There is widespread apathy in the legal profession towards the government's White Paper on legal service reform, research claimed this week.

Interviews with 50 firms conducted by brand consultants Dragon found that the 'catalyst for change [is] likely to come from outside the sector', in particular from accountancy firms, property consultancies, investment banks and private banks.


Law firms expressed the greatest interest in the opportunities for outside investment, and the possibility of inviting other professionals into the management team as partners.


Keith Wells, director of strategy and planning at Dragon, said: 'Up to 90% of firms we have spoken to are adopting a wait-and-see attitude. But there are real signs of people thinking quite strongly about having different management teams.'


He added that there was little interest in providing commoditised legal services for non-legal companies.