Nonlawyer ownership of law firms provides a “new, fertile hunting ground” for private equity firms, but is it improving access to justice?
Over two years ago, I wrote a post, “What’s New in Law Firm Ownership.” What was new was that two states (Arizona and Utah) and the District of Columbia were allowing nonlawyers to own law firms. Since then, other states have not rushed to do the same, and that state of affairs is unlikely to change soon.
Nonlawyer Ownership in the Mainstream Media
However, one thing that has changed is that the idea of nonlawyer ownership of law firms has reached the mainstream media. Last month, The Wall Street Journal published an article about “Why Arizona Law Firms Are a Hot Investment for Private Equity.” A month before that, Forbes wrote about “Why Law Firms Could Be Private Equity’s Next Conquest.”
