Law Firm Leaders: Sher Tremonte’s Sher and Tremonte
Sher Tremonte co-founders Justin Sher and Michael Tremonte were recently profiled for Law360’s “Law Firm Leaders” series. The interview touched on a range of topics, including adapting during the COVID-19 pandemic, how the firm has been able to grow and innovate, and the changing role of technology.
The legal field was transforming even before the coronavirus pandemic upended the business of law and every other industry this year. How has the firm adapted?
Tremonte: Our firm in some ways exists because of changes in the legal industry. We started about 10 years ago when the country was just coming out of the financial crisis and boutiques were just starting to become a little more common, in part as a result of two forces. The startup costs have come down dramatically because of changes in technology. On the demand side, coming out of the crisis, clients were looking for very, very accomplished lawyers but there was pressure to do it efficiently, to deliver high-end legal services efficiently and economically.
Sher: It was our investment in technology early on that allowed us to meet the demands of clients so we could be flexible — offer alternative billing arrangements, for example.
Tremonte: Boutiques have also become attractive alternatives to highly talented younger lawyers particularly coming out of clerkships or out of starting their careers at larger firms or in government service. Very, very talented, highly credentialed, highly motivated younger lawyers now think of boutiques as a viable alternative to the BigLaw pathway.
How do you envision the firm changing in the next few years? What are your goals?
Sher: We expect to continue to grow organically the longer we’re around. We’re going to continue to find ourselves in larger matters. Our challenge is going to be allowing our junior lawyers to get really quick experience and grow while keeping our team small. We’re going to have to pay close attention to make sure that the experience is distributed to all our associates.
Tremonte: You’re going to see, certainly in our shop and maybe across the profession, more flexibility when it comes to working remotely. We’ve found people can be extraordinarily productive and very well integrated even when they’re working remotely. It’s going to help people strike a better balance between work and their family lives.