YOUR BUSINESS AUTHORITY
Springfield, MO
YOUR BUSINESS AUTHORITY
Springfield, MO
In the past 15 years, the legal market has undergone fundamental changes, according to Reuters Institute’s 2024 Report on the State of the U.S. Legal Market, with clients seeking specialized services to deal with ever more complex legal needs.
New technologies emerging in established industries are driving some firms to focus on just certain areas to meet client expectations; new industries such as legal cannabis have spawned new niche firms, and even the demographics of an aging population are contributing to specialization gaining market share within the legal sector.
A Mordor Intelligence report remarks that the U.S. legal services market is highly fragmented, with nearly half of legal practitioners choosing solo practice, and two-thirds of attorneys in private practice with 10 or fewer attorneys. This structure has facilitated the rise of nimble, niche law firms that serve specific market segments or geographic regions.
Niche law firms grew their market share of total legal revenue by an estimated 8% to 10% from 2017 to 2023, according to data from ALM Intelligence and Clio Trends Reports. Additionally, according to Reuters, 61% of corporate clients prefer specialized or boutique firms for certain matters, up from 46% in 2016, citing expertise and responsiveness.
“I liken it to the medical field,” said Lori Rook, managing attorney and owner at Ozarks Elder Law LLC, a firm that specializes in serving older adults and those with disabilities. “Would you go to a foot doctor if you have a heart problem?”
Rook said she believes it is almost always a benefit to seek a lawyer who focuses on the field of law the client is seeking.
Rook moved to the field of elder law from civil litigation after her mother, who was caring for Rook’s grandmother, had a lot of law-related questions.
Rook’s firm handles cases such as estate planning, elder abuse, Medicaid, asset protection, guardianship and special needs trusts, among others.
One of the types of cases they have seen a rise in is elder abuse.
“We are seeing an uptick in elder abuse, and that is something that you don’t see a lot of elder law attorneys touch, mainly because it requires litigation,” she said. “We’re seeing the outfall of things that went on in the COVID-19 pandemic.”
According to the National Council on Aging, 1 in 10 Americans age 60 and older have experienced some form of elder abuse, which was shown in a study by the American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry to have increased to every 1 in 5 older adults during the pandemic. Many of those cases are financially related.
“With the progression of artificial intelligence, we are seeing the grandparent scheme that’s out right now where someone will emulate a family member’s voice,” Rook said. “They call grandma and grandpa and say, ‘Hey grandma, I’m in jail. Can you bail me out?’ They’ve scoured social media; they’ve gotten enough information on this particular grandkid. I mean, it’s a lot of work. It’s very detailed. Sometimes there’s things that can be done and sometimes there’s things that cannot, we just refer to the prosecutor’s office.”
According to the National Council of Aging, the annual losses incurred by older adults who are victims of financial abuse total over $28 billion.
Another continuously changing and specialized field of law regards the use, selling and regulation of cannabis, according to the Reuters report. The cannabis market was estimated at $57.18 billion in 2023, according to Fortune Business Insights, up from $43.2 billion the year prior. It’s expected to be $444 billion by 2030.
Joseph “Chip” Sheppard, attorney at Carnahan Evans PC, said he has had a lot of experience in cannabis law, dating back to helping to draft the Missouri constitutional amendment to get recreational use on the ballot.
Sheppard said he mostly focuses on branding agreements, appellate work and one of the most difficult areas, regulatory work for companies that sell cannabis.
One of the most complicated parts of the field, he said, is handling constantly changing guidance from the Division of Cannabis Regulation as per what is allowed in various areas of testing, marketing, labeling and more.
“There’s a lot of legal work where clients have to call us to help with regulatory work,” he said. “That can turn into litigation or appeals if our clients don’t agree with what the division has determined.”
A lot of Sheppard’s work these days also focuses on the paperwork consolidating businesses.
“There’s a lot of clients that owned one dispensary or one manufacturing facility and they just got to the point they were worn out,” he said. “They were willing to sell and so we have a fewer number of players, and the bigger operations have purchased dispensaries from the folks that had one or two. Some people have even merged with out-of-state entities.”
While smaller firms are snagging a bigger share of the niche market, it doesn’t mean larger firms aren’t adapting and growing as well.
In Springfield, one of Kansas City-based Husch Blackwell LLP’s specialties is aviation law, which can include air travel, aircraft operations, airport facilities and legal business in the industry.
David Agee, partner at the Springfield office, said his teams focus on representing commercial airlines in the purchase of aircraft and engines, negotiating long-term maintenance and related agreements, and commercial contracts relating to procurement, fuel, cargo, charter services and marketing.
“Last year we represented American Airlines in the negotiation of a purchase agreements for 85 Airbus A321neo family aircrafts and 85 Boeing 737 Max 10 aircrafts,” he said.
Agee said specializing in aviation law doesn’t often come directly from going to college to learn about it.
“While certain colleges offer aviation-specific programs that can be beneficial, much of the specialized training occurs externally, through trade associations, industry groups, conferences and similar avenues,” he said.
Agee said staying up with regulations and the changing industry is a challenge, along with negotiating with opposing counsel that doesn’t have a background in the field.
Copy Editor Cheryl Whitsitt contributed.
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