Practice Management

As reported in the Austin Business Journal, former U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft has started a new concept law firm.  Partnering with a consulting firm founded by John Ashcroft in 2005, the Aschcroft Group, the law firm will focus on homeland security, corporate governance, data security, federal enforcement and regulatory matters, and corporate finance.  In short, Big Law without the Big Law bureaucratic infrastructure.

The Ashcroft Law Firm, LLC appears to be forming a number of more regional law firms in which Ashcroft Law Firm is one of the partners.  In Austin, Texas, for example, the law firm is partnering with two former U.S. attorneys, Johnny Sutton and John Ratcliffe to form Ashcroft, Sutton & Ratcliffe.  The law firm also has offices in Dallas, St. Louis, Boston and Washington, D.C.

As for the niche value of the law firm collaborations, John Aschroft says, "As more and more businesses are involved with the government, that makes a breach of regulations more consequential."

As for the more Third Wave quality, Ashcroft points out that the law firm "will try not to be a big behemoth in the beginning. The idea is to be lean, without huge bureaucratic infrastructure".