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Brazil is one of the world’s most litigious countries. As a result, companies assume significant legal expenses that materially impact their financial performance and operations. Legal Departments and their executives face constant pressure to find solutions by not only reducing the existing legal costs, but also managing a company’s legal affairs with progressively reduced budgets. It is thus vital for a the head of the legal department in Brazil to know what cost controls to implement and how to execute them.
It is therefore reasonable that the legal department seek the support and assistance of specialized consultants, just as other department heads retain outside consultants, allowing the chief legal officer more time to manage the department and to develop the company’s legal strategy.
The Kohn Consulting Group (“KCG”) is the answer to a significant lack of understanding and creativity by traditional management consulting companies in resolving the monumental challenges confronting legal departments in Brazil. KCG specializes in advising legal departments on how to achieve significant cost savings.
KCG achieves this goal by helping its clients improve financial management, operational efficiencies and internal controls, as well as by developing strategies for better use and management of outside counsel. KCG works to deliver results by aligning legal initiatives with business goals through substantial improvements to the performance of the Legal Department.
Unlike traditional management consulting companies that apply a “one size fits all” approach (often resulting in the same expected recommendation to cut people to reduce costs), KCG’s method is customized and comprehensive. With professionals who have worked as in-house counsel in multinational companies, KCG leverages its understanding and know-how of Legal Department operations to advise its clients on the opportunities they have to improve operations within the constraints of the Brazilian legal system. KCG’s team of professional advisors understands what drives the Legal Department’s costs, how to improve the internal controls, manage and reduce outside counsel fees and improve operations. From experience, the KCG team knows that traditional management consulting firms fail to develop plans that are executable by their clients, lack the legal department experience upon which to base their advice, bring few innovations to their clients and instead offer generic and “pre-packaged” strategies and plans.
The KCG team implemented changes that (1) achieved significant cost savings (millions of US$), (2) improved controls, (3) lowered contingencies, (4) materially reduced the number of lawsuits, and (5) upgraded reporting and compliance by the Legal Department.
KCG’s areas of expertise include:
- Development of Internal Controls, Procedures and Policies
- Financial Management
- Analysis of data to identify and develop strategies for improved decision making
- Review of contingencies/reserves to ensure proper classification
- Reduction in the number of lawsuits and contingencies
- Management of outside counsel, including consolidation and billing strategies
- Conciliation Services, including online dispute resolution through its proprietary eConciliador online system
All of these areas have resulted in material legal cost reductions and in better management and decision-making, ensuring that the Legal Department demonstrates its value within the company.
More importantly, the changes are sustainable, resulting in further cost and contingency reductions, quarter after quarter, year after year. Traditional management consulting companies provide only analysis reports, which are often resold to multiple clients and which lack innovation. KCG’s services include not only assisting with the implementation of the recommendations, but also may include the future audit of project results to ensure the sustainability of the efforts.
We look forward to hearing from you.