Extract from Andie Linker’s article “Secrets from Corporate Counsel: What Law Firms Need to Know”
Law firms all over the world should start using KNIVES.
No, no, not that kind, put that away. I’m talking about the acronym coined by Beth Solomon, Karen Wagshul, and Kimberly Quan at Relativity Fest 2019. Beth—who then served as senior counsel at Discover Financial Services, though she’s now a VP and deputy GC with Pathward—introduced the acronym, encouraging law firms to “be sharp like a knife” when it comes to working with their corporate counsel.
Knowledge: Know your client’s industry and know what compliance rules they’re dealing with.
New World: Understand where the practice of law is going to go next.
Innovation: Align corporate and law firm risk appetites. Show corporations which risks are worth the potential reward.
Flexibility: Be willing to bend your approaches, models, costs, and relationships.
Efficiency: Be up front about how long each will take.
Our audience built upon KNIFE in real time (flexibility!) and added a V for “versatility” and an S for “security,” thus transforming our acronym into KNIVES. But we didn’t stop there.
