# Legal Costs Hard To Cut 

_News_

Canonical: https://www.claimspages.com/news/i655/

The maxim, "you have to spend money to make money" doesn't always apply to the legal profession, which could make it harder for insurers and risk managers to prod their workers' compensation attorneys to improve productivity by upgrading their technology, a recent panel discussion revealed.

Indeed, law firms that are pressured by insurers and risk managers to lay out cash to go high-tech so they can handle more work in less time for their clients are actually being asked to spend more money to make less money, at least in the short term, a top insurer acknowledged.

"The cynical view is there is an expense paradox out there," said Charles O'Connor, assistant vice president of customer communications at Liberty Mutual in Boston. "Lawyers are living on billable hours.

Sources:
- National Underwriter (http://www.nationalunderwriter.com/archives/Pc_archive/2001/P09-24/P200139time_sensitive.asp)