Note: The following article was presented by Jim Loeffler at ALM’s Controlling Legal Costs Conference on 12/1/09 in New York City.
Look around other areas of your company, and you will find different approaches to budgeting – most of which are accurate and flexible enough to respond to changing circumstances. Budgeting for sales, production and other initiatives involve known quantities and variables with historical precedent: Accuracy has improved over time based on overall market or industry trends, evaluation of historical results and well-developed budget management workflows. Quite the opposite is true when it comes to legal matters.