Big Four accountancy firm Deloitte has again boosted its New Law credentials, this time with the hire of Jack Diggle from alternative legal provider Elevate to head up its Legal Management Consulting arm.
Diggle will be joining the firm alongside contract management expert Craig Conte and legal management consultant Tom Birdseye, both of whom also join from Elevate. The trio will now be responsible for bulking up Deloitte’s legal consultancy offerings to in-house teams, contracting functions, and law firms.
Regarding the hires, Michael Castle, UK managing partner of Deloitte Legal, commented: ‘Today’s world requires a new approach to the delivery of legal services. Now more than ever, legal departments are having to address the challenge of dealing with increasing complexity and demand with the same or fewer resources.
’Jack, Craig and Tom have a wealth of experience between them that will help these departments and contracting teams rethink their operating models, achieve greater efficiencies and increase the value they deliver back to the business.’
The hires mark the latest push from Deloitte into New Law avenues. In May, the firm announced the hire of Emily Foges, boss of UK legal tech darling and Slaughter and May ally Luminance. Foges joined as lead partner of Deloitte’s legal managed services arm.
The threat posed to traditional law firms from auditing firms is often overstated due to legal and commercial conflicts. However, Deloitte’s approach of building a legal business more resembling to a legal process outsourcer fused with a consultancy could prove the most competitive model – as alternative legal services giant UnitedLex has demonstrated in the US.
Added Diggle: ‘General counsel and legal departments are facing multiple challenges: a heightened regulatory environment, increased workloads and the acceleration of new digitally-enabled, agile operating models. I am looking forward to building on Deloitte Legal’s experience in this space and helping our clients’ legal operations.’
