Every law firm knows the pain of getting their annual legal research rate increase. Legal research costs are already notoriously high. It can be even more frustrating when you didn’t get much to go with the rate increases to benefit your practice.
Typically, 85% of research is done in cases and statutes and there are only so many ways to do this research. These days, the legal research market has become saturated with mediocre products that seem designed entirely to legitimize rate hikes. Some will enhance efficiency or increase profitability, but often, these “new” services and products are old options repackaged with slight tweaks to be marketed as new and improved. In many cases, firms never used the original iteration of the product in the first place, making the reintroduction even more unnecessary.
Questions to Ask About Your Legal Research Services
- When was the last time your legal research provider offered a product you were actually excited to use?
- When was the last time your provider produced a service that has had a substantial impact on your firm’s success?
- How many of the services in your current bundle do you actually use?
If your answer to the first and second questions date back to the launch of Westlaw Edge or Lexis+, or all the way back to WestlawNext or Lexis Advance, you may want to ask yourself if annual rate hikes are truly justified. While these companies continue to raise prices, how much are they actually re-investing in research and development that benefit their customers?
Why It Matters
Keep in mind that while Lexis and Westlaw make these price increases year after year:
- LexisNexis is worth $974.3 million as of 2021.
- Westlaw reported $1.6 billion in revenue in 2021.
- Both companies have little to no competition beyond each other to motivate them to price their products and services competitively.
The purpose of showing these numbers is to illustrate that both companies have the financial capability to increase research into valuable products and services. However, it appears they made a choice to focus on maximizing their profits at the expense of their customers. You’re paying more and getting less.
What You Can Do About It
While you won’t be able to stop annual price hikes completely, there are steps you can take to mitigate the size of the increase.
- Look over new price changes and ask targeted questions about the increase. Ask what the average increase will do to support your firm throughout your contract.
- Attempt to build a case with your rep as to why lower rates are justified. This is probably the most difficult tactic as your rep won’t be very motivated to give away commission.
- Enlist help in negotiating price adjustments. If you feel like you’re not making any gains in reducing new price increases, it might be worthwhile to enlist a consultant who has experience navigating the ins and outs of these companies.
Your legal library is a significant expense. Make sure that you are getting your money’s worth — especially when those rate hikes take effect.
Legal Counsel Consulting can help you analyze your current contracts and monthly subscriptions. I will gladly help ensure you are not falling prey to desperate tactics like ancillary fees, phantom subscriptions, and overdue refunds. Contact me today to set up a brief appointment to learn more about how I can assist.