In 2012, Wells Fargo general counsel James Strother launched a three-pronged program to reform his department and cut costs: His team reevaluated the way they hired lawyers, how work was managed internally, and what work was going to which law firms, Bloomberg Law reported yesterday. The results followed a familiar trend: more resources and more work in-house, and more pressure on law firms to bring prices down. Before his reform effort started, outside legal spending constituted 80 percent of his budget. Two years later when it finished, legal spending was down to close to two-thirds of his budget. He declined to name specific dollar amounts. One of the nation’s largest financial institutions, Wells Fargo, is ranked 27th in the latest Fortune 500 list. The company has 8,000 locations, 13,000 ATMS, and offices in 36 countries. The bank posted over $22 billion in revenue in the first quarter of 2016. Last month, Strother spoke to Big Law Business about changes in his legal department, how his lawyers are still grappling with the effects of the financial crisis, and do’s and don’ts for law firms that want his business.
