Decision-making in an organization as complex as a law firm -- even a small firm -- is seldom easy. As Iryna Nikitina points out in her book, Decision Making in Law Firms, an already-challenging process can be further hampered by myths, false "best practices," organizational culture, and individual preferences. Ms. Nikitina offers a variety of structures, such as a decision-making pyramid, and practical tools from which any law firm can select the combination that will produce the most efficient and reliable decision methodology for their unique strengths, challenges, and aspirations.
— Norman K. Clark

The author does more than discuss personalities. She also considers structural issues in firms that affect decision-making, including what are the firm’s stated and unstated values, and the different ways in which partners develop a consensus.
— Mark Anderson

Decision Making in Law Firms by Iryna Nikitina is a rare achievement in legal management literature — a work that combines genuine psychological rigour with hard-won practical insight drawn from the author's direct engagement with leading law firms across multiple jurisdictions. Nikitina brings a disciplined, systematic framework to a subject that is all too often addressed through intuition and anecdote, dismantling with precision a remarkable number of entrenched professional stereotypes along the way. The result is nothing less than a full anatomy of how partners actually think, deliberate, and decide — not how they imagine they do. Whether you are a managing partner seeking to strengthen your firm's governance, a senior associate trying to understand the dynamics of the partnership you aspire to join, or a consultant advising professional service organisations, this book will sharpen your thinking and challenge your assumptions in equal measure.
— Volodymyr Sayenko, Partner

Executive summary vii About the author xi Part I: The Anatomy of Decision Making 1 Chapter 1: Common illusions in the decision-making process 3 Dismantling the mythology – how decision making really happens in law firms 3 Debunking decision-making myths – the reality behind the façade 3 Four illusions concealing the truth 6 Chapter 2: A true map of the decision-making journey 7 The decision-making pyramid 7 The internal conflict of partner roles 9 Who really makes decisions in a law firm 12 How decisions are made 16 Informal alliances and backroom decisions in partnerships 21 Multidimensionality – when partnerships have multiple layers 24 Partners and managers – two worlds, one decision 29 Chapter 3: External and internal forces influencing decisions 37 External pressure – when the market dictates decisions 37 Competitors – the race no one declared 42 The decision and its cost – who goes all in 49 Part II: Why Smart People Make Strange Decisions 53 Chapter 4: The psychology of how lawyers decide 55 Individual psychology and decision-making styles in partnerships 55 The myth of the rational lawyer 57 Five decision-making styles – who is who 60 What drives decisions beyond styles 77 Chapter 5: When decision making gets complicated 85 The myth of the pure type 85 The DMA Matrix – where styles collide and combine 86 Finding your own DMA 91 Chapter 6: When synergy + conflict = firm’s identity 107 Team synergy – when 1+1=5 107 When styles collide – the anatomy of partnership conflicts 111 How decision-making styles shape a firm’s identity 117 Part III: Deconstructing the Concept of “Consensus”: How to Achieve Genuine Buy-In, Avoiding Firm Paralysis 125 Chapter 7: The mechanics of partner buy-in 127 The cultural code of“consensus” 127 The partner hierarchy 130 The game of agreement 134 Chapter 8: What true consensus actually means 139 From Cicero to partner meetings 139 Four phases of consensus life 145 The main trap of groupthink 151 Consensus in crisis 157 TRUE consensus – a practical framework 164 Part IV: How Law Firms Choose Their Strategy 179 Chapter 9: The philosophy of partnership 181 The architectural decisions that determine everything – and whether you can change them 181 Meta-choices – the philosophy of partnership 188 Strategic positioning – who we are in the market and for whom 192 Service model – what and how we sell 205 Chapter 10: Organizational model – how the firm is built from within 221 Partnership vs corporation – brotherhood or hierarchy? 221 Personal brands vs the corporate brand 226 Individual achievements vs team results 232 Structural constellations 238 Part V: Decision-Making Timeline 243 Chapter 11: Architectural decisions life cycle 245 Time and transformation – the map of the life cycle 245 The timeline of key decisions 249 When the system stops working 251 Chapter 12: The real time of decisions 257 When decisions should happen – and how to prepare for them 257 The decision calendar in a partnership firm 259 Decision-making matrix – who decides what and when 264 Speaking the language of decision-making styles 272 Appendices 277 Appendix 1: Complexity navigation checklist 277 Appendix 2: Decision cost calculator 279 Appendix 3: Decision maturity self-assessment 280 Appendix 4: Red flags 281 Appendix 5: The 16 types of legal decision makers 282 Appendix 6: Perfect duos and trios 284 Appendix 7: Navigating style conflicts 287 Appendix 8: Team composition optimizer 293 Appendix 9: Ten distortions of consensus 300 Appendix 10: Four phases of consensus life 302 Appendix 11: The 14 strategic dichotomies 305 Appendix 12: Architectural coherence checker 309 Appendix 13: Decision types classification matrix 312 Appendix 14: Firm lifecycle timeline 315 Appendix 15: The annual decision calendar 319 About Globe Law and Business 323