Beyond the Books: Unlocking New Horizons for Clients with T-Shaped Lawyering

Tim Brown, the CEO of IDEO coined the phrase “T-Shaped Person” when he said “"We look for people who are so inquisitive about the world that they're willing to try to do what you do. We call them 'T-shaped people.' They have a principal skill that describes the vertical leg of the T — they're mechanical engineers or industrial designers. But they are so empathetic that they can branch out into other skills, such as anthropology, and do them as well. They are able to explore insights from many different perspectives and recognize patterns of behavior that point to a universal human need. That's what you're after at this point — patterns that yield ideas."

In the legal world, it’s critical for attorneys to have deep legal expertise as this remains the core a lawyer’s value proposition. This is the vertical stroke of the “T”. Legal expertise includes not just knowledge of statutes and case law but also the ability to think critically, argue persuasively, and navigate the nuances of legal systems. The horizontal part of the 'T' represents skills and knowledge in areas outside traditional legal studies; including, technology, business, and analytics. It also includes soft skills such as emotional intelligence, empathy, and collaboration. In today’s fast-pivoting environment, its increasingly important to understand areas beyond traditional law to better serve clients in a complex, interconnected world.

The advantage of working with T-Shaped Lawyers include offering more holistic advice to clients, bridging the gap between law and other disciplines. Further, its more likely a T-Shaped Lawyer can be an innovator, as their broad perspective can lead to more creative legal solutions. Attorneys can gain these skills by continuing their education in other areas, cross-disciplinary projects, and networking outside their field.

I believe the ThrivePoint advantage is our horizontal stroke of the “T.” Yes, we are legal experts; yes, we have 50 years’ of legal experience between us. We have also both held leadership positions, we have both led Human Resources departments, and we both understand the nuances of business. But even more than those attributes- we care about our clients; I mean care deeply. We will not only listen to your pain-points, we will fee your pain-points alongside you and work toward strategic and sustainable solutions.