No One Cares About Your Firm’s History

A thirty-year veteran consultant and legal affairs writer explains why law firm celebratory histories, whether put out as press release, web feature or glossy hard copy, are nearly always “self-centered, not client-centered, and therefore pointless.” There are ways to do it right, she says, but narrow is the gate. After providing three potentially successful ways to approach it, she concludes with some general principles: “History is only relevant in light of today’s accomplishments. If you look back, create a narrative arc to the present day. Otherwise limit the firm’s history to the art in a conference room or a very limited piece of collateral for the lobby coffee table.”