The national survey finds that cost certainty and achieving value are particular priorities for corporate counsel as they seek to control their expenditure. The Compass Report also shows the continuation of the shift away from the billable hour. Fixed and capped fees have become the most widespread financial base for giving instructions. The report shows that 28 per cent of corporate counsel intend to cut external legal expenditure this year. However, far more (47 per cent) expect their external spend to stay steady, according to Lawyers Weekly. 

More commercial

Joseph Muraca, author of the report and a partner in King & Wood Mallesons, told Lawyers Weekly that as the  function of the in-house legal department becomes more commercial, corporate counsel are grappling with a range of new challenges concerned with  developing and implementing business strategy.  There is also 'a real push [within firms] to understand the commercial drivers of clients a lot better – a push to communicate advice in a form and format that helps feed into business decisions,' he told the magazine.