Valerie A. Fontaine earned her JD from UC Law San Francisco (formerly UC Hastings) and her BA, Phi Beta Kappa and magna cum laude, from UCLA. She was on the Editorial Board of COMM/ENT, a Journal of Communications and Entertainment Law. Valerie practiced law with a prominent Los Angeles law firm and entered the legal search profession in 1981. Valerie is past Secretary to the Board of Directors of the National Association of Legal Search Consultants (NALSC) and former Chair of its Newsletter Committee. She currently serves as a consultant to NALSC headquarters.
With increased competition among law firms, business development is a top priority. To maximize revenues, many—if not most—law firms incentivize rainmakers via compensation models which encourage business development. They track originations as a way to reward those who bring in the most business. Historically, however, the most profitable U.S. law firms never tracked originations. They…
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O’Melveny jumped to the front of the Biglaw recruiting pack with the announcement of its plans to use a gamified career assessment and recruiting platform to evaluate potential law school candidates. Through the gamification of recruiting, the firm hopes to broaden its recruiting pipeline and gain access to more diverse candidates. Gamification uses game theory,…
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Should lawyers mix business with pleasure when it comes to social media? Previously, I would have answered that question with an emphatic “NO!” But now, I’m not so sure. Panelists at the NALSC (National Association of Legal Search Consultants) 2018 Fall Symposium in New York City have me wondering whether I should soften that stance.…
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Law firms pay associate bonuses not only to incentivize excellent performance and high productivity, but also to entice lawyers to join them and stay. Firms may pay discretionary bonuses predicated on excellent associate work and strong financial performance of the firm, hours bonuses requiring a minimum number of annual billable hours for any bonus eligibility…
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