted that AI could automate up to 44% of tasks in the legal profession. That number is probably higher today.
AI can streamline discovery by sorting through vast amounts of data to find evidence
AI can also help with due diligence and risk identification by flagging anomalies in transactions or patient records. Let’s not forget streamlining compliance, billing, and even legal research. The possibilities are endless.
Adopting and Using Technology
Technology will play a big role in your drive to create a lean and efficient firm. But the thing is, whether you’re getting AI tools for your workflow, a regular CRM, or accounting software to streamline your finances, you should absolutely ensure that it’s working as it should before going live with it.
Why? Because when your everyday processes depend on tech tools, even a small glitch can slow everything down.
This is where software testing comes in. Test the tools with your actual workflows. Does it integrate well with your existing systems? Is the data secure?
A good idea is to do a pilot program with a smaller team. Get their feedback. Train everyone thoroughly. Then roll it out firm-wide. Doing it this way saves frustration, prevents mistakes, and makes the tech adoption a success.
2. Identify and Minimize Waste
Waste in the legal industry is also about time, effort, and missed opportunities.
Maybe it’s about outdated habits like emailing the same document back and forth between colleagues or partners instead of using a document management system. Or it’s the routine you’ve all followed for years simply because that’s how things have always been.
If it’s not emails, it’s meetings. If it’s not meetings, it’s one more tiny distraction that pulls your team off the actual work. None of this is billable, and according to a recent state of work report, causes professionals like lawyers to lose up to 3 hours of their workday.
If you’re serious about going lean, then one of your most important tasks is to figure out where your time is actually being wasted.
How many hours disappear into unscheduled meetings? How long does it take to find or file documents? How often do cases slow down because someone is waiting on information that should have been accessible? Even the casual pauses and hallway chats count more than we like to admit.
Audit every one of your daily tasks and processes and see where you can make changes.
3. Improve Workflows with Stronger Teams
If you’ve ever been part of a complex litigation up close, you already know how messy things can get. Product liability cases are the perfect example, and the Bard Power Port lawsuit is a good case study.
Bard PowerPort is a device used for chemotherapy, long-term IV treatments, and other infusion therapies. Recently, reports started piling up linking the device to issues like catheter fractures, infections, device migration, and more, with hundreds of plaintiffs filing claims.
According to expert opinion by TorHoerman Law, potential settlement amounts could range between $10,000 and over $250,000, depending on individual damages and the direction of the litigation.
Of course, a case like this will involve mountains of medical records, expert opinions, imaging, FDA reports, and client statements. It’s a lot for any firm, but not impossible, especially for a lean firm with a strong team and seamless workflow.
This means clearly defining who is responsible and accountable for each part of a process. The RACI model (Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed) can help here. We’re talking about small, specialized teams where one group focuses on medical research. Another reviews device failure data. Another handles client updates. One team lead keeps communication flowing so nothing slips.
When everyone knows their lane, work moves faster. When they don’t, the case collapses into chaos.
4. Track and Manage Finances
Even the leanest law firm will face challenges if it doesn’t pay attention to how money comes in and goes out. Too many businesses, law firms included, are bloated with excess expenses that end up putting a strain on their finances.
And these aren’t just minor issues. Problem with finances is one of the reasons businesses fail, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
And it’s not just cash flow. What about unbilled time, missed invoices, incorrect entries, and other small errors?
So, how can you address these issues? For billings, focus on time tracking. Make it a policy that all billed time must be entered by the end of the day, no exceptions.
You also want to explore alternative fee models. For example, if you are implementing AI in your workflow, then the traditional hourly billing model may no longer be viable. In that case, you may want to consider flat-fee pricing for predictable work.
Whether you plan to integrate AI or not, learn to use tools to track expenses, run billing automatically, and flag issues before they become headaches.
Final Thoughts
Going lean with your everyday process as a law firm is not a sprint. It’s not a single project with a start and stop date. It’s a process that involves constant iteration, asking yourself, Is there a better way to do this?
The trick is to start with one process. Automate one workflow. Eliminate one source of waste. You’ll be surprised how quickly these small changes will build momentum, turning your law firm into a profitable outfit and a much better place to work.
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