Introduction

Earlier this month, the Financial Times published an article about the dire state of the legal profession ('Lawyers laid low by timesheets', 13 January 2005). Reena Sen Gupta, respected journalist with experience in the legal profession, highlights the rising pressure that today's leading business lawyers face. Its source can supposedly be summarized in one word: timesheets. In that top segment of the profession, timesheets are the typical recording device for a lawyer's activities. They serve as the basis for calculating client bills as well as partner profits and employee ...