Corporate Governance

The Short Life of BigLaw Blogs

By J Robert Brown Jr.

A somewhat dated post at 3 Geeks and a Law Blog set out what it describes as 73 dead or dying law blogs operated by BigLaw (a later check showed that a few of the dead/dying were in fact still breathing). 

What happened to these blogs?  As the post notes:  "There are a few on here that are dead for good reason (e.g., the firm no longer exists.) There are a few on here where the attorney moved on to other jobs and left BigLaw behind. And, there are a few that were clearly 'short-term' blogs designed for a specific purpose."

TheRacetotheBottom, fortunately, is not one of them.  It has been operating for more than three years. 

The data does, however, illustrate two important difficulties that accompany efforts to develop a good law blog.  The first is the need for unique content.  To the extent a blog simply repeats what is already in the public domain, there will be few reasons for readers to use it.  Unique content can come in the form of more in depth reasoning or in the posting of materials that are otherwise difficult to acquire.  This Blog, for example, routinely posts briefs from Delaware cases, a resource that is either difficult or expensive to acquire.

Second, a good blog requires a sustained output.  That in turn requires a considerable amount of time and effort, presumably by a lawyer at the firm.  This level of involvement (and loss of billing time) must be weighed against the benefits of an active and widely read blog.  One of the benefits is that a good blog gives the law firm a greater Internet presence.  Given that more and more clients are likely searching for lawyers (and everything else) on the Internet, there may well be a significant business development benefit from a well run blog.

Ultimately, however, the data from 3 Geeks and a Law Blog shows that not all large law firms can master a successful blog.  Size, it appears, is not everything. 

For more on what it takes to develop a good law blog, take a look at Of Empires, Independents, and Captives: Law Blogging, Law Scholarship, and Law School Rankings.  

Full post as published by The Race to the Bottom on March 22, 2010 (boomark / email).