To see the threat posed by accounting firms, just look at the number of countries where these newly re-energized players are offering legal services.
Many falsely believe the Big Four were kicked out of the legal industry in the early 2000s. The Economist even went so far as to state, after the Enron scandal drove regulators to limit the range of legal services audit firms could provide, that “accountancy firms’ drive in the legal arena is dead.”
Such reports—as Mark Twain once famously said when he was informed of a rumor of his own death—were greatly exaggerated.
What is clear is that law firms should not underestimate the Big Four. Their size, brands, strength in process management, and strong relationships with corporate clients make them formidable competitors. The expansion of the Big Four into legal services has the possibility to transform the global legal market. Law firms must prepare for a significant increase in competition.
