Legal Practice
What does professionalism mean in the 21st century? How are new organizational structures impacting law firms, legal departments and the delivery of legal services? How should lawyers, and other professionals, collaborate that benefits both individuals and organizations? These issues drive at the heart of what it means to be a 21st century lawyer.
Research Projects
Law Department Operations
In early 2021, EY Law and the Harvard Law School Center on the Legal Profession worked on a major research project, interviewing 2,000 business leaders across 22 countries. The survey focused on law department operations (including talent, data, technology, and sourcing), contract creation and management and corporate secretarial operations supporting legal entity compliance and governance.
Law Departments ESG Survey
In 2022 EY Law and the Harvard Law School Center on the Legal Profession launched the General Counsel Sustainability Study to explore what role law departments are playing in developing, framing and executing ESG policies and practices. We surveyed over 1,000 General Counsel representing 12 industries and across 20 countries about the law department’s role in sustainability and on issues relating to environment practices, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), transaction due diligence, governance and much more.
Teamwork and Collaboration
“How do we achieve greater collaboration?” Heidi Gardner's research demonstrates how collaboration benefits not only the firm, but also the individual lawyers who work jointly with other partners to serve and develop clients.
Opportunities
Want to get involved in our work? Check out our opportunities.