For years, I’ve had the opportunity to work on hundreds of litigations from both the law firm and corporate sides. I’ve seen many innovative efforts to create successful processes. Working with corporate and law firm managers, I always emphasize the value of using a project management approach to litigation. This is especially important for setting labor and cost expectations and managing e-billing. A project management mindset in litigation creates a clear framework that leads to a predictable model for all involved.
A telling example from my past
I was reminded of this last year when we added a small extension to our 220-year-old home. The planning was extensive. We had to figure out where every outlet and switchplate would go. We chose a post-and-beam construction style. Talk about having a plan before starting! The hardwood timber frames were precision-cut in advance. Holes, connecting tenons, and assembly details were completed before anything shipped from Oregon. We also worked with the county’s historical commission, who wanted to approve the siding, shutters, flooring, and more. The entire addition was planned with great detail, which made the project run more efficiently…for the most part. That’s project management at its best.
This meant that during the day I was working on plans for litigations and during the nights I was working on the plans for our addition. And it dawned on me, that the fundamentals of organizing our construction project were very applicable to organizing the financial and managing logistics of litigation planning. Anticipating expected costs, service levels, and the timing of various tasks are important whether you’re building a home or litigating a case. Of course, we had 18 months to plan our addition. In litigation that luxury of time to accomplish the planning, for the most part, does not exist. However, if I were to do another similar addition, I would have the plans in place to use as a repeatable model, just as in litigation.
The Litigation Planning Through Project Management Challenge
The adversarial aspects of litigation can mean that it’s not possible to absolutely predict and anticipate every contingency that might occur, but attention to detail can still provide a significant benefit in being able to react to surprises that arise as you move through the process. Allotting ample time upfront to develop a plan pays off in the end. More and more, we’re seeing the project management mindset being applied to litigation requirements, plans, and goals in the legal environment.
What’s in a Litigation Plan?
Any extended litigation project requires a sound, detailed management plan that:
The Long Term Payoff
Detailed litigation planning is valuable, but it has an added long-term benefit: the more you create plans, the easier it gets. Many parts of the plan are reusable, especially those related to internal processes like team meeting schedules, billing procedures, and file storage. While every litigation case is unique, details from similar cases (like employment discrimination, product liability, or patent violations) can give a strong start for future cases. The work you put into your litigation plan today will pay off with a predictable, repeatable process. This approach allows for better monitoring, value metrics, and a shared platform for collaboration among your legal team, outside counsel, and service providers.
If that goal can be achieved, your level of predictability for litigation costs becomes more accurate as you repeat the process. That’s a goal that is worth pursuing!
Next time we’ll look more closely at the foundations of a Litigation Plan.