A heavily centralised management structure may increase the number of claims a legal practice receives from clients, it has been warned.

Writing in the Law Gazette, Chris Kirk-Blythe suggests that a number of factors could mean a move towards greater autonomy for employees may reduce the number of Professional Indemnity (PI) claims which need to be made.

The managing director of Manchester Law Society Recruitment & Consultancy states that decisions made at global level could reduce the chance for individuals to make decisions in day-to-day operations.

He adds that clients are becoming increasingly aware of when a heavy reliance on management may be impacting on the quality of service they receive.

"Sophisticated buyers of legal services are starting to latch on to this," he writes.

"They do not like a one-hour meeting with a high-flying partner, followed by a long and painful period of unsatisfactory service from a disenfranchised and unmotivated assistant solicitor."

Mr Kirk-Blythe urges firms to place a greater level of trust in their employees and their ability to make decisions independently.

Meanwhile, maintaining a distance between management and employees may not be wise, according to the author.

He argues that placing management "in ivory towers" can reduce the ease with which communication takes place.

This could eliminate the chance for problems and complaints to be reported up the hierarchy, he adds, resulting in an increase in PI claims.

"A preponderance or excess of managerial techniques, solutions and personnel could be one of the biggest barriers to profitability over the next decade or so," he concludes.