APRIL-JUNE 2026

We know the word “existential” is overused, but…

Many law firms, especially small and midsize ones, are within five years of an existential crisis. Worse yet, many of them are, at best, only vaguely aware of the risks — and opportunities! — just over the horizon.

What will happen when a founding partner of the firm decides to retire? Can the firm survive without them? What are the options and sometimes hard choices that the founder and the “next generation” of partners will have to make?

This issue of Walker Clark Worldnotes examines how law firms can plan for and move through the challenges of a founder’s departure and continue toward a successful future for their firm.