Dan Michaluk, an associate at Hicks Morley, recently discussed why project management is a key litigator competency on Slaw.CA.[1] His post discusses a number of points that this blog has covered in the past, but placed in a Canadian context.
He starts with a quote from the Sedona Conference's Commentary on Achieving Quality in the E-Discovery Process endorsing legal project management and then provides a brief definition of "project management" taken from Wikipedia, without delving into too much detail (defining "legal project management" can be tricky).[2] Next, he points out that poor legal project management may have ethical implications:
There are other sources of authority for the pro-project management argument, starting with the [Canadian Bar Association] Code of Professional Conduct mandate to serve clients in an "efficient manner" through the application of "adequate knowledge of the practice and procedures by which [legal] principles can be effectively applied."[3]
Mr. Michaluk also discusses, without taking sides, the debate over whether law firms need to hire professional project managers or who is better suited for project management duties: lawyers or litigation support professionals (for my take on this issue, follow this link).[4]
It is nice to see a post dedicated to legal project management on one of Canada's most read legal sites. Be sure to check out Mr. Michaluk's post here: http://www.slaw.ca/2009/11/25/project-management-as-a-key-litigator-competency/
[1] Dan Michaluk, Project Management as a Key Litigator Competency, Slaw.ca, Nov. 25, 2009, http://www.slaw.ca/2009/11/25/project-management-as-a-key-litigator-competency/ (last visited Nov. 27, 2009); Dan Michaluk's profile on the Hicks Morely Web site: http://www.hicksmorley.com/index.php?name=News&file=ourpeople&sid=203&catid=2&profile=yes (last visited Nov. 27, 2009).
[2] For my take on the Sedona Conference's Commentary on Achieving Quality in the E-discovery Process, see Paul C. Easton, Sedona Conference Highlights Project Management as Key to Quality, Legal Project Management, June 10, 2009, http://legalprojectmanagement.info/2009/06/sedona-conference-highlights-project-management-as-key-to-quality.html (last visited Nov. 27, 2009); for my attempt to define "Legal Project Management," see Paul C. Easton, Defining "Legal Project Management", Legal Project Management, April 30, 2009, http://legalprojectmanagement.info/2009/04/what-is-legal-project-management.html (last visited Nov. 27, 2009).
[3] Michaluk, supra note 1.
[4] For my take on whether lawyers or litigation support professionals make better legal project managers, see Paul C. Easton, The Lawyerification of Litigation Support: Is a Legal Education a Benefit or Just Baggage for an E-discovery Project Manager?, Legal Project Management, September 25, 2009, http://legalprojectmanagement.info/2009/09/the-lawyerification-of-litigation-support-is-a-legal-education-a-benefit-or-just-baggage-for-an-e-di.html (last visited Nov. 27, 2009).
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