Our continuing series on the best practices, best guidance and best advice from South Jersey’s top managers across the region’s business spectrum.

 This Month, we visited with six seasoned South Jersey attorneys and asked them to respond to three questions to help define today’s legal landscape.

The participants:
  Lisa S. Grosskreutz, Esq. of Parker McCay, one of the largest law firms headquartered in South Jersey, has specialized in employment and labor law since 1987. She has counseled numerous private and public sector employers with regard to a wide variety of employment issues, including issues arising under federal and state anti-discrimination laws, “whistleblower” laws, and family and medical leave statutes. She has conducted training of management employees on such topics as sexual harassment and equal employment opportunity compliance, and she has assisted employers in drafting personnel policies and employment manuals. She received her law degree from Seton Hall, and undergraduate degree from Douglass College.
  Robert J. Hagerty, Esq. chairs Capehart Scatchard's Labor and Employment and Environmental/OSHA Group. His practice emphasizes labor and employment law, including all facets of compliance, regulation and litigation. He primarily represents employers in defense of lawsuits claiming age, racial and wage discrimination, sexual harassment, wrongful termination, and whistleblower issues, among others. He received his law degree from Rutgers University School of Law - Camden and his undergraduate degree, cum laude, from the University of Connecticut.
  Lee Hymerling, Esq., who was graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with both undergraduate and law degrees, started with the predecessor of his current firm, Archer & Greiner.  Since coming to the firm in 1970, he founded its matrimonial practice and chaired its matrimonial department for more than 25 years. Also: he chaired the Family Law Committee of the Camden County Bar and the Family Section of the New Jersey State Bar.
  Harvey C. Johnson, Esq., who received graduate degree from the University of Pennsylvania Law School and his undergraduate degree from the University of Delaware, is a partner in WolfBlock's Litigation, Government Law and Real Estate Practice Groups.  He represents major developers such as Pennrose Properties, Michaels Development Corporation and Conifer, assisting them in obtaining the necessary government approvals for large housing development projects. Also: he serves as solicitor to numerous municipalities and entities in South Jersey, including the Camden City Board of Education, the Borough of Chesilhurst, Deptford Township and the Lawnside Board of Education.
  Stephen J. Mushinski, Esq. serves as the chief operating officer of Parker McCay. He practices public sector law, with specific emphasis on New Jersey school law and public sector labor relations law. He represents numerous school districts in South Jersey and has served as bond counsel for several municipal clients throughout New Jersey. He also represents clients in financial and corporate matters, real estate law and land use. He served as Burlington County Solicitor from 1992 through 1995. He received his law degree from Rutgers, and undergraduate degree from the University of Pennsylvania.
  Laura D. Ruccolo, Esq. is in Capehart Scatchard's Commercial Group.  She concentrates her practice on complex civil litigation with emphasis on complex commercial litigation.  Her practice areas also include business disputes, bankruptcy, employment, contracts, creditor's rights and real estate. She received her law degree, with honors, from Rutgers University School of Law - Camden and her undergraduate degree in Business Administration from Rutgers University School of Business.

The Questions and Answers
  Q: Describe the South Jersey marketplace for legal services.
  Grosskreutz: Our marketplace for legal services is rich in opportunity, in light of the number of medium to large-size businesses either starting up or moving into the area. This growth may be attributable to the availability of industrial and office space in South Jersey at lower rates than those charged in North Jersey. South Jersey is home to a variety of public and private sector employers, including numerous small to mid-size companies, large healthcare facilities, and colleges and universities.
  In the past, I believe that these entities sought legal services from large Philadelphia firms, especially with regard to specialized areas of legal practice such as employment law. However, now many large Philadelphia firms are simply pricing themselves out of the market. In addition, I believe that New Jersey companies are turning more frequently to New Jersey firms that offer talent in specialized practice areas and bill at lower rates than large Philadelphia firms and that this trend will continue into the future. There certainly is competition in the legal market in South Jersey, at least in my practice area. I believe that the competition is more intense in North Jersey, in which I previously practiced.
  Hagerty: The marketplace has changed substantially since I began practicing over twenty years ago.  There were few, if any, Philadelphia law firms with established offices in (South Jersey).  I recall acting as local counsel for Philadelphia law firms, something almost unheard of today.  Even though there are many more firms and attorneys in the market today, there appears to be no lack of legal work, particularly in my area, employment law.  The recent spike in large law firm hourly rates has contributed to an increase in my business, as we can provide the same service as large law firms at much more competitive rates.
  Hymerling: I view the South Jersey marketplace for legal services as active, growing and extremely competitive. I have been in practice with Archer & Greiner and its predecessors since 1970 and (we have) grown from approximately 15 lawyers to more than 150 lawyers.  In the early days it was not uncommon for our firm and others to be referred substantial work from our counterparts in Philadelphia and elsewhere.  Such referrals decreased as Philadelphia firms opened New Jersey offices. The South Jersey market is in some ways unique because it still has within it some single practitioners, many smaller firms and several large homegrown firms, in addition to offices from Philadelphia or from elsewhere in New Jersey.
  I practice family law and what has happened with the development of family practice does not entirely mirror other practices.  Family practice is almost exclusively the province of smaller firms or individuals within mid-size firms who focus their energies in divorce, custody, domestic violence and the other ever-growing issues the Family Part of our Superior Court must address.  There are only a few larger firms in South Jersey, ourselves included, who have broad based practices but still have family practitioners. Our practice is extremely competitive and there is a high level of great price sensitivity.
  Johnson: (The) burgeoning marketplace mirrors the increasing pace of development in Camden and Gloucester counties and the urban revitalization occurring in Camden and other areas. WolfBlock represents developers who have constructed housing in Camden worth hundreds of millions of dollars. We also represented developers that helped create the Riverwinds Community Center in West Deptford. In addition, as residents and business owners in South Jersey who are part of the Baby Boomer generation mature, they are often in need of legal representation, and attorneys in WolfBlock's private client services practice have frequently been engaged to draft the necessary documents that can assist clients in transferring their assets to their children and heirs.
  The market for legal services is competitive in South Jersey. Residents and businesses are looking for law firms that can handle all of their affairs and provide comprehensive representation to them in a wide range of matters. As a 300+ lawyer firm with multiple offices, WolfBlock fulfills this need. For example, if a client calls me in need of assistance in connection with approval from a Planning Board, I can easily get the matter handled with one meeting whereas other attorneys at other firms may need two or three meetings in order to obtain the necessary approvals.
  Mushinski: This marketplace for legal services is both active and growing but at the same time, highly competitive. Philadelphia law firms have taken notice of the opportunities in South Jersey, having located branch offices here. We believe that there is significant opportunity for growth in Parker McCay’s legal practice in Burlington, Camden, Gloucester, Salem, Cumberland, Atlantic and Cape May counties. Our firm’s practice is price sensitive. We provide legal services at varying rates depending upon the client and the nature of the services provided. For example, public sector clients have a different rate than private sector clients.
  Ruccolo: The legal market in South Jersey continues to become more saturated and more competitive every year. Law schools continue to produce more lawyers every year. In addition, larger firms from Philadelphia and New York have moved into New Jersey, increasing competition among lawyers.
  Q. Why do you choose to practice in S.J.? How many of your clients are based in S.J.? Could you bill more if your practice were located elsewhere?
  Grosskreutz: At this point, all of my clients are based in South Jersey. I enjoy practicing here because the plaintiffs' and defense employment bars are smaller that they are in North Jersey. As a result, I have dealt with most of the lawyers who primarily practice labor and employment law in South Jersey, and I appreciate the opportunity to get to know both my adversaries and my fellow lawyers who practice defense-side labor and employment law. In addition, I welcome the opportunity to work with public and private sector clients and businesses of all sizes in my South Jersey practice. I found that I tended to work almost exclusively with large private sector clients in my practice in North Jersey. I could perhaps bill at a higher rate if I was with a large North Jersey firm, but I do not believe that the number of hours would increase.
  Hagerty: In a way, South Jersey chose me. I moved here from Connecticut in 1982 to go to Rutgers-Camden Law School, with every intention of returning to New England, if not Connecticut.  As time went on, I grew to appreciate the many advantages to living here, and chose to stay. Now that I have lived here more than half my life, I consider myself to be “from” New Jersey. I enjoy a good mix of local and national clients. If I practiced in Philadelphia or New York, there is no doubt my hourly rates would be higher.
  Hymerling: Having grown up in Princeton in Mercer County, not only did I always want to be a lawyer, but I also always wanted to practice in New Jersey.  It was Archer & Greiner (then Archer, Greiner, Hunter & Reid) that attracted me to South Jersey. My clients come not only from South Jersey but also Central Jersey. Over the years I have become aware that higher fees are routinely charged elsewhere in New Jersey. I am totally convinced, however, the quality of professional life here is preferred to that of some of our northern counties and the environment in this law firm differs sharply from what I perceive to be the environment in other larger firms elsewhere in the state.
  Johnson:  I practice in South Jersey not only because it is an extraordinary place to live but also because it is where I have established an extensive network of relationships. I had the advantage of receiving my education at local schools: Overbrook High School, the University of Delaware and the University of Pennsylvania Law School. My network of contacts reaches back to my time in those institutions. While some of my clients are national corporations, all of my clients were developed through local relationships and through the reputation I developed of providing quality legal work to clients.
  Mushinski: Parker McCay has been located in South Jersey since its inception, originally in Mount Holly and now with our main office in Marlton for the past 25 years. The vast majority of our clients are located in Southern Jersey, although with our branch office in Lawrenceville, we have numerous clients in the middle and northern portions of the State. A location in the northern portion of the state would position us to charge more for legal work.
  Ruccolo: I was born and raised in South Jersey and would not want to practice anywhere else. The majority of my clients are small local businesses, although I represent a few large national institutions that also do business in South Jersey. Billing rates in South Jersey continue to remain reasonable and affordable as compared to Philadelphia and other large cities and even North Jersey.

  Q. Predict two major changes in the practice of law in S.J. five years from now.
  Grosskreutz: As I mentioned, I believe that the number of businesses either starting up or moving to the South Jersey region will continue to increase, for economic reasons. I think that those businesses will rely heavily on South Jersey firms for specialized legal work because they can obtain quality legal services at rates that are more reasonable, as opposed to many large Philadelphia firms.
  Hagerty: I don’t know if I would characterize it as major, but I foresee more court appearances by telephone as the price of gasoline continues to rise.  Our firm is equipped for videoconference depositions, so I believe we will see even more use of that tool.   I also foresee continued consolidation of firms into larger and larger entities.  Give me a call in 2013 and we’ll see how these predictions turn out.
  Hymerling: First, I believe there will be continued consolidation within law firms in South Jersey with smaller practices being absorbed by larger practices and with greater specialization.  The age of a small firm being a total generalist has passed, although there will continue to be some quality boutiques that survive practicing only one kind of law.  The second change I perceive will be a consolidation within New Jersey. New Jersey firms in the south reaching toward the north and firms in the north reaching toward the south. This will not only be a function of the economies of scale but also a function of the uniqueness of the practice within New Jersey.
  Johnson: We operate in a global economy even though we may live and work in South Jersey. The global economy requires that law firms be able to provide legal services to clients throughout the world. The current trend with the legal profession is to create, most often through mergers or acquisitions, national or international law firms that can satisfy the needs of clients wherever they do business, be it in Cherry Hill, Caracas, Kolkata or Copenhagen. I predict that within the next five years, law firms such as WolfBlock will join that trend and become national or even international.
  Secondly, the issues of global warming and the finiteness of our natural resources such as water and oil can no longer be ignored. I suspect that in the next five years, an increasing amount of legal resources will be dedicated to solving those concerns. In South Jersey, the allocation of water from aquifers is already a significant consideration for municipalities. Sewer capacity based on new DEP regulations is a major issue as well. Municipalities and business will look to the legal profession for assistance in guiding them to solutions to these problems.
  Mushinski: We believe that in the next five years, the competition for legal services in South Jersey will expand significantly. While we anticipate growth in South Jersey, that growth will also bring a competition for legal services. We believe that you will see law firms continue to look at Southern New Jersey as a business opportunity. From a practice standpoint, in the next five years, the advent and expansion of the use of electronic filing and communication will change the practice. Demands on attorneys to be readily responsive to clients on an almost 24-hour, 7-day a week basis will increase.
  Ruccolo: I think in the next five years, firms will be more sensitive to lawyer's desire to have a more healthy work/family balance. The larger law firms have already begun a trend of allowing part-time lawyers. Another trend will be more digitalization. Lawyers now deal with enormous amounts of paper. I believe in the next five years, more law firms will rely on computerization to handle that paper. Document exchanges will be on CDs and the State Court filings will be on-line, similar to the system currently used by Federal Courts.