The Non-Billable Podcast
Lewis Silkin’s Jo Farmer on why two managing partners are better than one
Jo Farmer, joint managing partner of Lewis Silkin, joins the podcast to discuss the firm’s rapid growth and the strategy behind it. She explains why Lewis Silkin has resisted chasing revenue for its own sake, instead focusing on organic growth, its core strengths and expanding into locations where it sees opportunities for both clients and talent. Jo also talks about her own route into law, from growing up without any lawyers in the family to building a career in IP and advertising and eventually becoming joint managing partner. She discusses why social mobility matters so much to her, and why she believes Lewis Silkin’s distinctive history continues to shape the culture of the firm today. We get into leadership too, including why Jo never originally planned to become managing partner, what she learned from studying leadership at Cambridge and Harvard, and why she is a big believer in sharing the top job with fellow joint managing partner Richard Miskella. Finally, Jo shares how Lewis Silkin is approaching AI, from its early adoption of Harvey to building its own employment product, Delphius. Chapters 00:01 Introduction 00:50 Jo’s journey to Lewis Silkin and managing partner 03:46 What makes Lewis Silkin different 08:06 Social mobility and opening up routes into law 10:02 Why Jo never planned to become managing partner 12:25 The case for joint managing partners 16:37 What Harvard taught Jo about leadership 22:47 The strategy behind Lewis Silkin’s rapid growth 30:34 AI, Harvey and the future of the law firm model About Non-Billable Non-Billable is the media company for modern legal professionals across private practice, in-house and legal tech. Visit our website: https://www.nonbillable.co.uk
